Sen. Mitch McConnell and Gov. Andy Beshear visited the Boone National Guard Center in Frankfort Thursday morning. It follows an announcement that would see federal funding go towards Kentucky’s military installations.
The funding includes $3.3 million to move forward the construction of an ammunition warehouse at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Richmond.
It also includes $56 million in upgrades to Fort Campbell and Fort Knox, as well as $25.4 million for new facilities for the Kentucky National Guard.
During a joint speech with McConnell, Beshear praised members of the National Guard for their disaster recovery work.
“Any time that the Commonwealth is in need, the guard is there,” Beshear said. “And every time the guard shows up, regardless of how tough that day is, there's going to be a better day after and a better day after that.”
McConnell called the investments necessary to deter America’s political and economic rivals, including Russia, China and Iran.
“We had this problem before World War II, we learned an important lesson there. Let's don't repeat that mistake,” McConnell said. “And the cheapest way to be ready is to have your defense budget high enough and your industrial base built enough so that you'd never have the conflict in the first place.”
The money comes from the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024, a yearly federal spending bill passed by Congress in March.
The full, specific list of defense projects being supported was shared in a release from McConnell’s office.
** WEKU is working hard to be a leading source for public service, and fact-based journalism. Monthly supporters are the top funding source for this growing nonprofit news organization. Please join others in your community who support WEKU by making your donation.
