Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley told Fox News that it was “sad” to see Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-K.Y., being shuffled into work and struggling to perform simple tasks because of clear mental health issues.
McConnell became catatonic Wednesday when answering questions about his 2026 reelection ambitions — the second time he’s frozen and become stupefied in public just this summer.
Haley said his health decline — along with the noticeable decline in mental capacity of Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and John Fetterman, D-P.A., and President Joe Biden — is something no one should feel good about.
She said the U.S. Senate has become the “most privileged nursing home in the country.”
“It’s sad,” she said. “No one should feel good about seeing that any more than we should feel good about seeing Dianne Feinstein, any more than we should feel good about a lot of what’s happening or seeing Joe Biden’s decline.”
“What I will say is, right now the Senate is the most privileged nursing home in the country. I mean, Mitch McConnell has done some great things and he deserves credit,” Haley said. “But you have to know when to leave.”
Haley repeated her call for strict term limits and for lawmakers to undergo regular cognitive testing.
“That is why I’m strongly in support of term limits in this country,” she said. “I think that we do need mental competency tests for anyone over the age of 75.”
That would include both President Joe Biden and Haley’s rival for the Republican presidential primary, former President Donald Trump.
“I wouldn’t care if they did them over the age of 50. but these people are making decisions on our national security. They’re making decisions on our economy, on the border,” Haley continued.
“We need to know they’re at the top of their game. You can’t say that right now looking at Congress.”
“We need to start getting new faces, new voices, younger generations involved in our government. And we need to have everybody else understand when it’s time to go,” Haley said.
Take a look —
Nikki Haley: "The Senate is the most privileged nursing home in the country." pic.twitter.com/HSIDNdXfhe
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) September 1, 2023
The Horn editorial team