donbrooks777
- Apr 16, 2023
- 21 min read

Sunday 4-16-23

Sunday 4 - 16 - 23

Verse(s) for today:

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

John 8:12 KJV

Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

John 10:7-9 KJV

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

John 11:25-26 KJV

Thought(s) for the Day:

'Remove Your Church':

The Persecution of Christians, March 2023:

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19583/persecution-of-christians-march

by Raymond Ibrahim April 16, 2023

Comments by [A-I]

These reports provide a grim picture of the ongoing persecution and violence faced by Christians around the world, particularly in Muslim-majority countries. Attacks on churches, such as vandalism and arson, are common occurrences in many parts of Europe and Asia. Furthermore, Christians face discrimination in education and employment systems due to their religious affiliations. In some countries like Kyrgyzstan, foreign Christian workers are required to get special permission for missionary work or else risk facing fines or imprisonment. The situation is direst for those who face physical harm simply for practicing their faith. Across Africa and the Middle East, jihadist groups have targeted Christians with brutal massacres that often go unnoticed by mainstream media outlets. Many victims are pastors or church leaders who actively evangelize among Muslims. The plight of Christian women is also notable: trafficking of young Coptic girls in Egypt is rampant; while apostasy laws enforced throughout much of Islam lead husbands—acting on religious grounds—to imprison or murder wives who convert from Islam to Christianity.

The full document follows:

§ "You should remove your church, because we cannot watch our members turning to Christianity and keep quiet." — Sheikh Shafi Mukama "ordering the father and son to leave [their church] in 2022, while other from the mob kept watch outside," morningstarnews.org, March 22, 2023, Uganda. § "Requirements for obtaining permission to build houses of worship in Indonesia are onerous and hamper the establishment of such buildings for Christians and other faiths.... [T]hey are often met with delays or lack of response from officials. Well-organized radical Muslims secretly mobilize outside people to intimidate and pressure members of minority faiths." — morningstarnews.org, March 24, 2023, Indonesia. § "According to the UN, ongoing insecurity in eastern DRC [Democratic Republic of Congo] has displaced 300,000 from their homes in February alone." — opendoors.ph, March 22, 2023, Democratic Republic of Congo. § "It is a massacre like...killing animals." — A key church minister, persecution.org, International Christian Concern March 20, 2023, Democratic Republic of Congo. § "For leaving Islam to accept Christ," say a Mar. 19 report, "a young mother... was chained in her home, subjected to electrical shocks at a psychiatric hospital and has lost her children." .... [H]er problems began, chiefly from her Muslim husband, who "tried to force her to renounce her faith by chaining her legs and tightening the chains.... [H]er parents and siblings are all Muslims [a local source said], who believe she is suffering mental illness for believing in Christ." — morningstarnews, March 19, 2023, Sudan. § "[S]ince the start of the war, the Christian population has reportedly diminished by more than 80 per cent, from an estimated 1.5 million to 250,000... More than 350 churches have been destroyed in attacks carried out by terrorists during this period.... On the 20th anniversary of the Iraq war, therefore, I want to raise awareness about the country's Christians, in the hope that the international community acts to prevent their tragedy from continuing before it is too late." — Report by Natasha Dado, thenationalnews.com, April 16, 2023. § "The rampant trafficking of Coptic women and girls is a direct violation of their most basic rights.... The crimes committed against these women must be urgently addressed by the Egyptian government, ending impunity for kidnappers, their accomplices, and police who refuse to perform their duties.... The large majority of these women are never reunited with their families or friends because police response in Egypt is dismissive and corrupt. There are countless families who report that police have either been complicit in the kidnapping or at the very least bribed into silence." — copticsolidarity.org, March 16, 2023 and September 10, 2020, Egypt. § "For Christians in the Middle East, the Christmas season is not 'the most beautiful time of the year' as in the popular Andy Williams song. On the contrary, after two millennia of Christian presence, the Middle East is slowly but surely being cleansed of Christians.... It is striking that the Western powers, which have a majority Christian population, are not concerned at all by such a disaster." — Matija Šerić, "Christians In The Middle East: A Persecuted And Forgotten People," eurasiareview.com, April 15,2023. § "The only country in the region with a growing Christian community is Israel, where the Christian population grew by 1.4% in 2020.... Christians in Israel benefit from the only functioning democracy in the Middle East... According to the Israel Bureau of Statistics from December 2021, 84% of Christians surveyed said they were satisfied with life in Israel." — Matija Šerić, "Christians In The Middle East: A Persecuted And Forgotten People." § The report further makes clear that Christians suffer, not just from "terrorists," but Muslim state and society: "The legal political and social order in many Arab countries is a source of discrimination....[T]he system is hostile towards all non-Muslims, especially Christians. Christians are often not second or third but tenth class citizens, they suffer discrimination in the educational system, in the workplace, the community tries to ostracize them." — Matija Šerić, "Christians In The Middle East: A Persecuted And Forgotten People." § The following are among the murders and abuses inflicted on Christians by Muslims throughout the month of March 2023:

