There are conspiracy theories that he is brain dead, but that his aides will delay announcing it until after a certain date has passed. We know he was found unconscious at his home, and received CPR on the way to the hospital. And he hasn’t been in contact with anyone except his aides since.

Statistically, his odds of waking up after receiving CPR are pretty abysmal. His aides have been extremely cagey about it, and all the signs of them pulling a Weekend At Bernie’s scenario are present. Basically, his aides all say he is recovering well, but they refuse to let anyone else see him or interact with him in any way. So we simply have to take those aides at their word.

But notably, Kentucky has a law where the governor (a Democrat) can appoint someone to the seat if Mitch dies… That would give democrats the majority. But the governor can only make an appointment if Mitch’s death happens at least 90 days before an election. After that 90 day mark, the governor can’t appoint anyone, and has to wait for the election.

Kentucky’s next general election happens on November 3, meaning the 90 day mark is August 5, only a month away. So the conspiracy is that they’ll keep him on life support (and hidden from the press) until August, so they can wait until the 3 month deadline has passed. And then they’ll mournfully announce his passing, but oh oops it’s too late to appoint a democrat to his seat.