U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has announced that he plans to return to Washington, D.C., next week. 

McConnell has been absent from the U.S. Senate while he has been recovering from a fall.

McConnell made the announcement via his official Twitter account on Thursday, April 13, 2023. He wrote:

I am looking forward to returning to the Senate on Monday. We've got important business to tackle and big fights to win for Kentuckians and the American people.

I am looking forward to returning to the Senate on Monday. We've got important business to tackle and big fights to win for Kentuckians and the American people.

— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) April 13, 2023

The fall

McConnell, according to Fox News, has been absent from the U.S. Senate for a little over a month. The 81-year-old's fall took place in early March at a dinner that he was attending.

Following the fall, McConnell was hospitalized for his injuries, which included a concussion. Then, he underwent rehabilitation, and it was while undergoing rehabilitation that he decided to take some time off from the U.S. Senate.

On March 25, 2023, McConnell put out a statement indicating that he had completed his "inpatient physical therapy."

He wrote:

I want to sincerely thank everyone for all the kind wishes. I’m happy to say I finished inpatient physical therapy earlier today and I’m glad to be home. I’m going to follow the advice of my physical therapists and spend the next few days working for Kentuckians and the Republican Conference from home. I’m in frequent touch with my Senate colleagues and my staff. I look forward to returning in person to the Senate soon.

It appears that McConnell is now ready to make his return to the U.S. Senate.

"Retire!"

Whether or not Americans are ready to welcome McConnell back to the Senate is another question altogether.

Many social media users, in response to McConnell's return announcement, bluntly told the Senate Minority leader to just "retire."

Greg Fullterton, for example, wrote:

Don’t be a [U.S. Sen. Diane] Feinstein [D-CA]. Time to move on and enjoy retirement. We thank you for the many many years you have given to this country. Please. And I am saying that as a Republican

Following McConnell's fall there was speculation that his retirement may be near. There were even rumors that other Senate Republicans had already begun to eye McConnell's minority leadership position.

It appears, though, that McConnell is still not ready to retire, despite the many exhortations to do so.