§ Muslim Attacks on Churches

§ France: On Mar. 16, a man, previously "on file for his Islamist radicalization," stormed the Saint-Hippolyte Church in Paris and disrupted its service. He also stole the church's six foot tall Plexiglas cross, which had supported a 400-year-old wooden Christ. It was later found nearby, said police, "smashed into many pieces." The man was "taken to the psychiatric infirmary of the Paris police headquarters, his condition not being considered compatible with his police custody."
§ Two weeks earlier, on Mar. 2, another man, described as of an "African type," vandalized Saint-Eustache Church, one of the largest churches in Paris, by smashing the protective glass of an altar with a fire extinguisher. The report notes that "The suspect's modus operandi ... [is] comparable to that of the Saint-François-Xavier church [vandalism], where damage had been committed on Tuesday, February 28."
§ In fact, a total of eight churches in Paris alone were vandalized, sometimes with arson, since the start of 2023.
§ Finally, on Mar. 8, a Muslim migrant from Senegal entered the Saint-Louis Cemetery, in Évreux, and proceeded to break off and desecrate the crucifixes affixed to some 30 graves. Although he was arrested, according to the report, "His custody was lifted due to his mental health condition. The individual was hospitalized."
§ Germany: On Mar. 11, what were described as five or six "youths" attacked a Munich church during evening service, by smashing a window. Afterwards, they accosted and insulted the Christians as they exited. They made "disparaging remarks" about Christianity, cried "Allahu Akbar!" ["Allah is the greatest!"] and even managed to sneak in a seemingly random "sh*tty Jews!" The "youths then fled," concludes the German language report, adding "Police investigations are ongoing."
§ Austria: On Mar. 15, Viennese police headquarters announced a heightened risk of terrorism against churches, prompting an increased presence of security agents and police. According to the German language report,
§ "[T]he police intelligence service received information about a planned attack by a Syrian Islamist terrorist cell. The threat is apparently aimed at the compatriots who fled to Austria to escape the war and dictator Bashar al-Assad. According to this, they were to be murdered during a visit to Mass because they did not go into battle as holy warriors for jihad."
§ Middle Eastern churches, including Syriac and Coptic, were especially warned and provided with additional security. The report adds that "It is unclear how long the churches will be guarded due to the 'increased risk of Islamist-motivated attacks.'"
§ Uganda: On Mar. 15, a Muslim mob attacked and razed a church building to the ground (image here). Pastor John Balidawa, 35, and his son, 14, were inside the church preparing for an all-night prayer vigil when they heard stones striking the building. Then six Muslims, led by an Islamic leader, stormed the church and ordered the pastor and son to leave. "When I refused to obey their orders, the sheikh and two others started slapping me and then pushed me to the floor and thereafter stepped on my stomach," said Pastor John. "Others started boxing my son, who started wailing and crying for help. For me and my son to survive is by God's grace." The pastor fell unconscious and awoke alongside his son in a hospital bed. They both sustained several broken bones, cuts, and bruising. Pastor John subsequently learned that the enraged Muslims had completely destroyed his church. On the following day a note was found at the site of the demolished church:
§ "No more church in this area. This area is holy ground for Allah's worship only."
§ About a quarter of the church's congregation were converts from Islam; it is believed that this fact helped propel the attack. Earlier, in 2022, the same sheikh had sent a message to a more senior Christian leader: "You should remove your church, because we cannot watch our members turning to Christianity and keep quiet." Discussing the recent demolition, this Christian leader said:
§ "This incident has scared many believers.... The priority now is to safeguard the faith of the Christians from falling away from the faith, especially those members who converted from Islam to Christianity."
§ Indonesia: On Sunday, Mar. 19, Muslims intruded into a church during a worship service. Discussing the incident, the Rev. Julles Purba said, "They told us that from now on, we should not hold worship service here since, they said, we have no permission." The pastor refused to comply and continued the service until the end. One of the Christians later uploaded onto social media a video of the confrontation, with the comment:
§ "What happens with our worship? It is only once a week, in a closed room, bothers no public order. Does it bother your faith? My house is 50 meters away from the mosque, 5 x listening to the call to prayers a day, not to mention chanting prayers and recitation & we never feel disturbed, guys."
§ Although the church building is small and its congregation consists of only 36 members, it also has no walls and allows passersby to see in. The report concludes:
§ "Requirements for obtaining permission to build houses of worship in Indonesia are onerous and hamper the establishment of such buildings for Christians and other faiths... Indonesia's Joint Ministerial Decree of 2006 (SKB) makes requirements for obtaining permits nearly impossible for most new churches. Even when small, new churches are able to meet the requirement of obtaining 90 signatures of approval from congregation members and 60 from area households of different religions, they are often met with delays or lack of response from officials. Well-organized radical Muslims secretly mobilize outside people to intimidate and pressure members of minority faiths."
§ Kyrgyzstan: On Sunday, Mar. 26, police entered St. Nicholas Church in Talas during evening mass and fined two Slovak nuns after they read from the Bible (initial reports said only one nun was fined) According to more recent report,
§ "Officials accused the nuns of illegally preaching Catholicism in Talas without authorization from the State Commission for Religious Affairs.... The nuns did the two readings of the Sunday Mass. But they did not preach or officiate at Mass. A national regulation stipulates that foreigners gain special permission for missionary work such as preaching or officiating at Mass. Police claimed to have photographic evidence against the nuns preaching.... [P]olice prevented the Catholics from leaving the church for about an hour and a half until the nuns signed the document.... A central Asian nation and a former Soviet republic, about 90 percent of Kyrgyzstan's estimated 6.8 population is Muslim, seven percent Christian and about three percent do not follow any religion, according to official data."

