Mitch McConnell is an embarrassing, out of touch RINO. It’s time for him to retire. | Opinion

Time for McConnell to go

When will Kentucky finally be rid of U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)? This man is a total embarrassment to our commonwealth as he struggles while making foolish comments in attempting to be relevant in a fast-moving world. He only draws attention to his obsolescence. As a RINO, he should retire to the “no longer matters” zoo with Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and the other D.C. insiders who have made a good of living at the government slopping trough. God knows what kind of deals they’ve concocted over the years.

McConnell is past his usefulness and if he was honorable, he’d allow someone capable to assume his position. He is a strong internationalist holding priorities that do not align with “Make America Great.” Wouldn’t it be appropriate if he resigned from the senate on 1-20-25 as the new president starts repairing the problems caused by globalists and internationalists against America’s interests?

The old way of politics is passe as former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden have discovered!

McConnell needs to join his buddies in retirement. He’s flush after 40 years of government benefits.

Robert Adams, Lexington

Athletics money

Pro-Kamala Gov. Andy Beshear, and the plethora of state legislators who jumped into bed with the gaming/gambling industry (local sports talk radio also included), probably never considered how this free for all gambling bill would hurt University of Kentucky and University of Louisville athletics. How? With more savings, checking and kids’ college funds being depleted on sports betting at the tip of your finger, there is much less NIL (name, image, likeness) money for our universities. Hence, paying top quarterbacks just got harder.

Good guide to presidential voting: whoever foul-mouthed Robert DeNiro and Whoopi Goldberg vote for, go the opposite way. Neither of them cares about grocery prices, good jobs or what average people go through. And the military, police and border security aren’t a priority for them.

John Mackey, Lexington

Immigrant deportations

Roger Guffey wants to tally the cost of deporting millions of immigrants who have crossed the border in the last few years. How about tallying the cost of letting them stay?

What is the cost of letting Tren de Aragua and MS 13 gangs set up shop in American cities? What is the cost to the American citizens who are murdered, raped and assaulted on a near daily basis by illegal immigrants? What is the cost of the tens of thousands of Americans who die annually from fentanyl cooked in Mexico? Suspects on the terror watch list encountered at the southern border dramatically increased under President Joe Biden’s watch. What is the cost of another 9/11?

As usual, “Trump Derangement Syndrome” makes the left reject their own safety and common sense. Trump was very clear about his plans for the border in the campaign and won the election. Democracy, remember?

Doug Reed, Lexington

Trump pardons

Another one of the rich guys pardoned in 2020 by then-President Donald Trump has been arrested for a different crime. In 2019, Philip Esformes was convicted of fraudulently stealing $1.3 billion dollars from Medicare. Trump apparently didn’t think that was a crime worthy of being punished, at least not for a rich white man. But it certainly is a crime far worse than anything President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden ever did. Where was the outrage from conservatives about this? Or about the unprecedented crime spree of Trump in 2020 and 2021? Instead conservatives keep making excuses for these criminal acts by fellow conservatives.

Esformes is the seventh person pardoned by Trump who went on to be charged with another crime, this time domestic violence. He deserves to be in jail.

Back in 2016 Trump took an oath to defend and protect the U.S. Constitution. What a joke. He doesn’t care about the Constitution. He thinks he can do whatever he wants. He wants to pardon all of the insurrectionists who participated in various plots to overthrow the U.S government after his 2020 election loss; maybe even including all of his unethical lawyers who are being disbarred, although I don’t think he can pardon a disbarment.

Kevin Kline, Lexington

Biden’s pardon

When President Joe Biden pledged not to pardon his son, the political environment was totally different from today. Since then former President Donald Trump won the election in which he promised retribution on the “enemy within.” During his campaign, he made more than 100 threats to prosecute and imprison his perceived enemies, political opponents, and private citizens. We would be naive and foolish not to take this seriously. Biden took this threat seriously and pardoned his son to shield him from Trump’s insatiable need to get even.

Rene Payne, Stanford

Comparing coaches

I know this is a novel idea, but... it might be past time to stop the continued comparing and contrasting of University of Kentucky men’s basketball coaches John Calipari and Mark Pope. Instead it could be the time to be thankful and move on.

Belinda French, Columbia, TN

Urban expansion

The Lexington Fayette Urban County Government has recently been pushing to expand the Urban Service Boundary to build more affordable housing. But who is this decision for?

I am not arguing that Lexington shouldn’t construct new affordable housing. Lexington’s most recent needs analysis found the city would need to construct 22,500 more housing units to meet demand. It is clear that, in whatever form it takes, Lexington needs to prioritize housing construction to create a growing, affordable city.

However, I worry we may leave our people behind by building new communities instead of investing in our current ones. Gentrification has made displacement an alarming concern for our city’s working-class community. By casting low-income residents to the far-reaching city boundaries, we leave a vacancy in one of Lexington’s most historic neighborhoods.

If we want to preserve Lexington’s communities, we should focus on building affordable housing in the neighborhoods that need it. With so many vacant properties concentrated within the East End, redevelopment should be a tangible, achievable goal for affordable housing construction. A recent CivicLex study found that 88 percent of Lexingtonians support infill and redevelopment before expansion.

Again, whose needs are being reflected in this decision?

Molly Wilcoxson, Lexington

Edited by Liz Carey