McConnell expresses concern over Ukraine aid and defense funding in debt limit law
US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell began his weekly press conference railing on the defense spending levels in the debt limit law, saying Congress must provide more money for national security programs — all the while acknowledging there’s no clear path to fixing it, given House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s opposition to spending additional funds beyond the caps set by the new law.
McConnell said the Pentagon funding is “totally inadequate” to address the defense needs in the country and said that while he supported the bill to ultimately raise the debt ceiling, he is “not happy” with the terms in it.
McConnell acknowledged the divide between him and McCarthy on providing additional funding for Ukraine and whether Congress will provide it will be difficult.
“All I can tell you at this particular point is defense is radically underfunded, related to the Chinese threat. And Ukraine probably will need additional assistance. So figuring out how to do this is going to be a challenge,” he said.
