{
  "id": 8263531,
  "title": "Seth Meyers Jokes Mitch McConnell’s Return to Work Was a ‘Power Play’ Against ‘Late Night’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/seth-meyers-jokes-mitch-mcconnells-return-to-work-was-a-power-play",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-18T14:43:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TheWrap",
    "slug": "thewrap",
    "url": "https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/tv-shows/seth-meyers-mitch-mcconnell-return-to-work-power-play/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Senator Mitch McConnell returned to his office for the first time in three months, but \"Late Night\" host Seth Meyers believes it was likely a strategic \"power play\" aimed at \"Late Night.\" Meyers and his writer Sal Gentile discussed this on the recent episode of \"A Closer Look: Out of Office,\" revealing that they had resumed their regular duties starting next week, when \"Late Night\" returns to its scheduled airtime on September 21. Meyers playfully suggested that McConnell's return was a deliberate move to showcase his presence in person before \"Late Night\" could resume. \"He knew that we were kind of pulling his proof of life move, and so he was trying to stay one step ahead of us, and he did,\" Meyers joked. Gentile then added that McConnell would turn the tables on them, initiating a public call for proof of their ongoing work, only to later criticize that very proof. \"He's going to have a lot of fun with 'Are they? When's the last time we've seen them? Maybe they're dead,' Meyers continued. \"That's his first thing from the Senate floor: 'How long? NBC. My question for NBC is: Where is Seth Meyers? He's still pulling a salary, and I feel like he should show himself.'\" You can view the latest episode of \"A Closer Look: Out of Office\" in the video above.",
  "summary": "\"He was trying to stay one step ahead of us, and he did,\" the NBC host quips The post Seth Meyers Jokes Mitch McConnell’s Return to Work Was a ‘Power Play’ Against ‘Late Night’ appeared first on TheWrap .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "TheWrap",
        "title": "‘The View’: Ana Navarro Calls Mitch McConnell’s Return to Work ‘Elder Abuse’",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/the-view-ana-navarro-calls-mitch-mcconnells-return-to-work-elder-abuse",
        "published": "2026-09-18T16:42:53.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}