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Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) on Friday issued an apology for trying to utilize Capitol Police to shield him from a reporter’s questions on Sen. Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) health a day earlier.
Ricketts, in a post online, said he “reacted poorly” and he appreciated TMZ DC’s Charlie Cotton for “taking his call” to apologize.
TMZ launched its operation in Washington in April. Founder Harvey Levin said at the time that the bureau would highlight “how politics and pop culture” converge. The outlet uploaded a video to the social platform X on Thursday showing Cotton attempting to ask the Nebraska Republican about McConnell’s extended absence from Congress and whether his colleague should do more “to prove his health.”
McConnell’s office released a photo on Monday showing the senator smiling with his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, at his hospital bedside. He has been absent from the Capitol since June 14, after he was hospitalized for an undisclosed health issue.
Ricketts responded that “we should give Mitch the time to recover,” adding that “we are praying for him” before motioning to Capitol Police to block Cotton and another journalist, claiming they were not acting as reporters.
The TMZ reporter pushed back on the suggestion, explaining that he had already gone through security as they came from the basement of the Russell Senate Office Building. Still, law enforcement stopped the pair before the video ended.
The footage has garnered more than 200,000 views, with other journalists coming to Cotton’s defense. The video, they argue, was taken in a public hallway where credentialed reporters are allowed to be.
Cotton said he accepted Ricketts’s apology, adding that he respects “anyone who can take accountability when they make a mistake.” The reporter also noted that he looked forward to his next conversation with the senator.
In a separate post, he added that the “camaraderie of the media here in D.C. has truly been incredible.”
Add as preferred source on Google Tags Capitol Police Charlie Cotton Elaine Chao McConnell health Mitch McConnell Pete Ricketts Senate GOP TMZCopyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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