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A former Republican operative on Friday warned CNN conservative pundit Scott Jennings that he could lose his job if his claims about Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) prove false.

After video footage obtained by CNN showed an ambulance loading the Republican lawmaker inside — nearly a month after he was first hospitalized — Cheri Jacobus suggested that CNN should take action against Jennings, who claimed that he spoke to McConnell Tuesday for about 17 minutes.

"If @ScottJenningsKY is proven to have lied about having a nearly 20 minute phone conversation with McConnell, @cnn needs to fire him immediately," Jacobus wrote on X.

Jennings told CNN anchor Kasie Hunt that the senator, whom he has known since he was a teenager, was speaking to him on the phone during the apparent call. He described it as a "wide-ranging conversation" about Iran, and his "voice sounded strong."

"I wasn't really expecting him to call this morning," Jennings said. "So when I heard his voice today, and he was clearly keeping up with stuff."

Jennings said that McConnell told him that he was talking to Republican leaders. The update followed growing speculation over his health after he was hospitalized for more than three weeks following reports of cardiac arrest.

"It made me pretty happy," Jennings said.

"All the rumors about him being dead, or brain dead, or his body being hidden somewhere — I've seen all kinds of crazy things on the internet that are obviously not true because he picked up the phone and called me, and that was a good thing," Jennings added.

On Thursday, Jennings said he spoke with McConnell's team and urged them to speak up about the senator's health.

"My personal view is that they do need to actually have a little more transparency with the people of Kentucky," Jennings said. "I counseled him and his team as such."

A sluggish elevator forced Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) into an awkward confrontation with a local TV reporter seeking answers about her gubernatorial campaign.

The MAGA senator is the frontrunner in the Republican primary for Tennessee governor, but she's refusing to debate her GOP rivals and has refused to give interviews with reporters, so the delayed elevator at an event in Nashville forced her into a tight spot with WTVF-TV's Ben Hall.

"Senator, can we ask you about your run for governor?" Hall said.

An aide told the reporter Blackburn didn't have time for questions, but Hall said reporters were told she would speak with the media.

"Well, we were told you were going to answer some questions," Hall said. "Why don't you have time to talk? Should you talk to voters about what you plan to do as governor?"

Blackburn glared at the reporter as she waited for the elevator, and Hall asked why she would not debate her GOP opponents.

"We're talking to Tennesseans every single day, every single day," Blackburn replied.

Hall asked whether voters had a right to hear about her plans if elected governor, and she retreated to her talking point.

"We are talking to individuals every single day," she repeated.

Hall continued pressing the senator for answers about taxpayer subsidies to lure the Starbucks headquarters to Tennessee and other campaign issues, and Blackburn continued repeating her talking point as she continued to wait for the elevator to arrive.

"Are you uncomfortable talking about issues surrounding the campaign?" Hall asked, and Blackburn insisted she wasn't. "Then why won't you sit down and do interviews? We've asked you for interviews multiple times."

Blackburn turned to her talking point once again before the elevator finally ended her stalemate.

"She's running out the clock, and it may be a political strategy," said longtime conservative commentator Steve Gill, publisher of the TriStar Daily. "I'm not sure it's a policy strategy, and she may pay a price for it down the road because voters won't know what she really stands for."

Early voting starts in three weeks, and the winner of the GOP primary will be a heavy favorite to win the November election.

"That is not the look that you want from someone who's asking to be the chief executive officer of the state of Tennessee, who ought to be able to fully discuss issues," Gill said.

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