Former CIA Director John Brennan is no fan of Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY).
After Politico <a href="https://twitter.com/politico/status/1224763315114708992">reported</a> Tuesday that Paul “used the final deliberations of [President Donald] Trump’s impeachment trial to name the alleged whistleblower,” Brennan took to Twitter to insult the Kentucky senator.
“Rand Paul is beneath contempt. He typifies the worst of <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump">@realDonaldTrump</a>’s craven enablers,” Brennan tweeted. “Any Senator excusing this dangerous behavior makes a mockery of public service. History will revile all of you.”
Paul returned the barb by pointing out Brennan’s misdeeds while director of the CIA under President Barack Obama.
“You want to know what’s a mockery of public service, John? Killing 500 people outside of any judicial system. Drone strikes on American citizens. Approving British spies to present a dossier of lies paid for by Hillary. Lying to Congress. Your shame alone should shut you up,” Paul tweeted in response.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
You want to know what’s a mockery of public service, John? Killing 500 people outside of any judicial system. Drone strikes on American citizens. Approving British spies to present a dossier of lies paid for by Hillary. Lying to Congress. Your shame alone should shut you up. <a href="https://t.co/u2ERmv4gE8">https://t.co/u2ERmv4gE8</a>
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1225199838322667521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Paul brought up a number of points against Brennan. For starters, he appeared to be referring to the number of civilians killed overseas as a result of Obama’s drone strike program. Most estimates suggest the number of civilians killed by drone strikes Obama ordered was <a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-drone-strikes/">around 300</a>, but the Bureau of Investigative Journalism <a href="https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-01-17/obamas-covert-drone-war-in-numbers-ten-times-more-strikes-than-bush">suggested</a> the number could be between 384 and 807 civilians. Paul’s office did not respond to a Daily Wire inquiry about the number prior to press time.
Paul’s next point referred to Obama’s targeted killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen who recruited for al-Qaeda and allegedly helped planned terrorist attacks. When al-Awlaki was killed in Yemen, his 16-year-old son, Abdulrahman, was also killed, though he was not accused of any wrongdoing. Even die-hard Obama supporters had to admit the killing at least smelled wrong, as U.S. citizens are supposed to receive due process before any kind of punishment is doled out.
Brennan defended Obama’s drone program, claiming that the extrajudicial killings were justified because “as a matter of international law, the United States is in an armed conflict with al-Qa’ida, the Taliban, and associated forces.”
The strike caused such an uproar that even the left-leaning American Civil Liberties Union filed <a href="https://ccrjustice.org/home/what-we-do/our-cases/al-aulaqi-v-panetta">a lawsuit</a> against the administration, though the case doesn’t appear to have moved since September 2014.
Paul’s next point referred to the “Steele Dossier,” compiled by ex-British Intelligence officer Christopher Steele on behalf of Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee. Steele was paid to dig up dirt on then-candidate Trump using dubious overseas sources. Brennan has defended the dossier.
As to Paul’s last point, it is referring to Brennan’s false testimony before congress in May 2017. Brennan was asked by then-Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) if he knew “who commissioned the Steele dossier.” Brennan was also asked if the FBI relied on the Steele dossier “as part of any court filings, applications, petitions, pleadings?” Brennan said he was unaware. Brennan also said he was the CIA did not rely on the Steele dossier. Gowdy later claimed to have seen an email from former FBI director James Comey claiming Brennan “<a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/05/20/napolitano_john_brennan_may_have_perjured_himself_in_order_to_make_himself_look_good.html">insisted</a>” on including the dossier in the intelligence assessment of Russian interference in the 2016 election. We now know for sure that the Steele dossier was the main source – if not the only source – of information used to claim Trump colluded with Russia in 2016.

Rand Paul

John Brennan: Rand Paul Is ‘Beneath Contempt.’ Paul Punches Back.

