2026年8月5日 美国东部时间10:29 / 福克斯新闻
共和党仅余一张关键票仓，苏珊·柯林斯反对布兰奇的提名，另有三名议员持观望态度
作者：亚历克斯·米勒，福克斯新闻
【现场直击】共和党议员就麦康奈尔相关问题产生分歧，塔维弗洛要求明确时间表，肯尼迪为党首辩护
参议员汤米·塔维弗洛表示，随着关键投票临近，参议院需要就米奇·麦康奈尔的健康状况给出说法，而参议员约翰·肯尼迪则驳斥相关猜测，称同僚们应该“别再打扰米奇”。（图源：尼古拉斯·巴拉西为福克斯新闻数字频道拍摄）
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本可能决定参议员米奇·麦康奈尔参议院任期的截止日期已经过去，而这位肯塔基州共和党人的返岗时间仍未确定。
外界围绕8月3日展开了诸多猜测，及其对麦康奈尔日渐式微的参议院任期的影响。要知道，他自6月初以来就未公开露面，且已计划在今年年底退休。
一些所谓的选举“事后诸葛亮”称，本周一（8月3日）本应是民主党籍肯塔基州州长安迪·贝希尔召集特别选举填补麦康奈尔空缺的日子。
麦康奈尔已出院，但仍未获得返回参议院的“医疗许可”
2026年3月4日，肯塔基州共和党参议员米奇·麦康奈尔在华盛顿特区美国国会大厦参议院地铁通道中被轮椅推行。（图源：格雷姆·斯隆/彭博社 via 盖蒂图片社）
但这位资深共和党议员并未空出席位，贝希尔则表示，这个不起眼的截止日期并无真正的法律约束力。
“我知道很多人都在好奇8月3日对可能出现的参议院席位空缺有何意义，”贝希尔在X平台上写道，“我想让所有人都知道，如果今年出现席位空缺，这个日期不会对我的可选方案产生任何法律影响。”
不过，肯塔基州的参议院继任法近年来经历了重大修改。如果这个“蓝草之州”突然出现参议院席位空缺，贝希尔将无法像其他州那样直接任命继任者——这一点最近在南卡罗来纳州参议员林赛·格雷厄姆突然去世时得到了验证。
柯林斯否决特朗普提名的司法部部长人选，危及提名确认之路
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6402496253112
这意味着，如果麦康奈尔的席位出现空缺，贝希尔必须召集特别选举来填补他剩余的任期。
当被问及此事置评时，麦康奈尔的办公室指示福克斯新闻数字频道查阅参议员7月27日发布的最新声明，其中详细说明根据医生的建议，他目前仍未获得返回参议院的“医疗许可”。
“我仍在努力恢复，以重返参议院和肯塔基州的全部工作行程，谨遵医嘱进行高强度的物理治疗，”麦康奈尔说道。
尽管贝希尔承认周一在替换麦康奈尔一事上并无法律意义，但他指出，麦康奈尔的缺席正在阻碍特朗普政府当前及未来的议程推进。
“值得提醒的是：现在，拯救法案、特朗普对伊朗的战争，或是替换最高法院大法官的相关提案，都少了一张支持票，”他说道。
尽管在《拯救美国法案》上公开争执，特朗普仍持续致电图恩
2026年7月15日，代理司法部长托德·布兰奇在华盛顿特区德克森参议院办公楼出席针对其司法部长提名的参议院司法委员会确认听证会。（图源：阿纳多卢通讯社 via 盖蒂图片社）
参议院正在这位史上任职时间最长的共和党党首缺席的情况下推进工作。不过，他缺席的数十次投票目前并未完全阻碍立法进程。
但在八月休会前紧张收尾工作的冲刺阶段，他的一票可能比以往任何时候都更为关键。
目前还有三名共和党议员对布兰奇的提名持观望态度。
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值得注意的是，总统唐纳德·特朗普对代理司法部长托德·布兰奇的提名岌岌可危，部分原因就在于麦康奈尔不在场。缅因州共和党参议员苏珊·柯林斯已宣布将投反对票，这意味着共和党在布兰奇获得司法部领导职位的道路上仅剩一张关键票。
“我不知道那些议员会怎么做，我只是……米奇还在养病，”路易斯安那州共和党参议员约翰·肯尼迪告诉福克斯新闻数字频道，“但我认为他会获得确认。本周我们还有很多工作要做。”
亚历克斯·米勒是福克斯新闻数字频道驻美国参议院记者
McConnell’s absence puts Trump agenda at risk as Kentucky succession questions grow
August 5, 2026 10:29am EDT / Fox News
Republicans have only 1 vote to spare as Susan Collins opposes Blanche’s confirmation, 3 more remain on the fence
By Alex Miller, Fox News
SEE IT: GOP senators split on McConnell questions as Tuberville seeks timeline, Kennedy defends leader
Sen. Tommy Tuberville says Senate needs answers on Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health as key votes approach, while Sen. John Kennedy dismisses speculation and says colleagues should “leave Mitch alone.” (Credit: Nicholas Ballasy for Fox News Digital)
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A deadline that could have determined Sen. Mitch McConnell’s future in the Senate has come and gone as the timeline for the Kentucky Republican’s return remains in the air.
