By Rebecca Feldhaus/KPR
Louisville, KY – Kentucky's Senior Senator is defending his filibuster of a democratic plan to extend jobless benefits for another two months. Republican Mitch McConnell insists his move is not because he thinks the assistance isn't necessary.
"We just passed a 13 trillion dollar cumulative national debt figure. It's stunning. It needs to stop. So the issue is not whether we extend unemployment of not, the issue is to find a way to pay for it. And somewhere in a trillion dollar budget, there's a way to pay for it. And that's what we've been advocating."
McConnell says he's offered several alternative proposals to extend unemployment benefits. He says all of them call for spending cuts in other areas so the deficit doesn't get any larger.