Former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao traveled to China days after her husband, ex-GOP Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, was hospitalized following a reported cardiac event.
McConnell was hospitalized on June 14 after emergency responders were dispatched to his Washington, D.C., residence for a reported cardiac arrest, according to emergency dispatch audio. His office confirmed his hospitalization but has released limited details about his condition or recovery timeline.
Chao’s Overseas Visits
Chao visited Shanghai Jiao Tong University on June 12, two days before McConnell’s hospitalization, where she and her father donated historical photographs to a memorial hall named after her late mother. The university said the Chao family has maintained philanthropic ties to the institution for decades.
On June 16, two days after McConnell’s hospitalization, the Chinese People’s Institute of Foreign Affairs announced that Chao met with its president, Wu Ken, in Beijing to discuss U.S.-China relations. The following day, China’s embassy announced that Chao met with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, with both sides discussing efforts to strengthen bilateral relations.
Chinese officials did not indicate that Chao’s trip involved any official U.S. government business, and Chao has no authority to negotiate matters on behalf of the U.S. government.
McConnell’s Condition
“Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital,” his office said in a statement. “The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session.”
Dr. Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School assistant professor, said patients requiring CPR following cardiac arrest often face extended recovery periods. “If it does work and we can restart their heart and their heart is beating spontaneously, that begins a long road to recovery, even for the healthiest of patients,” Faust said on CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront. “So when you have a person who is elderly and who has other underlying medical conditions, it’s really concerning.”