Speculation swirled over Aug. 3 and its ramifications for McConnell’s winnowing tenure in the Senate, given that he’s been absent from the public eye since early June and is slated to retire at the end of this year.
Armchair election quarterbacks suggested that Monday was the day for Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, to have called a special election to replace McConnell.
MCCONNELL OUT OF HOSPITAL, STILL NOT ‘MEDICALLY CLEARED’ TO RETURN TO SENATE
Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, is pushed in a wheelchair in the Senate Subway of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026.(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
But the longtime Republican has not vacated his seat, and Beshear contended that the obscure deadline had no real legal teeth.
“I know there are a lot of folks wondering about the significance of August 3 regarding a potential Senate vacancy,” Beshear said on X. “I want everyone to know that this date has no legal impact on my options should there be a vacancy this year.”
Still, Kentucky’s Senate succession law has undergone major changes in recent years. Should the Bluegrass State suddenly have a vacant seat in the upper chamber, Beshear wouldn’t be allowed to appoint a replacement as is the case in other states — this was most recently put to the test when Sen. Lindsey Graham suddenly died in South Carolina.
COLLINS DROPS THE HAMMER ON TRUMP’S PICK TO LEAD DOJ, JEOPARDIZING PATH TO CONFIRMATION
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6402496253112
That means if McConnell’s seat were to become vacant, Beshear would be required to call a special election to fill his remaining time in the Senate.
When asked for comment on the matter, McConnell’s office directed Fox News Digital to the last statement from the senator, released on July 27, that detailed under doctors’ orders that he was not “medically cleared” to return to the Senate quite yet.
“I’m still working hard to get back to my full schedule of work in the Senate and in Kentucky, keeping up with intense physical therapy per my doctors’ orders,” McConnell said.
Despite the acknowledgment that Monday meant little legally when it came to replacing McConnell, Beshear noted that his absence is hindering current and future agenda items for the Trump administration.
“Worth a reminder: Right now, there’s one less vote for the SAVE Act, Trump’s war with Iran, or the potential replacement of a SCOTUS justice,” he said.
TRUMP KEEPS CALLING THUNE DESPITE PUBLIC FIGHT OVER SAVE AMERICA ACT
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for his nomination to be attorney general at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., on July 15, 2026.(Anadolu via Getty Images)
And the Senate is chugging along without the longest-serving Republican leader in history. However, his missing dozens of votes hasn’t necessarily stopped legislation so far.
But during the dizzying sprint to wrap up work ahead of a scheduled break during August, his vote could count more than ever.
There are three Republicans who are on the fence about Blanche, too.
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Notably, President Donald Trump’s nomination of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is hanging by a thread, in part, because McConnell is not there. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, announced her intention to vote against him, leaving Republicans with only one vote to spare before his path to leading the Department of Justice closes.
“I don’t know what those individuals are going to do, and I just… Mitch is still out,” Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Fox News Digital. “But I think he’ll be confirmed. And we’ve got a lot of work to do this week.”
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
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