Alison Lundergan Grimes Hits Mitch McConnell For Saying It's 'Not My Job' To Create Local Jobs

[okaawhatever]

A small item in a local newspaper is at the center of the most recent dust-up between Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and his likely general election opponent, Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes (D).

SNIP

U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell said Friday that it is not his responsibility to bring jobs to Kentucky.

Appearing in Beattyville, McConnell was asked by The Beattyville Enterprise what he was going to do to bring jobs to Lee County.

“Economic development is a Frankfort issue,” McConnell said. “That is not my job. It is the primary responsibility of the state Commerce Cabinet.”

Asked about public works projects McConnell said he is interested in bringing public works to the state. “Most comes from the state, though,” he said.

He did say that he is responsible for protecting jobs by “pushing back” against the Obama Administration’s restrictions on the coal industry.

Grimes fired back Thursday, saying that "the only job that [McConnell] has cared about over the past 30 years is his own."

"I stand in complete contrast and disagreement with him," Grimes told HuffPost in a phone interview. "Unlike Mitch McConnell, I listen to Kentuckians. It is the job of a U.S. senator to put hardworking Kentucky families back to work and to grow our middle class. He shocked not just myself but all of Kentucky when he declared that economic development is not his job."

Continued at Link:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/24/alison-lundergan-grimes-mitch-mcconnell-_n_5206894.html#comments

[Dawson Leery]

1. 50/50 chance that McConnell will not have his job next year.

[liberalmike27]

15. Let us Hope

It's really all about getting lazy Democrats out to vote, doesn't it. If we vote, we win. Also keep third party defections to a minimum, and convince people that we need to steadily move left, that we didn't get here overnight, it's been 35 years of intensively right-wing Reagan policies, and changes, that have allowed our media to totally corrupt thought in America. People have grown up here, and never had a media that even approximated fairness. Now they don't even think it's right to try to achieve fairness in the media. All we've got is this artificial spectrum of ideology, from right-of-center, to extreme right. And even that, they generally call "the liberal media."

Of course one could just ask the simple question "If the media is trying to con you into being liberal, would it bring on thousands of people over the last 30 years, to repeat 'liberal media' thousands of times." It would seem counter-productive, to say the least, if your purpose is to spawn more liberals.

Usually it comes from social issues--but I can tell you, corporations don't care if you're black, or get an abortion (other than them loving to keep a bunch of poor jobless people around, to keep wages down), or if you are religious, or have fifty guns. Economically, they're all wildly right-wing, have allowed exporting jobs for 35 years now, to destroy and take JOBS away.

So Mitch probably was just caught being a Republican, and telling the truth for once. He doesn't see his job as creating employment in America. He sees it as shipping away, hurting his constituents financially, as to break their spines, and create a wage-slave class of humans to work for them, to make them money. We're all slaves now folks, so you'd better put your petty bigotries and Xenophobia away.

[riqster]

17. GOTV is our primary task. Always. 24/7/365.

Nice post.

[Lint Head]

2. Eat dirt Turtle!

[TheKentuckian]

3. Mitch McGaffe is always talking stupid. The problem is some folks believe

the premise and more don't functionally agree but fancy the idea so that there always enough to actually make nonsense pay off.

He is in legitimate danger though.

[freshwest]

4. He's busy supporting the 'Job Creator' myth, not jobs. Please Kentucky, get rid of this crook. n/t

[Le Taz Hot]

5. So, Kentuckians,

what are the chances that McConnell gets bounced in November?

[bearssoapbox]

6. Well, he was pretty busy for 4 of those years.

You know...making sure that President Obama had only one term.

[okaawhatever]

11. This is the 1st time I've seen this. Love it. Thanks. nt

[IronLionZion]

7. McConnell has failed at his job

time for the people of Kentucky to fire him.

[groundloop]

8. Call Mittens..... he likes to fire people

[BrotherIvan]

9. What is his job then?

If it is not to represent the interests of his state? It sounds like meddle in stuff and score some pork. Nice work if you can get it.