The Muslim Slaughter of Christians

§ Democratic Republic of Congo: Muslim terrorists from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) — which is "driven by an Islamic expansionist agenda and purposely targets Christians" — slaughtered at least 69 Christians during the course of three raids. Other Christians were abducted and several buildings, including a health clinic and a hospital, were torched to the ground. "According to the UN, ongoing insecurity in eastern DRC has displaced 300,000 from their homes in February alone," according to Open Doors. Describing the carnage, a local Christian minister said, "It is a massacre like... killing animals." Another said,
§ "Christians are suffering.... Christians have moved to areas deemed secure and the church, the body of Christ, is in danger, and where Christians go, suffering continues.... [T]he church is in danger."
§ As the ADF is allied with the Islamic State, the latter issued a statement claiming the killings, which, it emphasized, targeted "Christians." The accompanying photo depicted Christian property in flames.
§ Uganda: On Mar. 10, Muslims murdered a relative after he embraced Christianity and became a pastor. Earlier that day, his extended family had invited Pastor Adinani Bulwa, 42, to his parents' home to discuss religion. Once he arrived, "he was pressured to recant the Christian faith," his widow, who accompanied him, reported, "but he said he was ready to die for Christ's sake." Before long, more Muslim relatives barged into the family home:
§ "They were saying, 'We are a Muslim family, and Allah is our God.' We were shaken, and the children and I hid ourselves in the bedroom while leaving my husband at the sitting room."
§ His relatives proceeded to grab and yank the pastor outside:
§ "[W]e heard a loud wailing. We remained inside the house. My husband did not return. Early in the morning, I went to see a Christian neighbor who accompanied me to the scene of the incident only to see my husband at a distance half naked [and dead]. I could not control my emotions and shouted in a loud voice. Thereafter I fainted due to shock."
§ Nigeria: The ignored genocide of Christians continued non-stop. Some of the more notable atrocities include:
§ Mar. 23: Fulani herdsmen slaughtered a pastor in his home and abducted his wife.
§ Mar 10: Muslims broke into another pastor's home, butchered his son, and abducted his wife and three other family members. The pastor was away attending his brother's funeral at the time.
§ Mar. 4: Muslims murdered another pastor and his two sons.
§ Mid-March: Muslims interrupted a funeral and abducted 56 Christians. The funeral was for a priest that the same terrorists had earlier "burned to ashes." Last reported, the terrorists were demanding an exorbitant ransom of N200 million to release the Christians. Discussing this nonstop persecution and slaughter of Christians in Nigeria, the Rev. Joseph Hayab said,
§ "Who will we cry to and who will we run to for help except God? Imagine that since the carnage [and] kidnapping of Christians started in Kaduna state, no arrests have been made."

