Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday he would rather let state governments file for bankruptcy than give them a federal "blank check" amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking to radio host Hugh Hewitt, McConnell said he is not going to be in favor of allowing the federal government "to borrow money from future generations to send it down" to the states.

"I would certainly be in favor of allowing states to use the bankruptcy route," McConnell said. "It saves some cities. And there’s no good reason for it not to be available."

McConnell's comments come as state and local governments have been pleading for funding from the federal government to help mitigate coronavirus-spurred revenue losses.

On Monday, all 26 members of the Louisville Metro Council penned a letter to McConnell and U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth to ask for "general fund relief" for state and local governments in addition to previous federal relief measures.

'We cannot wait':Louisville Metro Council begs Mitch McConnell, Yarmuth for federal funding

"Just this week, Mayor (Greg) Fischer announced the furlough of 380 metro employees," the letter said. "Without relief, we fear that number will be much greater as we are forced to cut the services our constituents depend on."

That call for more funding has not been heeded, for now. In the latest $484 billion coronavirus relief package passed Tuesday by the U.S. Senate, there is no funding for local and state governments.

McConnell defended the package Wednesday, saying "we’re not ready to just send a blank check down to states and local governments to spend any way they choose to."

"We had a tranche for them in the first bill, the $2.2 trillion dollar bill," McConnell said. "It has to be coronavirus-related. And I think we need to have a full debate not only about if we do state and local, how will they spend it."

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McConnell spokesman Robert Steurer previously told The Courier Journal that Kentucky is expected to receive $1.25 billion from the CARES stimulus Act, and that the Louisville Metro Government will also receive some funding from the legislation.

But Yarmuth, a Louisville Democrat, said it is "infuriating" for Senate Republicans "to put their heads in the sand and ignore what our state and local leaders are facing" in the latest coronavirus relief bill, adding that a draft proposal included $150 billion in funding "for these efforts alone."

The most recent stimulus package provides an additional $320 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program, which McConnell said from the Senate floor Tuesday is "already saving millions of small-business jobs and helping Americans get paychecks instead of pink slips."

The program ran out of funding last week.

Meanwhile, in Louisville the city must "massively" cut services without federal help to make up for lost revenue, Fischer has warned. The city's chief financial officer has said it's fair to expect the city will lose at least $19 million in revenue for the fiscal year.

Fischer is set to give his annual budget address to the Louisville Metro Council Thursday.

During a press briefing Wednesday afternoon, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said he has not heard McConnell's comments, but wants to talk to the Kentucky senator about the context of them.

"Every state in the country is going to be in desperate need of federal aid," Beshear said.

More:How much will coronavirus hurt Louisville's budget? What to know before mayor's address

Contact Ben Tobin at bjtobin@gannett.com and 502-582-4181 or follow on Twitter @TobinBen. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: subscribe.courier-journal.com.