John Brennan

In a segment chiding Republican Senator Rand Paul (KY) for submitting a question to Chief Justice John Roberts in which he named the whistleblower whose complaint sparked the Democrats&#8217; impeachment campaign, CNN Chief National Correspondent John King admitted that Republicans have &#8220;a legitimate point&#8221; about the House Democrats blocking them from asking the whistleblower essential questions.
The Democrats have consistently barred any reference to the individual widely believed to be the whistleblower, citing anonymity protections for federal whistleblowers, and ultimately prevented any questioning of the whistleblower by Republicans. Republicans maintain that the whistleblower&#8217;s reported coordination with the office of the Democrat who headed up the impeachment inquiry, House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA), and the whistleblower&#8217;s past previous connections, including to Joe Biden — around whom the Democrats&#8217; accusation of Trump&#8217;s Ukraine pressure campaign revolves — requires that the whistleblower be questioned.
On Thursday, CNN&#8217;s King admitted what few mainstream outlets have been willing to acknowledge: &#8220;Republicans make a good point.&#8221;
&#8220;Republicans make a good point,&#8221; said King, as seen in a clip that President Trump highlighted on Thursday. &#8220;The whistleblower started all this. Why has the whistleblower never been questioned? Shouldn’t the House Democrats have found a secure way to do that? It’s a legitimate point of debate.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
CNN&#39;s John King: &quot;Republicans make a good point. The Whistleblower started all this. Why has the Whistleblower never been questioned? Shouldn’t the House Democrats have found a secure way to do that? It’s a legitimate point of debate.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/lsutmBXBwJ">pic.twitter.com/lsutmBXBwJ</a>
&mdash; ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) <a href="https://twitter.com/alx/status/1222996765412143107?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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During the Senate trial, over which he is presiding, Chief Justice Roberts has maintained the protection of the whistleblower&#8217;s identity, which prompted him to reject a question submitted this week by Sen. Paul. On Thursday, Paul presented his question to the public anyhow.
&#8220;My question today is about whether or not individuals who were holdovers from the Obama National Security Council and Democrat partisans conspired with Schiff staffers to plot impeaching the President before there were formal House impeachment proceedings,&#8221; <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-chief-justice-roberts-censors-questions-from-rand-paul-paul-releases-it">said</a> Paul. The senator then tweeted out the censored question:
<blockquote>My exact question was: Are you aware that House intelligence committee staffer Shawn Misko had a close relationship with [the alleged whistleblower] while at the National Security Council together and are you aware and how do you respond to reports that [the alleged whistleblower] and Misko may have worked together to plot impeaching the President before there were formal house impeachment proceedings.</blockquote>
When Roberts received Paul&#8217;s question Thursday, he told the Senate, &#8220;The presiding officer declines to read the question as submitted.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Chief Justice John Roberts declined to read a question from a senator from Kentucky: &quot;The presiding officer declines to read the question as submitted&quot; <a href="https://t.co/WlozSBas9w">https://t.co/WlozSBas9w</a> <a href="https://t.co/KU0tfQ1pd3">pic.twitter.com/KU0tfQ1pd3</a>
&mdash; CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/1222949396289130500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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President Trump&#8217;s impeachment team has also hammered the issue of the whistleblower&#8217;s previous connections, actions leading up to the submission of the complaint, and potential motives during the trial. On Wednesday, President Trump’s deputy counsel Patrick Philbin asked a series of questions House Democrats blocked from being answered.
“If the whistleblower, as is alleged in some public reports, actually did work for then-Vice President Biden on Ukraine issues, exactly what was his role?” asked Philbin. “What was his involvement when issues were raised — we know from testimony that questions were raised — about the potential conflict of interest that the vice president then had when his son was sitting on the board of Burisma. Was the alleged whistleblower involved in any of that and in making decisions to not do anything related to that?”
“Did he have some reason to want to put the deep-six on any question raising any issue about what went on with the Bidens and Burisma and firing Shokin and withholding a billion dollars in loan guarantees and enforcing a very explicit quid pro quo — you won’t get this billion dollars until you fire him? We don’t know,” Philbin continued. “And because Manager Schiff was guiding this whole process, because he was the chairman in charge of directing the inquiry and directing it away from any of those questions, that creates a real due process defect in the record that has been presented here.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-trump-lawyer-lays-out-crucial-questions-dems-blocked-on-ukraine-whistleblower-including-biden-burisma-issue">WATCH: Trump Lawyer Lays Out Crucial Questions Dems Blocked On Ukraine Whistleblower, Including Biden-Burisma Issue</a>
&nbsp;

