Health

A former GOP operative revealed the viral past of the independent journalist who's been camped outside Sen. Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) hospital.

During an episode of Bulwark Takes, host Tim Miller went into detail about the history of Desiree Townsend, who also goes by the name Desiree Jennings.

According to Miller, Jennings has been doing "standups outside of the hospital of Mitch McConnell," whose recent hospitalization has raised concerns and stirred speculation.

"Her standups are kind of like a mix of Inside Edition and like Russia Today," Miller explained. "And like an insane person, she's going around like, 'We see Elaine Chao's eyebrows, and in the picture, they're different from in the last picture, and Mitch McConnell, how can you serve right now?'"

According to Miller, Jennings describes herself on her LinkedIn page as an "independent journalist," and her presentation makes her seem like a news correspondent from an established network.

"She's gaining momentum lately because a lot of people are interested in what's happening with Mitch McConnell," Miller explained. "It kind of has an air of authority, though in kind of an uncanny valley way."

Miller then explained that someone had flagged information about Jennings that shocked him. "I don't even think I can put words to it," he said.

Jennings used to be "an early viral sensation" and an ambassador for the Washington Redskins cheerleading squad who claimed she developed a rare neurological disorder called dystonia, according to a clip from Inside Edition that Miller played. The clip also featured Jennings bouncing and jerking up and down.

She claimed that she got the disease "after receiving a seasonal flu shot, causing dramatic spasms and slurred speech," continued the Inside Edition clip, which also revealed Jennings acting normally when she thought the cameras were gone. Miller laughed while noting that she also seemed to have a sudden British accent in the clip.

"My favorite part of the clip is she was able to both walk backwards and run, which is interesting," Miller said while cracking up. "It was like she couldn't walk sideways or forward, but she could walk backwards or sprint."

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) unloaded on the Republican Budget Committee Chairman on Monday over the climbing debt under President Donald Trump's spending policies.

The clash came at a House Rules Committee hearing, where McGovern grilled Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX) over a budget resolution that Democrats say adds $4.7 trillion to the national debt with no offsets.

"I love you, Republicans. You don't take responsibility for anything," McGovern said. "You control the House, you control the Senate, you control the White House, I think you control the Supreme Court, and nothing is your responsibility."

In 2024, Arrington had told the same committee that "not paying for our spending is not only irresponsible, but it is also irrational."

McGovern asked Arrington to confirm that the national debt had risen $3.3 trillion since Trump took office — from $36.2 trillion to $39.5 trillion. Arrington insisted that the statistic was "misleading" before getting pushback from Rep. Morgan McGarvey (D-KY).

"The debt of this country from George Washington through Bill Clinton was about $5.7 trillion," McGarvey noted. "The debt from George W. Bush and Donald Trump alone is nearly double that."

McGovern then pressed Arrington on whether the resolution's deficit spending could really be called an emergency, zeroing in on the bill's tax cuts for wealthy Americans.

"Was it an emergency to give tax breaks to billionaires and millionaires?" McGovern demanded. "Because that was not paid for either."

"It was, in fact," Arrington shot back.

"Okay. All right. So we just have a disagreement," McGovern replied. "You think an emergency is making sure that millionaires and billionaires get tax cuts, big corporations — I just disagree with that. That's a fundamental values question."

"I didn't say that, just for the record," Arrington argued.

McGovern also challenged Arrington over a provision directing $60 billion in new deficit spending toward the Iran conflict, noting the Pentagon already had $75.7 billion in unspent defense funds from a package passed last July.

He called it "irresponsible to spend another $60 billion in taxpayer dollars on Trump's war when you already have $75 billion available."

When asked why the resolution contained nothing to lower everyday costs for American families, Arrington blamed the previous administration.

"I would say that the first step in unwinding the cost of living crisis that was created by the failed policies of your party was to stop the wild, reckless, unbridled spending," Arrington said.

"It sounds like we're back to 'let's blame Joe Biden,'" McGovern replied.

"When it comes to war and tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations, you guys trip over yourselves to spend tax dollars with no offsets," McGovern charged. "This is your MO. But when it comes to helping American families, Republicans think it would be wasteful spending."

"They can't afford their rent, can't afford to buy homes, childcare costs are out of control, health care costs are out of control," the Democrat said at the close of his remarks. "They wanna know why the hell we aren't focused on that. And instead, we're focused on giving the well-off and the well-connected even more."

"I think people have had it," he added.