Senator Kirk Gets A Wellness Check From President Obama

"Appreciate his well wishes," said Kirk.

President Barack Obama may not win accolades for bipartisanship, but, he didn't let party politics get in the way of a get well call to a Republican Senator.

Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), who is recovering from a debilitating stroke he suffered in January, received a call Thursday from Obama.
 
Kirk posted an appreciation tweet Thursday following a call he received from President Obama. He tweeted, “Thanks to President Obama @whitehouse for calling this morning. Appreciate his well-wishes."
 
Kirk was elected to President Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat in 2010. According to reports, this marked the first time Obama called Kirk to check in on his health. 

He did receive a letter from the president shortly after his stroke the Daily Herald reports. 

In January, Kirk checked himself into Lake Forest Hospital where doctors discovered a carotid artery dissection in the right side of his neck. Kirk was transferred to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where further tests revealed he had suffered an ischemic stroke. He underwent surgery to relieve swelling around his brain.
 
Three months after suffering his stroke Kirk returned home. A video of his recovery and physical therapy showed Kirk’s determination to make a full recovery and get back in the swing of things. 
Although he is still not able to be in Washington, Kirk is working behind the scenes to push legislative initiatives.
 
Just after the NATO Summit adjourned Kirk had his first visit back to his office where he met with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski.
 
Komorowski awarded Kirk the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland.
 
Kirk was recently in the media, outside his stroke recovery news, when his ex-wife Kimberly Vertolli filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission last year alleging Kirk may have hidden campaign payments to his then-girlfriend, while running for Senate in 2010. Kirk’s campaign called the complaint “groundless” noting it is “consisting of bitter personal attacks.”
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