CNN&#8217;s John King

WATCH: CNN Admits: Republicans Have ‘Legitimate Point’ About Whistleblower Questions

Donald Trump

Impeachment

John Roberts

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who is presiding over President Donald Trump&#8217;s Senate impeachment trial, blocked Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) from asking a question on Thursday during the trial.
Paul tweeted, &#8220;My question today is about whether or not individuals who were holdovers from the Obama National Security Council and Democrat partisans conspired with Schiff staffers to plot impeaching the President before there were formal House impeachment proceedings.&#8221;
Paul then tweeted out the question that Roberts censored: &#8220;My exact question was: Are you aware that House intelligence committee staffer Shawn Misko had a close relationship with Eric Ciaramella while at the National Security Council together and are you aware and how do you respond to reports that Ciaramella and Misko may have worked together to plot impeaching the President before there were formal house impeachment proceedings.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
and are you aware and how do you respond to reports that Ciaramella and Misko may have worked together to plot impeaching the President before there were formal house impeachment proceedings. 2/2
&mdash; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1222950225020641281?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Paul <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1222951600072859649">continued</a>, &#8220;My question is not about a &#8216;whistleblower&#8217; as I have no independent information on his identity. My question is about the actions of known Obama partisans within the NSC and House staff and how they are reported to have conspired before impeachment proceedings had even begun.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Chief Justice John Roberts declined to read a question from a senator from Kentucky: &quot;The presiding officer declines to read the question as submitted&quot; <a href="https://t.co/WlozSBas9w">https://t.co/WlozSBas9w</a> <a href="https://t.co/KU0tfQ1pd3">pic.twitter.com/KU0tfQ1pd3</a>
&mdash; CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/1222949396289130500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Fox News&#8217; Gregg Re reported late on Wednesday:
<blockquote>Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts blocked Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul from posing a question during the Senate impeachment trial Wednesday that would have named the alleged whistleblower at the center of the case, Fox News is told — and Paul may try to force the issue during the question-and-answer session that begins Thursday afternoon.
Roberts, for now, has ball control because he actually receives the questions in note cards from senators, then reads the question aloud in the Senate chamber to be answered by either House Democratic managers or Trump&#8217;s defense team. But Fox News has learned Roberts may soon lose his grip on the proceedings amid a torrent of criticism both inside and outside the Senate.</blockquote>
Online, legal experts, politicians, and other notable figures slammed Roberts&#8217; decision to block the question from Paul on Thursday.
Constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley, a Trump critic who also served as an impeachment witness during Democrats&#8217; partisan investigation late last year, responded by writing: &#8220;The Chief Justice again refused to read Paul&#8217;s question. This is relatively uncharted because the reading of the name does not directly violate federal law. It is a matter of decorum and restraint claimed by Roberts inherent authority.&#8221;
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The Chief Justice again refused to read Paul&#39;s question. This is relatively uncharted because the reading of the name does not directly violate federal law. It is a matter of decorum and restraint claimed by Roberts inherent authority. <a href="https://t.co/7aoEta8RVw">https://t.co/7aoEta8RVw</a>
&mdash; Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonathanTurley/status/1222948312753541120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Rep. Jody Hice (R-GA) responded by writing: &#8220;.@RandPaul asked a reasonable question, and the Chief Justice is wrong to not let the managers answer the question. Regardless of whether this individual is the &#8220;whistleblower,&#8221; there are legitimate concerns that the Deep State conspired with Democrats against @realDonaldTrump.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RandPaul</a> asked a reasonable question, and the Chief Justice is wrong to not let the managers answer the question.
Regardless of whether this individual is the &quot;whistleblower,&quot; there are legitimate concerns that the Deep State conspired with Democrats against <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>. <a href="https://t.co/cwK9HGyFgm">https://t.co/cwK9HGyFgm</a>
&mdash; Rep. Jody Hice (@CongressmanHice) <a href="https://twitter.com/CongressmanHice/status/1222958590681583618?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Donald Trump Jr. responded by writing: &#8220;Why did the Chief Justice just block a question from @RandPaul on the origins of this circus? America deserves to know the truth, including who did Schiff meet with, when and why!&#8221;
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Why did the Chief Justice just block a question from <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RandPaul</a> on the origins of this circus? America deserves to know the truth, including who did Schiff meet with, when and why!
&mdash; Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1222961450190344194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Republican strategist Andrew Surabian responded by writing: &#8220;I thought Adam Schiff and the media already told us that no one knows who the &#8216;whistleblower&#8217; is, so why are we being forced to treat the name of a current NSC staffer, who&#8217;s salary is paid for by American taxpayers, like he&#8217;s Lord Voldemort? #HeWhoShallNotBeNamed&#8221;
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I thought Adam Schiff and the media already told us that no one knows who the &quot;whistleblower&quot; is, so why are we being forced to treat the name of a current NSC staffer, who&#39;s salary is paid for by American taxpayers, like he&#39;s Lord Voldemort?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HeWhoShallNotBeNamed?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HeWhoShallNotBeNamed</a> <a href="https://t.co/yz1VT3VVDQ">https://t.co/yz1VT3VVDQ</a>
&mdash; Andrew Surabian (@Surabees) <a href="https://twitter.com/Surabees/status/1222967987180916736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Paul Roberts

