Republican Texas Rep. Kay Granger’s constituents noticed she hadn’t voted in six months, so a local newspaper went looking for her. They found her in a nursing home.
Granger’s absence spurred questions from her Tarrant County and Parker County, Texas voting base about why she hadn’t voted during the crucial continuing resolution battle.
The Dallas Express visited Granger’s Texas offices and found them empty. “We found the door locked, front door glass window covered, no one inside, and no sign of the office continuing to be occupied,” the paper wrote.
An employee of the office park told the paper Granger’s staff had cleared the office out and vacated before Thanksgiving, the paper reported.
They then received a tip that Granger was living in an assisted living facility after she had “been found wandering lost and confused in her former Cultural District/West 7th neighborhood.”
An employee of the senior living facility confirmed to the paper that “this is her home.”
🚨BREAKING: A Director for the senior living facility told us that “This is her home.” Congresswoman Granger has not been voting since July. Why have the public/constituents been left in the dark about the nature of her absence? Does CD12 have no representation?@DallasExpress pic.twitter.com/0MByEFsUHe
— Carlos Turcios (@Carlos__Turcios) December 20, 2024
Granger, who is retiring at the end of this legislative session, did not answer any of the Express’ phone calls or emails. She has not cast a vote in Washington since July 24, 2024. Granger has been in office since 1997.
Tarrant County Republican Chairman Bo French blasted the Congresswoman for her absence during such a crucial time.
“The lack of representation for CD-12 is troubling to say the least. At a time when extraordinarily important votes are happening, including debt ceiling, disaster relief, farm bills and border issues, Kay Granger is nowhere to be found. The margin in Congress is razor thin and the lack of a Republican vote representing CD-12 disenfranchises 2 million people. We deserve better,” French told the Express.
Her absence has renewed conversations about age limits for elected representatives while Americans cite numerous examples of octogenarian officials.
Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna called for term limits. “Kay Granger’s long absence reveals the problem with a Congress that rewards seniority & relationships more than merit & ideas. We have a sclerotic gerontocracy,” he wrote in a Sunday morning X post. (RELATED: SUZANNE DOWNING: Father Time Comes For The Gerontocracy)
“We need term limits. We need to get big money out of politics so a new generation of Americans can run and serve,” Khanna concluded.
Kay Granger’s long absence reveals the problem with a Congress that rewards seniority & relationships more than merit & ideas. We have a sclerotic gerontocracy.
We need term limits. We need to get big money out of politics so a new generation of Americans can run and serve.
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) December 22, 2024
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has spawned concerns after suffering from an alleged fall in early December. The 82-year-old returned to the Capitol with a bandage on his face and a protective guard on his left hand after spraining his wrist.
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 11: U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is assisted by staff as he goes to the Senate Chamber to vote on December 11, 2024 in Washington, DC. According to a statement released by his office, the Kentucky Republican fell after tripping following a lunch, spraining his wrist and sustaining a minor cut to his face. The incident is the latest in a high-profile string of health issues for the 82-year-old senator. Kent Nishimura/Getty Images.
His fall is the latest in a series of alarming health concerns for the Kentucky Republican. Twice in 2023 he made headlines for publicly freezing while speaking.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sustained an emergency hip surgery after the 84-year-old fell during a delegation trip to Luxembourg. (RELATED: ‘She Likes To Wear High Heels. Very High’: Republican Rep Reveals How Pelosi’s Fall Went Down)
Democratic California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died in-office at the age of 90, became a poster woman for the call for term limits when she ceded power of attorney to her daughter in 2023 but refused to give up her Senate seat.
President Biden’s senior moments have also been well-documented. A recent Wall Street Journal report revealed the President has hardly been running his own government and that his aides have essentially been handling him for the better part of two years.
