Inside the famed vaults at Fort Knox, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell held a 27-pound gold bar in his hands Monday as part of the first civilian delegation to see most of the country'sbullion reserves in more than 40 years.

But being surrounded by more than $186 billion worth of gold was no sweat for one of the country's most powerful politicians

"It's not even the annual funding level for some of our large departments in the federal government," he said.

McConnell was part of a delegation of Kentucky politicians allowed inside the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox for the first time since 1974. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchininitiated the visit, along with U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie and Gov. Matt Bevin.

The depository holds more than 147 million ounces of gold, which puts its market value at more than $186 billion. While primarily known as a vault for gold, the depository also held theDeclaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution during World War II.

Mnuchin said it was the first time Fort Knox opened its vaults to outsiders since a Congressional delegation and some journalists were let in to view the gold for the first time in 1974. McConnellsaid he had never thought about visiting Fort Knox before, but jumped at the chance when Mnuchin offered to take him.

In an interview, McConnell said he could not say much about the visit for security reasons. But Bevin, speaking on WHAS radio, divulged a few more details. He said it took "quite a bit of time" toget in and out of the facility, and said officials had to cut a seal to open the vault for them.

In addition to the gold bricks, Bevin said he got to hold a 1933 double eagle, a $20 gold coin that was never circulated. Bevin, who said he collected coins as a child, compared it to "seeing aleprechaun on a unicorn."

"All I will say is that it is freakishly well secured," he said. "The gold is safe."

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After 40 years, Fort Knox opens famedvault to civilians (https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/after-40-years-fort-knox-opens-vault-to-civilians/2017/08/21/f03eea2e-86b6-11e7-96a7-d178cf3524eb_story.html?)

Louise Linton, wife of U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, drew accusations of elitism this week for an Instagram glamour shot of her stepping off a government jet - and for her mockeryof an online critic as "adorably out of touch."

But a watchdog group and a lawmaker, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), seized on a different issue: Did the millionaire couple fly to Louisville on Monday, on a taxpayer-funded plane, just to see the solareclipse? Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) suggested as much in seeking records of the trip, saying it "seems to have been planned around the solar eclipse."

It turns out that Mnuchin did view the eclipse while he was in Kentucky: Just outside the path of totality, from the lawn of the nation's fabled Fort Knox, home to nearly $200 billion in Americangold, according to an aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

Treasury officials said Thursday that the trip was planned explicitly around "official government travel," rejecting the idea that the Fort Knox visit and the appearance at a luncheon for thelocal chamber of commerce were mere cover. They said the luncheon appearance had been planned for early August but was delayed when McConnell postponed the Senate's recess, an account confirmed by aspokeswoman for the Louisville chamber, Alison Brotzge-Elder.

Mnuchin thanked the U.S. Mint staff on Twitter after the visit, which he said was the first for a treasury secretary since 1948. "Glad gold is safe!" he tweeted.

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Ethics group wants to know what ledMnuchin to view eclipse in Kentucky (https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/mnuchin-viewed-eclipse-from-roof-of-fort-knox/2017/08/24/1b6ba9b4-8903-11e7-a50f-e0d4e6ec070a_story.html)

Steven Mnuchin's Aug. 21 visit to the gold vaults of the Fort Knox Gold Bullion Depository in Kentucky was the first by a Treasury secretary in 69 years. It had been more than four decades since asenior Treasury Department official inspected the bulk of the nation's gold reserves.

U.S. Mint Director Mary Brooks led a contingent of congressional representatives and journalists on Sept. 23, 1974, to take inventory of the nation's gold reserves amid concerns some of thegold may be missing.

A subsequent audit accounted for all of the gold, with none recorded missing.

When Brooks and the congressional delegation and journalists toured the Fort Knox vaults in 1974 it was the first time anyone other than authorized personnel was permitted entry.

The bullion depository was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936. In 1933, Roosevelt's Executive Order 6102 had outlawed the private ownership of gold coins, gold bullion, and goldcertificates by American citizens, forcing citizens to sell their gold holdings to the Federal Reserve.

The bullion depository was needed because the nation's gold reserves tripled and storage space was insufficient. When FDR inspected the vaults on April 28, 1943, it was "the one and only time agold vault was opened by inspection for anyone other than authorized personnel," Brooks said.

Her 1974 inspection tour was the first time photography was permitted inside the vault area.

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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin inspects Fort Knox gold(http://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/2017/08/treasury-secretary-pays-visit-to-fort-knox-gold.all.html)