JASON CHERKIS
KENTUCKY’S
KING
familiar with what the senator
would approve. McConnell’s staff
had the same basic questions for
every pitch: How will this help Kentucky? How will this keep University of Kentucky alums from fleeing
the state? “He wanted to see the
university be an economic driver in
the state,” Schweri explains.
Using a public university to
drive the state’s economy, much
less providing public health care,
HUFFINGTON
08.11.13
would be anathema to members of
the tea party. At least nationally,
the Senate minority leader isn’t
so generous or noble. McConnell
has, almost as a matter of routine,
favored corporate subsidies and
tax cuts for the wealthy over safety
net support for Americans living
in poverty. Nearly every social support program can count on McConnell’s opposition, from home heating assistance to allowing states to
access cheaper medications.
Children receive no special exemption from McConnell’s tough
A couple
attends a
group session
at Centering
Pregnancy,
a prenatal
care program
at Baptist
Women’s
Clinic in
Western
Kentucky
that
benefited
from
McConnell’s
earmark
funding.