Chief Justice Roberts Censors Questions From Rand Paul. Paul Releases It.

U.S. Senate

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, has been doing some impressive bipartisan lobbying. Politicians from across the spectrum, from Former Secretary of State <a href="https://en.radiofarda.com/a/kerry-met-iran-zarif-several-times/29488152.html">John Kerry</a> to Sen. <a href="https://freebeacon.com/politics/mark-levin-rips-into-rand-paul-over-iran/">Rand Paul</a> (R-KY), are all taking their turns to meet with him. Their common goal: Get President Donald Trump to end his “maximum pressure” campaign against the hostile Tehran regime.
Last year, this leftist-libertarian alliance was codified into a new &#8220;non-interventionist&#8221; think tank, the Quincy Institute. On its board is Trita Parsi, a man who has for decades worked behind the scenes — often in tandem with Iranian officials, including Javad Zarif — to weaken America&#8217;s resistance to Iranian aggression and nuclear ambitions.
In the weeks since the killing of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hammer-the-just-and-proper-strike-of-mastermind-iranian-jihadist-qassem-soleimani">terrorist mastermind</a> Qassem Soleimani, agitation by the Iranian regime&#8217;s apologists has reached a crescendo. In response, I asked <a href="https://twitter.com/AdelleNaz">Adelle Nazarian</a>, senior media fellow at the Gold Institute for International Strategy in Washington, D.C. and fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi, India, to tell us more.
What follows is a question-and-answer interview with Nazarian.
Who is Trita Parsi?
Nazarian: Trita Parsi is the Iranian-born founder of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), a Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group that is <a href="https://freebeacon.com/national-security/congress-seeks-investigation-into-pro-iran-lobby-group-tied-to-tehran-regime/">allegedly the lobbying extension</a> and arm of the Iranian regime. That would be the same Iranian regime rife with corruption, terrorism, and the murder of its own people. Parsi and NIAC’s support for the Iranian regime is <a href="https://twitter.com/AdelleNaz/status/1217693851890126848?s=20">in violation of FARA [Foreign Agents Registration Act ] law</a> and they were instrumental in helping pass the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal. Parsi is an activist who has <a href="https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2014/03/the_ayatollahs_lobby_on_k_street.html">maintained a close relationship</a> with Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2015-03-31/iran-s-charmer-in-chief-wins-again">Javad Zarif</a> and was a lead advisor to the Obama administration throughout the process of executing the JCPOA. NIAC falsely claims it supports the full spectrum of Iranian interests, but it actually only cares about pushing the regime’s interests. NIAC is at odds with Iran’s Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, his supporters, and any Iranians who do not share the dictatorial vision of the Iranian regime. If Iran’s regime falls, it will be seen as the failure of Trita Parsi.
What is the Quincy Institute?
Nazarian: Trita Parsi is the executive vice president and co-founder of the Quincy Institute, which is funded by both Charles Koch and George Soros. It is also co-founded by Iran deal advocates. This think tank aims to compel American politicians to adopt a non-interventionist foreign policy by actively funneling misinformation and propaganda to the media and, by extension, the American people. The think tank’s board is anti-Israel, with fellows having written books very critical of America’s close alliance with Israel. John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt — both co-authors of “The Israel Lobby&#8221; and fellows at the Quincy Institute — have an issue with the so-called &#8220;Israel lobby,&#8221; but have no issue working with the Iran lobby. While on the surface, the organization presents itself with the noble aim of ending endless wars in the pursuit of international peace, its co-founders — namely Andrew Bacevich, Stephen Wertheim, Eli Clifton, and Suzanne DiMaggio — are Iran deal advocates. The group also boasts Gary Sick as a “distinguished fellow.” In 1980, Mr. Sick infamously and falsely accused officials in Ronald Reagan&#8217;s presidential campaign of making a secret deal with Iran to delay the release of the American hostages until after the election.
What are Iranians and Iranian-Americans saying? 
Nazarian: Iranians and Iranian-Americans know the Quincy Institute pushes misinformation. Parsi’s move from NIAC to the Quincy Institute is an attempt to further his lobbying and propagandizing efforts. Due to funding from Soros and Koch, Parsi has been able to shield his anti-American and pro-Iranian views and actions. Iranians do not want war with America and President Donald Trump’s neutralization of IRGC-Quds Forces Commander Gen. Qassem Soleimani pushed Iran to stop its antagonistic and provocative behavior that was swiftly deteriorating U.S.-Iran relations and leading us to war.
Though Parsi claims to speak on behalf of the full spectrum of Iranian-Americans, <a href="https://twitter.com/AdelleNaz/status/1139620277396987905?s=20">a poll conducted in June</a> shows an overwhelming 85% of participants see NIAC and its affiliates as the “enemy.” Due to President Trump’s decisive actions, the machinations and manipulations of Trita Parsi have been undone. Regardless of the future, it is clear that Trita Parsi is a menace.

