Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is openly questioning Sen. Mitch McConnell’s extended absence from Congress, saying she cannot understand how such a lengthy disappearance by an elected official is being treated as routine.

Speaking with a reporter outside the U.S. Capitol, Ocasio-Cortez expressed disbelief over McConnell’s continued absence from the Senate.

“I mean, this is — I don’t even know how this is legal. I really don’t even know how this is legal at this point. And it — I just find it shocking,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “And how is everyone pretending this is normal? This is not normal. This is not normal, at all.”

The New York Democrat also referenced the extended absence of another Republican lawmaker, widely understood to be Rep. Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey, though she did not mention him by name.

“First of all, how is it that we have sitting elected members of Congress going missing for months at a time when, especially right now when the margin — margin in the Senate are razor-thin, the margins in the House are razor-thin,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Every single person’s absence here has country-altering implications.”

While acknowledging that lawmakers can face legitimate medical issues, she argued that there comes a point when prolonged absences become unacceptable.

“There’s a line here, and I think almost everyone can agree that it’s been crossed.”

Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks come after weeks of questions surrounding McConnell’s health and whereabouts following his hospitalization on June 14.

McConnell, 84, has not cast a vote in the Senate for more than a month. On Sunday, he addressed the speculation by releasing a statement accompanied by a photograph of himself in the hospital with his wife.

In the statement, McConnell said his absence stemmed from injuries suffered in a fall, as well as a mild case of pneumonia.

“As much as it frustrates me, this process takes time. And on the advice of my doctors, I won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet,” he wrote in a Sunday statement shared with The Hill.

Despite that explanation, questions have continued to circulate regarding his condition.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., fueled some of that speculation on Monday when he questioned how recently the hospital photograph had been taken, though he later walked back those comments.

McConnell’s prolonged hospitalization, combined with the recent death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has complicated President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, particularly efforts to advance a $1.5 trillion defense spending package.

As chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, McConnell oversees legislation involving Pentagon funding. Without his vote, Republicans could face an uphill battle in passing the defense package unless they secure support from Democratic senators.

{Matzav.com}