U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell met Thursday in Hopkinsville with advocates for Fort Campbell projects that rely on federal funding, and he spoke briefly on international topics ranging from isolationism and tariffs to the war in Ukraine.
The Kentucky Republican rarely aligns with President Donald Trump on issues of trade and foreign affairs, but he was not highly critical of the president when addressing questions from reporters.
“Within my party, we are having kind of a debate among isolationists and the rest of us,” McConnell said. “We’re not quite sure where the president is yet … a lot of the people who work for him are very much in the isolationist camp. On the other hand, he’s got the job now and he’s dealing with the reality of the situation.”
McConnell said he is “hopeful” about a summit meeting set for Friday in Alaska between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“But at the end,” said McConnell, “what we need to avoid, not only for Ukraine but for ourselves is the headline that says, ‘Russia wins, America loses.’”
The president should not make a deal with Putin “just for the sake of making a deal,” said the senator.
Ukraine must sign off on any agreement, he said. “In other words, I don’t think we ought to impose on them the terms. They’re the ones that have to live there. What Putin is obviously doing is just playing their time, hoping we will run out of interest.”
As he did a year ago this month in a speech to the Hopkinsville Rotary Club, McConnell said he is spending the final stretch of his political career on protecting American interests through a strong defense.
The United States currently faces its biggest threat since World War II because of opposition from North Korea, China, Russia, Iran and “Iran’s proxies,” said McConnell.
“So the question is, what’s the best way to deal with this kind of imminent threat,” he said. “I’m still kind of a Reagan Republican. When Reagan coined the term ‘peace through strength,’ it wasn’t just a saying. It was more than a saying.”
Enemies are “less likely to mess with you” when defenses are strong, he said.
“During the four Biden years, we didn’t increase defense above inflation — but we are not doing that good this year either,” he said. “And we need to get on a path to increase our annual defense budget to reflect the challenges that we have, not 10 years ago but right now and in the future. So that’s how I’m spending most of my time the last couple of years.”
Although McConnell and Trump have been at odds several times since the president’s first term in office, McConnell said he was at the White House and spoke to the president as recently as two weeks ago. The occasion was a dinner to celebrate passage of Trump’s so-called Big Beautiful Bill. McConnell said he complimented Trump for “dropping a bomb on Iran.”
Early this year, McConnell, 83, stepped down as his party leader in the Senate, a position he held for 18 years. He is not seeking another term in office and will leave the Senate in January 2027. He was elected in 1984.
The longest serving U.S. senator in Kentucky history, he has experienced several health-related scares, including falls and freezing up for several seconds during public events, over the past couple of years. His hearing has declined, and staff members reminded reporters to speak up when asking questions at the Christian County Chamber of Commerce’s conference room. A staff member sat at McConnell’s side and repeated questions he could not hear.
McConnell joked that hearing aides and chairs with wheels are some of his biggest challenges.
Three top contenders for McConnell’s seat who will vie 2026 GOP primary are former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, U.S. Rep. Andy Barr and Lexington businessman Nate Morris. During political speeches during Fancy Farm weekend, Morris stood out as a harsh critic of McConnell, saying the veteran senator has not been conservative enough and hasn’t been in line with Trump’s MAGA movement.
McConnell said he won’t endorse a candidate in the race.
On trade and tariff issues, McConnell is often in disagreement with many in his party. He said he’s been clear that he generally does not favor tariffs, noting consumers ultimately pay for them, but acknowledged the president has “total authority” to impose them.
“I think a lot of politicians have given the American people the idea that trade means exported jobs,” he said. “Well, it may export some, but it creates a lot more in this country. And I just think that trade agreements are typically a good thing for us, and I don’t think we have been snookered in every deal that we’ve made in the past.”
McConnell also discussed a provision in the BBB that aims to address the loss of farmland.
The Protecting American Farmlands Act (which Kentucky Farm Bureau urged McConnell to shepherd) provides tax relief to farmers when they sell land — on the condition they sell to another active farmer. Sellers can defer capital gains taxes as a result of the legislation. It also restricts foreign ownership of agricultural land in the U.S., particularly to buyers linked to China, Russia, North Korea an Iran.
Prior to taking questions from reporters, McConnell met privately with a delegation of chamber representatives, local elected officials and Fort Campbell officials. They included chamber President and CEO Taylor Hayes, Oak Grove Mayor Jackie Oliver, Hopkinsville Mayor James R. Knight Jr., Christian County Judge-Executive Jerry Gilliam, state Sen. Craig Richardson, chamber Military Affairs Director Shannon Lane and Fort Campbell Garrison Command Sergeant Major Ryan B. Jeffers.
This story was originally published by the Hoptown Chronicle.