Javad Zarif

MITSOTAKIS: Iran Apologists, Left And Right, Have A New Think Tank

Foreign Policy

Iran

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Israel

John Kerry

Khamenei

Koch Brothers

Nuclear Weapons

On the heels of the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) trolled leading pro-impeachment Democrat Adam Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
&#8220;An anonymous &#8216;whistleblower&#8217; informs us that this was found in a hotel room that [Rep. Adam Schiff] recently check out of. Hmmm&#8230;,&#8221; Senator Paul captioned a mock photo of a note.
&#8220;Things to do,&#8221; the fake note reads, &#8220;Remember to tap Devin Nunes phone.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
An anonymous “whistleblower” informs us that this was found in a hotel room that <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepAdamSchiff</a> recently check out of. Hmmm&#8230; <a href="https://t.co/hk3ni4G7ms">pic.twitter.com/hk3ni4G7ms</a>
&mdash; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1217831149671723010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2020</a></blockquote>
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In early December, the House Intelligence Committee &#8220;released a report on the impeachment inquiry which included records of calls from Nunes, presidential lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Jay Sekulow, journalist John Solomon, Fox News host Sean Hannity, a Giuliani connection Lev Parnas, and other <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/politics/executive/white-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Whit</a>e<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/politics/executive/white-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> House</a> associates,&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/devin-nunes-adam-schiff-phone-record-impeachment-subpoena">Fox News</a> reported at the time. &#8220;Schiff subpoenaed both AT&amp;T and Verizon for the information. The act has sent a chill among Republicans concerned about the chairman&#8217;s reach.&#8221;
Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) smacked Schiff over the power grab and apparent civil rights violation during a Fox News appearance following the news.
&#8220;They have now set a precedent where Adam Schiff can go get any phone number he has to AT&amp;T and AT&amp;T is going to comply,&#8221; the congressman explained, according to Fox.
&#8220;If you look at what he did then, it&#8217;s not just the president&#8217;s phone records — okay — or the president&#8217;s lawyer&#8217;s phone records, he also was able to get a journalist who they hate &#8230; who they say is a conspiracy theorist,&#8221; continued Nunes. &#8220;And, he was able to figure out that that was John Solomon&#8217;s phone number.&#8221;
&#8220;Then, he was able to get my number, right? And, because I had talked to Rudy Giuliani and somehow that&#8217;s now a crime, and then I make it into his report,&#8221; the Republican said.
&#8220;And, we have to remember &#8230; we spent the last three years, at first if any Republican ever talked to any Russian at any time — even if you are Russian-American — that was a no-no. Then we were criticized,&#8221; Nunes emphasized. &#8220;We switched to Ukraine. If you talk to any Ukrainian that&#8217;s now a crime. Now, I can&#8217;t even talk to Rudy Giuliani who I have known for 10 years. That&#8217;s supposedly a crime.&#8221;
Spokesman for Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee Patrick Boland told <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/adam-schiff-no-we-didnt-subpoena-john-solomons-phone-records">The Daily Beast</a> that investigators “did not subpoena call records for any member of Congress or their staff &#8230; or for any journalist.&#8221;
“Any questions about the fact that Members, congressional staff, or journalists appear in call records released by the Committee should be directed at those individuals, who were in contact with individuals of investigative interest to the impeachment inquiry,” Boland said.
On Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi named Schiff as one of the seven individuals to serve as House managers during the Senate impeachment trial.
&#8220;I&#8217;m humbled by the solemn responsibility of serving as lead House Manager in the Senate impeachment trial,&#8221; Schiff posted Wednesday. &#8220;Together, the Managers will work on behalf of the American people in defense of our Constitution. The House upheld our Constitutional duty. The Senate must do the same.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I&#39;m humbled by the solemn responsibility of serving as lead House Manager in the Senate impeachment trial.
Together, the Managers will work on behalf of the American people in defense of our Constitution.
The House upheld our Constitutional duty. The Senate must do the same.
&mdash; Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff/status/1217476087292289027?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Rand Paul, Adam Schiff