§ General Muslim Persecution of Christians

§ Sudan: "For leaving Islam to accept Christ," say a Mar. 19 report, "a young mother ... was chained in her home, subjected to electrical shocks at a psychiatric hospital and has lost her children." Awatif Abdalla Kaki, a 27-year-old mother of four in Omdurman, embraced Christ earlier this year — at which point her problems began, chiefly from her Muslim husband, who "tried to force her to renounce her faith by chaining her legs and tightening the chains."
§ "Asserting that she was mad, he then forcibly took her to a psychiatric hospital, where she received an unidentified injection and electrical shocks against her will.... Abdalla's legs were injured from the chains, and although her husband has taken their children to his parents' house to live with him, he maintains a large influence on her family and remains a threat... The oldest of her four children is 8 years old.... 'She continues to live in mental anguish' [a local source said], adding that her parents and siblings are all Muslims who believe she is suffering mental illness for believing in Christ. 'I fear for her safety and pray that she can get a refuge outside her home so that she has peace of mind and can grow in her new faith.' Abdalla is receiving no assistance from any Christians."
§ Gaza: According to a Mar. 8 report titled, "Gaza Churches Struggle to Survive,"
§ "Gaza's Christian community is struggling to survive after years of steady decline in numbers. Only an estimated 1,000 Christian remain in the Gaza Strip, an area of more than 2 million residents."
§ Among the factors contributing to the diminishing number of Christians are "internal pressures faced from radical Islamist factions in the Hamas-controlled territory":
§ "Christians of all denominations have played an important and out-sized influence on healthcare, education and business in the Gaza Strip for centuries. Today, among evangelicals, only one known Protestant church continues, it's [sic] leadership struggling to lead its flock ever since the Bible Society's Christian bookstore's manager was martyred in 2007 by local Islamist militants; this was followed by an exodus of church leaders. The Greek (which make up most of Gaza's Christians in numbers) and Catholic churches face daily pressures from the ruling administration of Hamas' Islamization efforts..."
§ Iraq: A Mar. 20 report , "Iraqi Christians are threatened with extinction 20 years after the US-led invasion," marking the twentieth anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq focused on the plight and current status of that nation's Christian minorities:
§ "... The history of Iraqi Christians, widely referred to as Chaldeans, Assyrians and Syriacs, dates back more than 5,000 years to Mesopotamia, which many consider to be the cradle of civilization. Most Chaldeans, Assyrians and Syriacs don't identify as Arabs because they are indigenous people and speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ, which is dying out.... [S]ince the start of the war, the Christian population has reportedly diminished by more than 80 per cent, from an estimated 1.5 million to 250,000... More than 350 churches have been destroyed in attacks carried out by terrorists during this period.
§ The author, an Iraqi Christian, says the persecution has had a personal impact:
§ "... ISIS murdered two of my [Christian] cousins whose only crime was following their religious teachings. The war undoubtedly made the country vulnerable to terrorism. Prior to that, Christians had felt safer and enjoyed more religious freedom and protections. After then president Saddam Hussein was toppled from power at the start of the invasion, many Christians were subjected to persecution by terrorists and forced into exile from their ancestral lands.... In 2010, the church my mother took her communion in, Our Lady of Salvation Church, in Baghdad, was bombed in an attack by suicide bombers that left dozens dead.... On the 20th anniversary of the Iraq war, therefore, I want to raise awareness about the country's Christians, in the hope that the international community acts to prevent their tragedy from continuing before it is too late."
§ Egypt: According to a brief Mar. 15 report:
§ "[A]t least five Coptic [Christian] women and young women have 'disappeared' over the span of three weeks. In all these cases, their families have lodged police reports and issued pleas to the authorities to help find their missing loved ones."
§ As documented here, the abduction, rape, and forced conversion of Christian girls and women is endemic to Egypt. In the words of Coptic Solidarity, a human rights group:
§ "The capture and disappearance of Coptic women and minor girls is a bane of the Coptic community in Egypt, yet little has been done to address this scourge by the Egyptian or foreign governments, NGOs, or international bodies. According to a priest in the Minya Governorate, at least 15 girls go missing every year in his area alone. His own daughter was nearly kidnapped had he not been able to intervene in time... The rampant trafficking of Coptic women and girls is a direct violation of their most basic rights to safety, freedom of movement, and freedom of conscience and belief. The crimes committed against these women must be urgently addressed by the Egyptian government, ending impunity for kidnappers, their accomplices, and police who refuse to perform their duties. Women who disappear and are never recovered must live an unimaginable nightmare. The large majority of these women are never reunited with their families or friends because police response in Egypt is dismissive and corrupt. There are countless families who report that police have either been complicit in the kidnapping or at the very least bribed into silence."
§ The Middle East: On Mar. 16, a comprehensive report titled, "Christians In The Middle East: A Persecuted And Forgotten People," was published by Eurasia Review. Key excerpts include:
§ "It [life] is especially difficult for Christians in the Middle East – the region where Jesus was born, preached, died and resurrected as the Bible teaches. For Christians in the Middle East, the Christmas season is not 'the most beautiful time of the year' as in the popular Andy Williams song. On the contrary, after two millennia of Christian presence, the Middle East is slowly but surely being cleansed of Christians. ... Some of the oldest Christian communities in the world are in danger of disappearing .... It is striking that the Western powers, which have a majority Christian population, are not concerned at all by such a disaster."
§ The report also found that the number of Christians is in steady decline:
§ "In 2010, Christians made up 6% of the population in the region.... Christians currently make up about 4% of the population of the region – 15 million believers. This is a drastic drop compared to the beginning of the 20th century, when there were slightly more than 20% Christians. If there had been no discrimination, violent persecutions and massacres by the states and Islamist groups there, there is no doubt that the number of Christians would not have remained at 20% but would have grown.... The only country in the region with a growing Christian community is Israel, where the Christian population grew by 1.4% in 2020.... Christians in Israel benefit from the only functioning democracy in the Middle East... According to the Israel Bureau of Statistics from December 2021, 84% of Christians surveyed said they were satisfied with life in Israel."
§ The report further makes clear that Christians suffer, not just from "terrorists," but Muslim state and society:
§ "The legal political and social order in many Arab countries is a source of discrimination. As such, the system is hostile towards all non-Muslims, especially Christians. Christians are often not second or third but tenth class citizens, they suffer discrimination in the educational system, in the workplace, the community tries to ostracize them." [GATESTONE Institute]

