Let’s Talk About Mitch…

Kit O’Connor, Frankfort, KY

I was struck recently by Mitch McConnell’s ad that begins with an image of him speaking with our governor, Andy Beshear. It’s no secret that Governor Beshear has been viewed overall favorably for the way he’s handled the coronavirus crisis, but I find it absurd that Senator McConnell would use his image for an ad, thereby implying that they’re working together. The truth is that while Andy Beshear is fighting for the lives of all Kentuckians, Mitch McConnell is turning his back on us.

A tale of two leaders has emerged. One leader, Gov. Beshear, urges unity in the face of this crisis. He has said that he hopes we can be considered “the kindest generation.” The other leader, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, continues to divide the United States into red and blue states, and his approach is anything but kind.

States are struggling financially and will continue to struggle with the economic fallout and loss of revenue from the coronavirus- a true public health crisis. Here in Kentucky, a full quarter of workers have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus, and cities such as Louisville and Lexington, are facing huge deficits.

Since most states are required to balance their budgets, if their expenses are larger than revenue, they’ll be forced to cut pay or lay off state employees. This would affect teachers, firefighters, cops, frontline people- millions of jobs will be lost across the country. The situation is dire and the National Governors Association has asked for 500 billion dollars to rescue state services and help stabilize budgets.

But Mitch McConnell, as the Senate majority leader, refuses to advocate for federal aid. He suggests that states file for bankruptcy. As if that weren’t enough, McConnell’s office suggested that federal relief for state governments would amount to a “blue state bailout” and that federal aid to states would go to predominantly democratic led states that he said mismanaged their money (while Kentucky is renowned for using federal aid). He is creating divisions among states.

But this isn’t a partisan issue. It’s not a red state — blue state issue. Republican governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, who’s also the chair of the National Governors Association, last week said about McConnell’s comments, “That’s complete nonsense…These are well-run states. There are just as many Republicans as Democrats that strongly support this.” (AXIOS)

He has also said that “The last thing we need in the middle of an economic crisis is to have states all filing bankruptcy all across America and not able to provide services to people who desperately need them.”

Republican Representative Peter King of New York went even further than Hogan. He said, “What Senator McConnell said was absolutely disgraceful…And somehow for him to say, ‘Go into bankruptcy,’ rather than be able to pay your cops, your firefighters, and your health care workers when there’s a national pandemic… For him to say that somehow this is a giveaway, that we’re looking for free money? Mitch McConnell should be ashamed of himself. What he said is beyond disgraceful.” (Mediaite)

But Senator McConnell did say that. So I ask you:

• Why is Senator McConnell OK with the federal government giving massive tax cuts to corporations but not OK with ensuring that teachers, firefighters and police keep their jobs in the middle of a pandemic?
• Why is he okay for these same people we’re calling heroes- the frontline workers in this crisis- losing their pensions?
• Why is Senator McConnell OK with bailing out corporations but not his own state government?

Most importantly, why do we put up with this?

So one leader is calling for us to be “the kindest generation,” the other acts as though he’s part of the meanest generation. I choose kindness. I say it’s time for mean Mitch McConnell to retire.

Kit O’Connor is a founding member of the MMRC. They live in Frankfort, KY with their spouse, Nate Orshan. Kit is a lifelong activist, advocate and educator with a focus on human rights, particularly refugee and migrant rights and LGBTQ+ rights. Besides teaching high school, they enjoy public speaking and providing workshops about a range of issues from citizen lobbying to human rights messaging. You can Follow Kit on Twitter @ KitUnbridled