Rand Paul Trolls Adam Schiff: ‘Whistleblower Informs Us That This Was Found In’ Your ‘Hotel Room’

Adam Schiff

whistleblower

In the spirit of the fictitious Seinfeld holiday, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has released <a href="https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/dr-rand-paul-releases-2019-%E2%80%98festivus%E2%80%99-edition-%E2%80%98-waste-report%E2%80%99">The Festivus Report 2019</a>, an annual report to highlight wasteful government spending. 
“Happy Festivus! Another year gone already,” writes Paul in the introduction to the 2019 report. “It seems like just yesterday I was sounding the alarm over a $20 trillion debt, and now the U.S. has pushed past $23 trillion! The more things changed in 2019, the more they stayed the same.”
In the report, Paul draws attention to over $50 billion in government waste, which was spent on everything from a grant in which a &#8220;significant portion&#8221; of the funds went to studying the mating calls of frogs in Panama ($466,991), a program under which the U.S. supplies children in Afghanistan with textbooks, many of which turned out to be subpar or otherwise unusable ($33,921,175), and helping the Peruvian government to develop a “Green New Deal” (up to $10,000,000). 
Paul highlights the outrageous nature of funding a Green New Deal abroad while Democrats are unable to gather a single vote in the U.S. Senate for the plan domestically. 
<blockquote>In March 2019, the U.S. Senate unanimously rejected a suite of policies, dubbed the “Green New Deal,” proposed by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA), which proponents claim will support “green growth” in the United States. By a vote of 0-57, with 43 Senate Democrats, including every Democrat senator running for President of the United States, abstaining in “protest,” the representatives of the American people roundly rejected these policies. 
Whereas every senator, Republican and Democrat, refused to support the policies on the record, (perhaps recognizing the devastating damage implementation would do to the American job market and larger economy), Green New Deal bureaucrats at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) apparently feel some sympathy for them. How else can one explain the agency spending $10 million to develop “Green Growth in Peru”?
That’s right! USAID is committing &#8220;up to&#8221; 10 million American taxpayer dollars &#8220;to develop new and innovative alliances with the private sector that advance environmentally-friendly economic development (i.e., green growth in Peru).&#8221; They add, “The envisioned activities will facilitate private sector financing and investment in value chains that lead to improved management of natural resources and a reduction of GHG [greenhouse gas] emissions.”</blockquote>
Another outrageous government expenditure Paul uncovered includes the fact that the U.S. Agency for International Development spent &#8220;part of a $22,000,000.00 project&#8221; to help the Serbian Regional Center for Agricultural Development improve the quality of Serbian cheese to match international cheese standards. 
<blockquote>Who doesn’t like a good piece of cheese? Whether its cheddar, Swiss, provolone, or simply American cheese, everybody has their preference. And thanks to USAID, your new favorite might eventually be from Sjenica, Serbia!
That’s right! USAID spent part of a $22 million “Sustainable Local Development Project” training the staff at the Regional Center for Agricultural Development (RCAD) in Sjenica, Serbia, to follow the cheese standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and help producers adopt best practices&#8230;.
What tangible skills did USAID help impart? Well, “RCAD’s staff was trained to introduce and implement ISO standards, to properly sample milk and meat products at local farms, to calibrate laboratory equipment, and to advise farmers on improving the safety and quality of their products,” a company that implemented the overall Development Project reported.</blockquote>
Paul says that the U.S. is currently approaching a 1.4 billion pound cheese surplus, noting that “American dairy farmers dealing with the realities of this situation might be cheesed off to learn their government worked to strengthen competition and the European cheese market – using their own tax dollars to boot.”