China bringing down Trudeau:

Board and CEO of Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation step down | National Post

Here are two addresses by [A-I] Technology:

#1. On the one hand I am glad to see past evils finally come to light. Corrupt Chinese offering us bribes, and corrupt Canadians taking them through the Trudeau Foundation: it reminds me of the early 19th century deals made by representatives of the Crown with tribes who could be as cruel as cannibals, all in the name of increasing "trade". Well, 20th Century Prime Ministers also went on "trade missions" this time to China, and once again we conveniently overlooked who we were dealing with. The public was kept in the dark because we never saw movies or news about the horrors of China under the cannibal child predator Mao who murdered and publicly roasted ten times as many people as Hitler ever did. Well, those deals came back to bite us, just like the deals we made with our aboriginal people. Well, those deals came back to bite us, just as the deals we made with our aboriginal people.

#2. The author expresses mixed feelings about recent revelations regarding corruption in trade between China and Canada. They highlight the historical precedent of colonial deals with indigenous peoples, and suggest that God may be using China's intentions for good. The author also questions media coverage of events and offers a caution against relying solely on logic when interpreting them. Lastly, they speculate that Justin Trudeau's political weaknesses could make him vulnerable to replacement by a figure who might pursue internationalist policies similar to those of Pierre Pollievre - though the author acknowledges feeling conflicted about this possibility.

You can continue to read the original details… following:

On the one hand I am glad to see past evils finally come to light. Corrupt Chinese offering us bribes, and corrupt Canadians taking them through the Trudeau Foundation: it reminds me of the early 19th century deals made by representatives of the Crown with tribes who could be as cruel as cannibals, all in the name of increasing "trade". Well, 20th Century Prime Ministers also went on "trade missions" this time to China, and once again we conveniently overlooked who we were dealing with. The public was kept in the dark because we never saw movies or news about the horrors of China under the cannibal child predator Mao who murdered and publicly roasted ten times as many people as Hitler ever did. All we saw was cheap "made in China" goods. Well those deals came back to bite us, just like the deals we made with our aboriginal people. Who are we to complain today when the advantage goes to the ones we shafted in the past? Especially when we are the ones now who eat our own. It is the aboriginals and Chinese who are now taking the moral high ground and doing things conservatives have been trying to get Ottawa to do.

