• The Transportation Department hit back Monday against a Politico story that alleged Transportation Sec. Elaine Chao gave special treatment to projects in the home state of her husband, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
  • “This is a misinformed online post and the blogger intentionally misleads readers, misrepresents the grant application process and disregards key facts,” a DOT spokesperson told The Daily Caller News Foundation.
  • “Kentucky continues to punch above its weight in Washington, and I am proud to be a strong voice for my constituents in the Senate,” McConnell told TheDCNF in a statement Monday.

The Transportation Department hit back Monday against a Politico story that alleged Transportation Sec. Elaine Chao gave special treatment to projects in the home state of her husband, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

“This is a misinformed online post and the blogger intentionally misleads readers, misrepresents the grant application process and disregards key facts. DOT’s Chief of Staff does not offer technical assistance to grant applications, and no state receives special treatment from the Department. Our team of dedicated career staff does an outstanding job evaluating hundreds of applications for these highly competitive grant programs, a thorough process developed well before this Administration,” a DOT spokesperson told The Daily Caller News Foundation.

McConnell also responded to the story.

“Every single day, Kentuckians from across the Commonwealth contact me with their concerns. As Senate Majority Leader and a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, I am able to ensure that these issues — both large and small — are part of the national discussion. Kentucky continues to punch above its weight in Washington, and I am proud to be a strong voice for my constituents in the Senate,” McConnell told TheDCNF in a statement Monday.

Under Chao, Kentucky received at least $78 million for projects as one of Chao’s lieutenants coordinated with McConnell’s chief of staff, reported Politico. Chao had personally requested that her aide Todd Inman work with the senator and Kentucky leaders on grants, Inman said in an email according to Politico.

“The Secretary has indicated if you have a [Kentucky]-specific issue that we should flag for her attention to please continue to go through your normal channels but feel free to contact me directly as well so we can monitor or follow up as necessary,” Inman wrote to McConnell’s chief of staff in 2017, Politico reported in February.

But DOT points out that it distributed 169 grants like the ones highlighted by Politico during the current administration, and only five went to Kentucky. In addition, Kentucky’s DOT funding has been proportional to its size under Chao: it’s 26th in population and 25th in DOT money.

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