Republican senator Mitch McConnell returns to Capitol Hill after months-long hiatus while recovering from fall – live
McConnell returns to Congress to vote for the first time in several months and says in a statement, ‘I’m really looking forward to being back on the Senate floor’
Mitch McConnell returns to Senate after long absence
Mitch McConnell, the 84-year-old former Senate majority leader from Kentucky, was seen in Washington for the first time in months on Monday, minutes before his office released a statement saying that he was back at work.
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he → return → work
McConnell said in a statement that his months‑long absence for health reasons, which fueled rampant online speculation that he might be incapacitated, or worse, was over.
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he → say → speculation
“Today, I’ll cast my first Senate vote since I took a bad fall back in June.
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I → cast → June
I’m really looking forward to being back on the Senate floor and seeing my colleagues,” the statement began.
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statement → look → colleagues
“My recovery has been a long and often frustrating process, and the lingering effects of childhood polio haven’t made it any easier.
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it → linger → polio
I’m still not quite back to 100%, but I’ve assured Leader Thune that, as I continue with physical therapy on the advice of my doctors, I will do my best to be present for tough votes when our Conference needs me,” he continued.
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he → ’m → me
“Elaine and I are very grateful for all the continued well wishes from our fellow Kentuckians, and I’m glad to get back to more of business as usual on their behalf this month,” the statement added, with a reference to his wife, Elaine Chao, a former cabinet secretary in the first Trump administration whose reported visit to her native China had also been the focus of speculation online from McConnell’s critics on the left and the far-right.
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visit → continue → left
Video of McConnell being moved from his Washington DC home in a wheelchair was posted on social media by one of his critics on the Maga right, the Kentucky influencer Nick Sortor, with the caustic comment: “This dude is in NO shape to be a US Senator.”
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dude → move → shape
After Trump says he likes Flock surveillance cameras, Montana Senate candidate responds: 'Flock off, man'
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candidate → say → cameras
One day after Donald Trump expressed support for AI-powered Flock surveillance cameras, “because of law enforcement”, Seth Bodnar, a former president of the University of Montana who is mounting a strong campaign for the US Senate as an independent candidate, responded to the president on social media with a video of himself saying, “Flock off, man,” before shooting one of the cameras.
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himself → express → cameras
“Are you tired of security cameras watching your every move?” Bodnar asks at the start of the campaign video that shows him loading a rifle and destroying two cameras.
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him → watch → cameras
“Now the whole thing isn’t just creepy as hell, it’s also part of a massive economy designed to buy and sell our personal data.
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it → ’ → data
Now, we’ve known for years that Big Tech follows us online, but now these Flock cameras are literally tracking our every move,” Bodnar continues.
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Bodnar → know → move
“And all this data needs a place to live, so that’s why they want to build data centers right in our backyards.
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they → need → backyards
"They are all getting rich, and we’re getting screwed, and nobody is holding them accountable,” the candidate, who is second to his Republican rival in a recent poll, says before taking aim at one of the cameras and blasting it.
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who → get → it
Trump, who dodged a question about Flock cameras last month amid a bipartisan backlash, was asked on Sunday by Beni Harmony, a correspondent for the far-right network Real America’s Voice, if he agreed with law enforcement officers who support the network of over 100,000 cameras.
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who → dodge → cameras
“I sort of like them because of that, because of law enforcement, but some people don’t, they think it’s an infringement,” Trump told Harmony, a former spokesperson for two far-right Republican congressmen, Paul Gosar and Matt Gaetz.
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Trump → like → congressmen
“They help catch a lot of criminals,” Harmony interjected.
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Harmony → help → criminals
“But I like them,” Trump concluded.
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Trump → like → them
Harmony, who began her media career as a producer for Turning Point USA, achieved viral fame in right-wing media last year after she claimed that she had been suspended by a local news station in 2025 for an on-air tribute to Charlie Kirk after his death.
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she → begin → death
Speaking on the US Senate floor on Monday, Chuck Schumer, the senior Senate Democrat, scoffed at Donald Trump’s claim that he could personally regulate AI, amid concerns that the advanced technology could pose an existential threat to humanity.
“The warning signs about AI’s rapid pace have never been clearer,” Schumer said.
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Schumer → speak → pace
“But what is President Trump’s response to the recent calls for the government to regulate AI – even from industry leaders?
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government → regulate → leaders
Trump says, ‘the only control or guardrails that AI needs is a strong and smart high IQ president.’”
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AI → say → that
Congress cannot afford to turn a blind eye to AI,” the New York Democrat continued.
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Democrat → afford → AI
“Today, I’m calling for an all-Senators classified briefing with top administration officials to address the dangers of unchecked AI development and hold the administration accountable for its lack of action to protect the American people.”
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administration → call → people
Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, condemned the Trump administration’s reported plan to repeal rules limiting carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, which were introduced by the Biden administration, a clear case of corruption.
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which → condemn → corruption
“It’s simple”, the senator posted on social media, with a link to a Washington Post report on the planned rollback of regulations on emissions of climate changing gas.
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senator → ’ → gas
“Big Oil & Big Coal give millions to help get Trump elected.
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Trump → give → millions
He lets them pollute more.
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them → let → more
You get dirtier air, extreme heat, flooding, & droughts.”
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You → get → air
“Trump’s trading away your health & safety to pad his donors’ pockets,” Van Hollen added.
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Hollen → trade → pockets
“Polluters win, Trump wins, you lose.”
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you → win → ?
Donald Trump has claimed there is a “SICK conspiracy” against artificial intelligence and data centers in response to the growing calls for greater checks on AI development.
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Trump → claim → development
“The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!”
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U.S.A. → need → spades
Trump wrote on Truth Social, insisting that the administration has stopped leaders of AI companies from “doing bad, or potentially bad” things.
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administration → write → things
This comes after a number of AI company CEOs called for the advancement of the technology to slow down.
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number → come → technology
House speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Capitol Hill that the White House will schedule a meeting with artificial intelligence executives either by the “end of this week or early next week”.
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House → tell → week
However, the speaker said that while the legislative branch could have “a role” moving forward, he did not want to act “irrationally or haphazardly”.
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he → say → role
He added: “If you do that, then you lose your edge, and that is a national security concern for the American people.”
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that → add → people
Meanwhile, vice-president JD Vance told reporters todaythat he doesn’t think Americans “should be scared of anything” when it comes to concerns about AI regulation.
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it → tell → regulation
…and 106 more, not listed.
The Aporia
