BREAKING: Elaine Chao Flew to Beijing to Meet China’s Vice President Just 3 Days After McConnell’s

Описание: BREAKING: Elaine Chao Flew to Beijing to Meet China’s Vice President Just 3 Days After McConnell’s Cardiac Arrest

While Mitch McConnell was fighting to recover in a Washington hospital, his wife was 7,000 miles away meeting with one of China’s most powerful officials.

McConnell, 84, was rushed to the hospital on June 14 after paramedics were dispatched to his Washington home. Emergency dispatch audio, first revealed by journalist Desiree Townsend, indicated he had suffered a heart attack, and reports described the senator being found unconscious with CPR administered at the scene.

Three days later, on June 17, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao was in Beijing. Photos circulating in Chinese media show Chao sitting across from Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, reportedly discussing efforts to strengthen China-U.S. relations. Chao holds no official government position, which makes the diplomatic nature of the meeting all the more unusual.

The timing has only deepened the questions surrounding McConnell’s condition, which his office has gone to great lengths to avoid answering. His representatives have not publicly disclosed a diagnosis. The only confirmed facts are that he was hospitalized, has remained under medical care, and is said to be recovering.

The Daily Beast pressed the senator’s office directly, asking for the dates of Chao’s travel to and from China and the nature and purpose of any meetings held during the visit. The questions went unanswered.

Medical experts say the silence may be hiding a far more serious situation. Dr. Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, warned that McConnell’s condition could be more serious than his team is letting on, noting that most patients who survive CPR after a heart attack are not able to “take care of their bodily needs.”

Kentucky Democrat Charles Booker, who is running for the seat, questioned whether the senator was attempting to hide the severity of his medical situation and whether he remains capable of serving in office. After four decades of McConnell wielding power behind closed doors, Kentuckians are once again being asked to accept vague statements while the real story unfolds in Beijing.