Tagged: Mitch McConnel

U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell said he hopes a deal can be hatched to avoid the fiscal cliff,  but that talks so far have not gone well.

McConnell said President Barack Obama is asking for a new stimulus package -- the unlimited ability to raise the debt ceiling and more than $1 trillion in new tax revenues.

And those proposals are not something Republicans want to concede, McConnell said.

Still, McConnell said he's hopeful a deal can be reached to avert the tax increases and large budget reductions scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1.

U.S. Sens. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul are urging Gov. Steve Beshear to seek a federal disaster declaration because of the potential economic consequences of a drought that has led to low water levels on the Mississippi River.

Beshear said Friday he appreciates their concern and that he's closely monitoring the situation.

McConnell and Paul said in a letter to Beshear on Thursday that commercial traffic on the river could "come to a complete halt in coming days" unless the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers takes action to increase the water flow.

As the rhetoric continues over the so-called “fiscal cliff", Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says a permanent debt ceiling increase is “not going to happen.”

McConnell went to the Senate floor to argue against President Obama’s call for authority to permanently raise the debt limit. The Republican from Louisville says giving the President that authority would be a step in the wrong direction and could make it more difficult to reduce federal spending.