U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY), in a Senate Agriculture Committee meeting Washington, D.C., U.S., September 16, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Before Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) fell and ended up in the hospital for 56 days this year before he went home for another few weeks to recover. Before the tumble, however, there were signs that led many to question whether McConnell was okay. Now there's another lawmaker prompting concerns.
The Bulwark reported that Iowans are wondering what would happen if Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) died in office. While the report speaks with those on the ground, it also reveals some shocking details about the senator's well-being.
On Dec. 20, Grassley will become the second-oldest senator ever. The only one older was late Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.), who retired at 100, five months before his death.
After Grassley underwent hip surgery in 2023, some of the "missteps and embarrassments" began. Ones "that often accompany old age," said The Bulwark.
In an incident last year, headlines read, "GOP Senator, 92, Gives Nonsensical Answer to Journo’s Simple Question," after Grassley gave a rambling response to a reporter's simple question. Grassley was asked about Judge James Boasberg, who is still in a battle with the White House over his court orders being violated in 2025. Grassley began commenting about having documents and information on the people who come before his Senate Judiciary Committee. He repeated the same statement twice before Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) stepped in.
Bulwark reporter Joe Perticone said that he spoke with a TV producer who recalled another embarrassing moment a few years ago. Grassley and his staff arrived for an interview, but instead of speaking with the reporter or producer, Grassley began talking to his own staffer as if she was the reporter.
"Following an uncomfortable pause, the staffer corrected Grassley and pointed him to the journalist," Perticone wrote, relaying the story.
A one-off doesn't make a crisis, but as with President Donald Trump, a pattern of incidents becomes a theme.
"The more frequently stories like this get passed around, the sooner an aging lawmaker starts to cause concerns among his colleagues. And perhaps just as importantly, these types of stories ring true to anyone who has watched a parent or grandparent struggle in their old age," wrote Perticone.
One local Mason City GOP activist, Gerry Keller, told Perticone that he chatted with Grassley at an August barbecue.
"I asked him if he was gonna run again,” Keller said. “He said, ‘I’m not gonna decide until after this election cycle’s over.’ But I don’t know, I got a feeling he wants to run again.”
The latest round of hearings with former special counsel Jack Smith was another instance of Grassley reading his opening statement directly from his paper. While that's not unusual, Grassley appeared to do the same thing with his questioning. At one point he caught himself from asking a question that didn't make sense given the previous answer.
In May 2026, Grassley similarly fumbled with reading his statement before a Senate committee hearing.
It's a noticeable change in Grassley, who once joked that he should read scripts more often so he wouldn't get in so much trouble.
“I’m not in Hollywood, where you’re given a script to read,” Grassley told Politico in 2009. “You know, maybe that’s what’s wrong with me — I don’t read off what my press secretary says.”
Perticone cited a recent NPR/PBS News/Marist poll showing that about 80 percent of Americans agree there should be an age limit for members of Congress.