Kay Granger (R-TX) Hasn't Shown Up In For Work In Six Months
I’m 76 and I feel my age, both physically and mentally. Luckily, I don’t have a stressful job or one where anyone has to depend on me. I caught this article in the Daily Mail yesterday about Kay Granger (R-TX), an 81 year old woman who should have retired some time ago but is still a member of the 118th Congress— except she hasn’t bent DC in half a year. She was found wandering around, “lost and confused,” in her district and has been living in an assisted living facility that specializes in memory loss. Her offices in DC and Fort Worth have no signs of activity.
In severe cognitive decline, she ws still the chair of one of the most powerful and consequential committees in Congress, Appropriations. But no one wants dto call her out for being senile. She’s officially retiring in January. Last time she is up for reelection, she didn’t campaign and everything was on auto-pilot. She’s a Republican in an R+12 district and she beat Democrat Trey Hunt 152,953 (64.3%) to 85,026 (35.7%).In the primary, she had two opponents and she wound up with 75.1%. It’s as though her constituents all belong in the same assisted living facility she’s in. In 2020, she was on the ballot with Trump. He won her district handily— but not as handily as she did. Trump 58.3%; Granger 63.7%
She’s the longest-serving Republican in Congress and was the first woman to serve in the Texas congressional delegation. Rolando Garcia, a GOP committeeman from her district said “The fact that Kay Granger is unable to leave her nursing home to participate in the most important congressional vote of the year suggests she was already in visible decline when she ran for re-election in 2022. A sad and humiliating way to end her political career. Sad that nobody cared enough to ‘take away the keys’ before she reached this moment and a sad commentary on the congressional gerontocracy.”
She’s hardly the only member of Congress walking around with dementia. David Scott, who was finally forced out of his job— which he hasn’t been able to competently do for several years— as chair of the House Agriculture Committee was obviously senile for several years. But, like Granger, he was reelected over and over in a D+28 district. Frederica Wilson has been obviously senile and unable to do a reasonably competent job for several years. But… her Florida district is D+25, so she’s set.
Concerns about the cognitive health of aging members of Congress have been raised in recent years. Congress’ grotesque dysfunction is due in part to a gerontocracy that would never be tolerated in private business. How old is too old? Maybe it’s time for a serious national discussion about the fitness of aging members of Congress and the consequences for their constituents and the nation when lawmakers are no longer able to effectively perform their duties. Granger's and Scott’s situations are particularly alarming because they expose systemic failures— not only in monitoring the health and capacity of elected officials but also in addressing their inability to represent the people who elected them and run crucially important committees. The lack of mechanisms to assess whether an elected official is still mentally (and physically) capable of serving leaves voters vulnerable to being effectively unrepresented, especially in cases like these, where the districts are heavily partisan and turnover is infrequent.
Maybe we need to talk about term limits, mandatory health screenings, and the ethical obligations of staffers and family members to intervene when cognitive decline becomes evident. These aren’t just isolated incidents but part of a systemic problem exacerbated by an aging political class reluctant to relinquish power and fiercely protected by aging leaders like McConnell, Pelosi, Hoyer and Clyburn.
While age alone does not determine cognitive ability, the combination of advanced age and observable health incidents has led to calls for measures such as regular cognitive assessments for aging politicians to ensure they can effectively serve their constituents. Bernie appears to be in strong cognitive health despite his age, maintaining an active schedule and sharp public performances. His ability to debate, articulate policy positions, and engage with the media supports this perception.
Frederica Wilson David Scott, Kay Granger and others, however, have faced concerns about declining mental sharpness for years. People have noticed declining ability to communicate effectively and increasingly erratic behavior in public settings. On both sides of the aisle there has been a reluctance— to put it mildly— of party leadership to address visible decline. It also underscores the power of incumbency, where name recognition and established networks pretty much alawys outweigh serious mental health concerns.
Introducing mandatory cognitive health assessments for members of Congress who are over, say, 70, could help identify early signs of decline. These tests should be conducted by nonpartisan independent panels of medical experts, out of the hands of party leadership.
Setting limits on the number of terms members can serve may reduce cases where lawmakers remain in office past their functional prime. Establishing an upper age limit for serving in Congress could prevent situations like Granger’s, Scott’s and Wilson’s.
As we’ve been advocating for years, requiring candidates to participate in debates highlight cognitive issues early. Party leaders should take proactive roles in addressing cognitive decline rather than protecting long-serving members, including encouraging retirements when appropriate and offering support to transition out with dignity, avoiding humiliating public declines.