FILE PHOTO: U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense Chair Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S, May 19, 2026. REUTERS/Tom Brenner/File Photo
There is an ongoing debate about whether former Senate Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is alive or dead, but one local Kentucky reporter thinks there's something else going on.
Gov. Andy Beshear (D-Ky.) again asked for proof of life more definitive than a photo that could be easily edited or generated by artificial intelligence. The senator's office continues to ignore the governor, who said he hasn't heard a word from them or from McConnell himself.
Reporter Al Cross told CNN’s Kasie Hunt he thinks McConnell is just being a cantankerous old man.
"Well, I said that he cherishes his independence, and he could easily resolve this matter, but you know, he’s just being a little cranky and pugnacious here in the twilight of his career," said Cross.
Cross thinks that McConnell is trying to go out "the way I want to do it," as he's wont to do.
"He’s always been pretty private about his health and so on," Cross recalled. "So, it’s not really a big surprise. You know, I wish he would give us a short video and put all this misinformation to rest. But he’s going out the way he wants to go out. I guess you got to give him a little grace for that."
The other part of the story, Cross said, is that Beshear is under pressure from the left to do something, when he's completely powerless to do anything. Instead, Cross said he's letting McConnell "stew in his own juice."
The only option for Bashear is to storm the hospital to see McConnell with his own eyes and call for a special election.
"It would be silly to try to appoint somebody to a seat that’s not vacant, as some people have suggested," Cross said. "So, he’s trying to get off the back foot here as a presidential candidate and look forceful. So this is the most forceful talk that we have seen from him yet. And you basically say, put up or resign. Uh, that’s very tough."