Lisa Rinna isn’t convinced that Mitch McConnell is alive following a mysterious hospitalization that has kept him away from the public eye for weeks.
“I mean, come on, Mitch McConnell’s dead,” Rinna, 62, said via a TikTok video posted on Tuesday, July 7. “He’s dead.”
The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star then compared McConnell’s lack of transparency about his illness — and retreat from the spotlight — as that of the plot for the 1989 film Weekend at Bernie’s.
“They’re keeping him alive like Weekend at Bernie’s,” Rinna claimed, shaking her head at the camera as if to say there’s no other explanation.
Weekend at Bernie’s is a dark comedy starring Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman, who try and pass off their murdered boss as still being alive by dressing him up, putting on sunglasses and throwing parties and hanging at the beach with his body.
Rinna was referring to the movie’s story line of keeping Bernie Lomax’s (Terry Kiser) death a secret by hiding it in plain sight after McConnell, 84, faced a series of health issues in recent months.
“Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital,” McConnell’s office said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday, seemingly reassuring fans that McConnell is alive. “The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session.”
In February, the Kentucky senator was hospitalized after experiencing “flu-like symptoms,” which McConnell’s team told Us in a statement was done out of “an abundance of caution.”
“His prognosis is positive and he is grateful for the excellent care he is receiving. He is in regular contact with his staff and looks forward to returning to Senate business,” the spokesperson explained at the time.
Less than four months later, McConnell experienced another seemingly more serious health scare which led to his current hospitalization.
Multiple news outlets reported on July 1 that McConnell was found “unconscious” at his Washington, D.C. home on June 14.
The New York Post reported that emergency service personnel said in the dispatch audio that there was “CPR in progress” for a “cardiac arrest” at the house.
“Senator McConnell is still working closely with staff on Senate business and Kentucky matters as he continues his recovery. However, he will not be voting this week,” spokesperson Stephanie Penn said in an email to People earlier this month.
According to Senate records, McConnell hasn’t voted since June 11.
Amid his absence, rumors have swirled about what exactly is going on with the former Senate Majority Leader. Laura Loomer, a right-wing activist, for example, has claimed that McConnell is brain dead amid his hospitalization.
“Mitch McConnell is brain dead and hooked up to machines!!!” she alleged via X on Tuesday, July 7. “He is 84 years old and was found unconscious and needed to be resuscitated.”
That same day, McConnell’s team shared an update about the politician’s health, casting doubt on her claims.
The statement, however, hasn’t stopped the conspiracies and rumors from spreading. In fact, Meghan McCain called for transparency about McConnell on Tuesday via X.
“Senator McConnell’s staff owes it to the American public to give a real update on his health or show us some kind of proof of life,” McCain, 41, wrote. “All of this is unseemly, macabre, bad for democracy and quite frankly embarrassing for the country.”
CNN analyst Scott Jennings, meanwhile, claimed on Tuesday that he’s spoken with McConnell recently.
“He’s still recovering in the hospital. We talked for just shy of 20 minutes … about IRAN, UKRAINE, the unfolding situation in MAINE, my visit to the TR Presidential Library and even a little bit of Senate history,” Jennings, 48, tweeted. “I told him we want to see him back at work as soon as possible.”
McConnell has been representing Kentucky in the Senate since 1985 and is currently in his seventh term. He announced in 2025 that he didn’t plan to seek reelection in 2026.