If China ever took over here, I'd like all the coal plants they'd start up (one every two weeks in China), and any vaccines they might use (which were not mRNA in China), and the growth in Christianity (now more Christians than Communists in China), and the money they'd introduce (backed by gold and other valuable commodities), etc. The Social Credit scores they assign to people are not nearly as oppressive as the ESG scores which the New World Order is currently introducing behind our backs. In China they have less surveillance cameras per person than we do. They don’t infiltrate churches any more than the FBI does. And in China you don’t see as many churches destroyed or vandalized. You don’t see Satanic statues erected in the public square or inflated demons during major entertainment events.

And consider this; western countries only invest, loan and give foreign aid if the recipient country adopts anti-Christian policies like abortion, gay rights, and mRNA vaccines. China does it to build up the Belt & Road Initiative which is to create trade routes. The Washington Post article criticizes the quality of infrastructure China finances, which would be counter-productive if true. Why would they want a crappy BRI ? Sounds like the criticism made of the trade routes built when Britannia ruled the seas. But you can't blame the developers for mistakes made by third world country workers who really don't have much experience.

I think God is making China's evil intentions turn into a benefit for us who are called according to His divine purposes. But the devil is trying to trick us by asking, "Did God really mean that he could turn the evil in China into a good thing?" Just like Satan asked Eve "did God really say you would die from eating the fruit?" Why would God put it there if it wasn't good for you. Because it served His purpose, that's why. So yes, God can use evil for good purposes, just as devils can use good for evil.

When considering China's role in God's plan it might help to remember who is talking to you. Main stream media are infamous for telling you the opposite to the truth, going back to the days when headlines bragged about Castro and Mao being wonderful "agrarian reformers". Now the same media are telling you that Cuba and China are dangerous threats.

In the end, who knows what's going on? Job's friends were using good logic in analyzing what was going on with this saintly man who was suffering so much loss and pain. They just didn't know about Satan's bet with God. So let us be careful in using logic to figure out what's up with China, and the rest of the news too for that matter. It's a good clue, when our intercessory prayers are not working, that we're praying for the wrong thing. What looks like the enemy at work may actually be God at work, as the prophets often told us.

Why would our enemies want to bring down Trudeau? Maybe because they see his credibility is used up, his integrity lost, his usefulness shot. And they have a handle on a replacement who can be manipulated when it comes to foreign policy and international trade relationships. I'm suggesting that Pierre Pollievre might be posing as a conservative in domestic policies but still be an internationalist. I don't know. I have mixed feelings about that.

[National Post]

[Patrick Bestall]

Mitch McConnell retirement rumors grow as low approval ratings continue:

https://americandigest.com/mitch-mcconnell-retirement-rumors-grow-as-low-approval-ratings-continue/?

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) rumors continue to grow as his approval rating remains low in a new poll.

The Economist/YouGov survey found that 49% of respondents disapproved of McConnell's role as the GOP's Senate leader.

The numbers

"McConnell lacks clear support among the Republican base, as 42 percent approve of his job performance and 40 percent do not. Further, 19 percent 'strongly' disapprove of his job performance, while ten percent strongly approve," Breitbart News reported.

"Half of independents view McConnell unfavorably, as do 57 percent of Democrats. However, 28 percent of Democrats approve of the 81-year-old’s job performance," it added.

McConnell's health

"McConnell fell at a dinner event for the Senate Leadership Fund on March 8 at the Waldorf Astoria, formerly the Trump Hotel, in Washington, DC," The Spectator noted.

"He suffered a concussion, and only after being treated at a hospital and at his home did murmurs begin that he might be unable to return to the Senate," it continued.

McConnell has so far pushed forward despite the retirement rumors.

“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,” McConnell tweeted.

"The 81-year-old Kentuckian passed Democratic Montana Sen. Mike Mansfield to set the record for longest-serving Senate leader in January. McConnell became GOP leader in 2007. He served as Senate Majority Leader from 2015 to 2021, with all other years in the minority," according to the Daily Caller.

If McConnell does retire, the GOP will have several choices for its new leader. Sen. John Thune (SD) currently serves as Senate Minority Whip and lead in McConnell's absence. John Barrasso (WY) currently serves as the GOP Senate Chairman. Texas Sen. John Cornyn has previously served in both roles.

The latest rumors come as other aging lawmakers are also questioned about their retirement. Among them are California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, currently 89, who has recently been in the hospital for health issues and plans to retire after her current term ends in 2024. Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley (IA) is 88, serving as the party's oldest Senate member, and is currently planning to run for another term. [American Digest Media]