[nilesobek]

10. McCon-all

is vulnerable at home like the rest of these neo-cons who sacrificed their constituents for ideology. Lets take the fight to them.

[1StrongBlackMan]

12. I haven't read the article yet; but ...

(and I realize this is a complex argument to make, but) ... I would love for some pundit or Democratic politician to attack this "Government doesn't create jobs" narrative head on ... by showing that not even the republican politicians saying it, believe it.

In this case, Grimes could point to the budget/debt-ceiling deal of last year, as an example. In order to get McConnell to sign onto the budget/debt-ceiling deal, he was given a huge dam (no "N", but the "N" would also be appropriate) project for his district.

And what was McConnell's reasoning for the project (and what he is quietly touting of the project)?

That's right ... it brings thousands of jobs to his district!

[okaawhatever]

14. McConnell's ability to bring pork to his state was one of the things that kept him in office. When

he aligned with the tea party types he stopped advocating for pork for KY. I saw a rather lengthy article a while back that showed how much money he brought in for KY in the past. He definitely threw KY under the bus economically for the Washington crowd.

[Brigid]

13. "Push back . . .

Against the Obama administration's restrictions on the coal industry?" Really? That's the Turtle Man's idea of helping Kentuckians? Working in a coal mine for 30 years for next to nothing and then dying of black lung disease? Really?

[Moonwalk]

16. If you read the article, McConnell says he's been "maligned"....

Mitchy's response:

"Unfortunately, it seems my message got lost in translation, and I was surprised to see a headline about my visit that sent the exact opposite message to the one I was trying to convey.

Encouraging positive economic development and job growth is at the center of what I do every day. At the federal level I support policies to try to improve the economy as a whole which in turn will help preserve and create Kentucky’s jobs. These efforts include supporting an end to President Obama’s War on Coal and repealing job-killing Obamacare. Along with Senator Rand Paul, I was proud to sponsor the Economic Freedom Zones Act, which would spur economic growth in areas such as eastern Kentucky."

[Spitfire of ATJ]

18. What the hell is it with the preservation of coal mining jobs anyway?

Okay! I get it! It was dangerous and grueling and there was a romantic appeal for those who struggled in the mines.

But this is the 21st century and the "The hard working coal miner" needs to go the way of the Whaler.

[okaawhatever]

22. It's because it's the only job that exists for them. They aren't working at the Ford plant pining

away for the good ol' days. They're out of work and broke. A bad job is better than no job to them.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

23. I believe it's 5th generation miners telling the kid they should carry on the family tradition....

"Ya know, yer uncle died down there,...ya owe it to HIM."

[ColesCountyDem]

26. Deep southern IL is (or was) a coal mining area, and you're right.

Coal mining is hard, dirty and dangerous work, but it is/was also high-wage, high-benefit, union work.

In my small county (39,407 people), 7,000 UMWA coal miners lost their jobs between 1990 and 2000. Nothing replaced those jobs; at one point, 'official unemployment soared to 20%, and remains at 13.4%. Nice homes were foreclosed, and were replaced by trailers. Automobile dealerships closed, and were replaced by used-car lots. A Wal-Mart Super Center replaced hundreds of thriving 'mom and pop' businesses. School funding dropped dramatically. Local government services were cut dramatically. Children who expected to go to college either didn't go, or went and are now crushed by student loan debt. Lather, rinse and repeat.

okaawhatever is right-- a bad, dangerous job is better than no job at all.

[KamaAina]

19. Yes!!!

Go, Alison, go!!

[Nightjock]

21. Thats nice but is she still running away from ACA?

I saw Ed Shultz take her to task a few weeks ago. It made me furious.

[jlayson]

24. He's a serial shocker.. causalities in Iraq

Last edited Fri Apr 25, 2014, 08:56 PM - Edit history (1)

.html" target="_blank">.html

[sheshe2]

25. Kick for Alison! nt

[Cha]

27. "...the only job that has cared about over the past 30 years is his own."

So True.

[jlayson]

28. This is mitch speak

<a href=".html" target="_blank"><img src="" border="0" alt=" photo Untitlmitchd.png"/></a>