The talented Mr. McConnell

Really, he’s fine.

“One of life’s most unappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter.” – Sen. Mitch McConnell.

That may be true. It may also be true that some people have more of this talent than others. Mitch McConnell isn’t one of them.

 Last March, McConnell was hospitalized after falling down at a fundraiser where there were no stairs in the immediate vicinity. 

 In July, he froze up at the podium while concerned aides had to restrain themselves from slapping him back to sentience.

 In August, Mitch again went blank at the lectern, staring into infinity like a Disney robot on the fritz.

If McConnell had a talent for knowing when to shuffle off to Louisville, he’s kept it pretty well hidden. Only now is he ready to throw in the towel. And really, not even now: He’ll still be minority leader until the election, and he’ll still be a senator until his term ends in 2027. It’ll be interesting to see how many falls and fugue states we witness until then.

Some may be tempted to cast the doddering McConnell as one of the last sane Republicans alive, and therefore worthy of respect and/or sympathy. Nope. This is the man who straight up cheated Obama out of a moderate Supreme Court pick (Merrick Garland) and then rammed through two Trump sycophants: the supremely unqualified Brett Kavanaugh and noted religious zealot Amy Coney Barrett.  He blithely changed Senate rules to get Neil Gorsuch confirmed on a simple majority vote.

McConnell is no kind of elder statesman. He’s just elderly. There’s a reason he’s the least popular guy in the Senate by a wide margin. He’s always been a vampire who feeds on power. Like the ancient vampires of legend, he’s always done whatever it takes to maintain the supply.  If he’s got one demonstrable talent, that’s it. 

Pretty sure that’s the same sort of creature who will replace him – the GOP being what it is today. Still, we should all be happy to see him go.