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Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel took to social media over the weekend to troll Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., following speculation about his health over a recent hospitalization.
Kimmel is currently on summer break from hosting his show on ABC but took to Instagram to take a jab anyway, mimicking a “proof of life” photo released by McConnell’s team, as reported by Variety.
The 84-year-old McConnell was hospitalized on June 14. To quell online speculation about his current status, which peaked following the sudden death on Saturday of fellow Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, his office released a photo of McConnell and his wife, Elaine Chao, holding a current newspaper.
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Kimmel spoofed the photo by replacing McConnell’s head with his own and adding the caption: “For those who’ve been asking, I’m feeling great.” Some progressives applauded the joke, with Texas Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett commenting, “you NEVER miss!”
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In a statement released by his team alongside the photo, McConnell wrote that a fall he suffered last month, combined with his childhood battle with polio, contributed to his recent health struggles.
In a letter addressed to his constituents, McConnell wrote, “My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages.”
“But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia,” McConnell added.
He also confirmed he won’t be able to return to the Senate floor for votes as he recovers, but that he’s been working closely with his legislative staff, ending with, “I’ll keep working hard to get back on the Senate floor as soon as possible. And I’ll keep you posted on the progress of my recovery. Until then, I’m so grateful for your prayers and well wishes.”
The joke follows several recent controversies involving Kimmel and Republican figures. Earlier this year, Kimmel made a joke about former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, saying he “rose from the grave to weigh in on the ongoing drama involving me.” Days later, Giuliani was hospitalized with pneumonia.
Kimmel also faced criticism over his jokes about Republicans, teasing that first lady Melania Trump had the “glow like an expectant widow” during a fake White House Correspondents’ Dinner parody in April. Only days later, at the real event, a gunman rushed a Secret Service checkpoint, shooting one officer in his ballistic vest. Kimmel defended the joke as a “light roast” poking fun at the pair’s age difference.
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The late-night host was also briefly pulled off the air last fall for his comments in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination in Utah.
In those comments last Sept. 15, he said, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”
Upon his return to the air, Kimmel said it was “never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man.”
