The New York Times, just now, has finally acknowledged the fact that U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) has "serious mental health" issues.

The Times writes:

[Fetterman’s] physical impairment and serious mental health challenges have rendered the transition [to being a U.S. Senator] extraordinarily challenging — even with the accommodations that have been made to help him adapt.

These "serious mental health challenges" are the result of a stroke that Fetterman had previously suffered. The challenges are very noticeable to anyone who has listened to or watched Fetterman, and they are nothing to make light of.

But, the issue here is that these "mental health challenges" were covered up not only by the likes of the New York Times but also by Fetterman's own people in the lead-up to the 2022 midterm elections, where he defeated Republican Mehmet Oz.

The Times's acknowledgment, in other words, is several months too late to be of much use to voters.

The question is, "why now?"

One rather obvious answer is that the mission has already been accomplished: Fetterman is a U.S. Senator and the Democrats control the U.S. Senate.

But, the Times's report also follows a recent hospitalization of Fetterman. The hospitalization occurred on Wednesday after the 53-year-old Fetterman said that he “began feeling lightheaded” during a Democrat retreat in which he was participating.

Subsequently, a member of his staff took him to the George Washington University Hospital in Washington D.C.

Fetterman would remain at the hospital for two nights undergoing various testing. Updates were provided about the situation throughout the course of his hospital stay, both by his wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, and by his office.

On Thursday, for example, Fetterman's office wrote:

According to John’s doctors at The George Washington University Hospital, the results of the MRI, along with the results of all of the other tests the doctors ran, rule out a new stroke,” the statement said. He is being monitored with an EEG for signs of seizure—so far there are no signs of seizure, but he is still being monitored.

Fetterman’s office provided a final update on the situation at the time of his hospital release on Friday, writing:

A few minutes ago, Sen. John Fetterman was discharged from The George Washington University Hospital. In addition to the CT, CTA, and MRI tests ruling out a stroke, his EEG test results came back normal, with no evidence of seizures. John is looking forward to spending some time with his family.

It was in and amongst all of this that the Times's finally decided to acknowledge Fetterman's obvious health struggles.

The big question is whether Fetterman would still find himself in the U.S. Senate had the voters known about his condition ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. Fetterman is expected to return to his Senate duties on Monday.