McConnell's wife, Elaine Chao, saw no need for 'immediate return' from China as former GOP leader hospitalized

Former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao went to China and stayed there, while her husband, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was hospitalized.

Though his condition remains a mystery as rumors swirl, a spokesperson for Chao told Fox News Digital that it was not grave enough for her to cancel the trip.

"The secretary was on a long-planned trip in China to support her family's philanthropic endeavors," the spokesperson said. "During the trip, she met with a number of people, including the U.S. ambassador. The Senator's health did not warrant an immediate return to the U.S."

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Chao has since returned to the U.S. while McConnell has entered his third week of hospitalization. But what exactly his current condition is and a timetable for his return to the Senate have not been made clear.

His office is keeping mum on what exactly is going on with the 84-year-old longest-serving Senate Republican leader in history, who is expected to retire at the end of his term this year. Instead, the void has been filled by an online rumor pumping speculation into what exactly is going on with the lawmaker.

Laura Loomer, a conservative commentator, claimed that a "high level source close to the White House" said McConnell was "brain dead" and that the lawmaker "isn’t ever coming back."

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The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Loomer’s claims.

Her claim followed leaked audio from an emergency dispatch from a call on June 14, the day McConnell was sent to the hospital, that revealed that the longtime Senate Republican was "unconscious" and may have suffered a heart attack.

When asked about the veracity of Loomer’s claims, McConnell’s office shared with Fox News Digital the same statement it released a week prior.

"Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital," a McConnell spokesperson said. "The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session."

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Meanwhile, Senate Republican leaders are working to quash the rumor cycle. Both Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said they were on the phone with McConnell in the last 48 hours — the last time that both top Republicans publicly said they had spoken with McConnell was a handful of days after his hospitalization.

A spokesperson for Thune said that the pair spoke by phone on Monday, and that they had "a lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security."

And Barrasso spokeswoman Kate Noyes said the No. 2 Senate Republican and McConnell spoke at length early Tuesday afternoon.

"Their phone call lasted roughly 20 minutes. They caught up about the latest news impacting Senate races, the Graham Platner scandal, and the recent Supreme Court ruling on coordinated spending limits," Noyes said.

"They also discussed the Senate’s July work period, including the need to pass the NDAA and confirm President Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence," she continued. "Senator McConnell was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate."