Mitch Mcconnell

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., speaks to the media after the Senate passed the debt ceiling plan, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2011. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, speaks to the media on Capitol Hill after the Senate passed the debt ceiling plan on Aug. 2, 2011. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (right), Kentucky Republican, and Minority Whip Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, head to a caucus meeting on Aug. 1, 2011, with fellow Republicans on Capitol Hill to discuss the debt plan. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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LOGJAM LIFTED?: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, is all smiles as he walks to the Senate floor Sunday to announce that a deal has been reached on the debt ceiling. It must still pass both houses of Congress. (Associated Press)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, gives a thumbs up when asked about a deal an the debt ceiling as he heads to the Senate floor on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sunday, July 31, 2011. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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From left: Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, head July 31, 2011, to the Senate floor on Capitol Hill to vote on the debt-limit solution crafted by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (second from right), Kentucky Republican, walks July 31, 2011, to the Senate floor at the Capitol for a vote on a debt-limit solution crafted by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. McConnell is joined by Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl (left), of Arizona, and Sen. John Barrasso (rear center), Wyoming Republican. (Associated Press)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (second from right), Kentucky Republican, walks July 31, 2011, to the Senate floor at the Capitol for a vote on a debt-limit solution crafted by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. McConnell is joined by Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl (left), of Arizona, and Sen. John Barrasso (rear center), Wyoming Republican. (Associated Press)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, is pursued by a reporter on July 31, 2011, as he arrives at his office on Capitol Hill after speaking about ongoing debt negotiations on Sunday talk shows. (Associated Press)

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From left: President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, and Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, Illinois Democrat, meet in the Cabinet Room of the White House on July 13, 2011, regarding the debt ceiling. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (center), Kentucky Republican, is flanked by House Speaker John Boehner (right), Ohio Republican, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, on Capitol Hill. (Associated Press)

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President Obama sits with House Speaker John Boehner (left), Ohio Republican, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (second from right), Kentucky Republican, and Sen. Dick Durbin, Illinois Democrat, as he meets on July 13, 2011, with Republican and Democratic leaders regarding the debt ceiling in the Cabinet Room of the White House. (Associated Press)

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky (left), with Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl of Arizona, said he no longer thinks a debt solution is possible "as long as this president is in the Oval Office." Mr. McConnell proposed a backup plan that would, in effect, let the president increase the nation's debt limit with only Democratic votes. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (left), Kentucky Republican, speaks June 28, 2011, with reporters as Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, looks on, following a weekly Republican policy luncheon on Capitol Hill. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (right), Kentucky Republican, speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 29, 2011, as Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, Utah Republican, looks on. (Associated Press)

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"If this week has shown us anything it's that the American people can't wait on Democrats to do the right thing when it comes to spending and debt and putting us on a path to balance the budget," said Senate Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican. Sen. Orrin Hatch, Utah Republican (left), also spoke in favor of a balanced budget amendment. (Associated Press)