Kentucky Fancy Farm Picnic

Rand Paul Releases Annual Wasteful Spending Report, Finds $10 Million Grant For ‘Peruvian Green New Deal’

Federal Government

Each year, a senate Republican releases the “Wastebook,” detailing wasteful government spending. For years, the project was compiled by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), but Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) took up the cause after Coburn retired. Now Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) releases the annual wastebook, and this year contains some real doozies.
“Once again, The Waste Report takes a closer look at just some of what the federal government is doing with the American people’s hard-earned money,” Paul tweeted when releasing the report on Monday.
Paul’s report is supported by the government watchdog White Coat Waste Project (WCWP), which has previously awarded the Kentucky senator for his commitment to saving taxpayer money.
“Kudos to Senator Paul for smoking out government waste including $700,000 of Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars sent to England so experimenters can hook zebrafish on nicotine. Between nicotine-addicted fish, coked-up quails, and as we recently exposed, junkie monkeys, Uncle Sam is clearly addicted to spending, and we’re all paying the price. Sen. Paul’s Waste Reports are one of the best ways taxpayers can learn about egregious government waste that’s ballooned the national debt to a historic $23 trillion,” said WCWP President Anthony Bellotti.
Below are the eight projects highlighted in this year’s <a href="https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/dr-rand-paul-releases-fall-2019-edition-%E2%80%98-waste-report%E2%80%99">report</a>. In total, Paul found the government wasted more than $230 million of taxpayer money on unnecessary pet projects.
<ol>
<li> $708,466 To Get Zebrafish Addicted To Nicotine In The U.K.</li>
</ol>
Every year it seems at least one wasteful spending project involves animals. Remember the shrimp on treadmills?
This year, Paul highlighted a project sponsored by the National institutes of Health (NIH) that funded “a nearly five-year project that involves actively addicting its subjects, Zebrafish, to nicotine.” The study is supposed to “identify genes affecting vulnerability to addiction by screening lines of mutagenized zebrafish for core behaviors associated with addiction: sensitivity to drug reward and impulsivity.”
<ol start="2">
<li> $84,375 On A Statue Purchased From Bob Dylan For The Embassy In Mozambique</li>
</ol>
The State Department purchased an original Bob Dylan sculpture to display in its embassy in Mozambique. As the wastebook asks, does Dylan’s status as a musical icon “justify” the purchase?
<ol start="3">
<li> $22,000,000 To Bring Serbian Cheese Up To International Standards</li>
</ol>
So many of the projects detailed in the wastebook involve aid to other countries. Paul has spoken out against some of this aid many times before. One can disagree on whether the U.S. should provide aid to other countries, but some of the money being spent overseas should certainly raise questions.
One example is money spent by USAID on training cheesemakers in Serbia how to properly prepare the delicious food in line with international standards. Make cheese safe to eat is certainly a worthwhile endeavor, but does the U.S. government need to be spending the money to make sure Serbia’s cheese is safe?
<ol start="4">
<li> $4,658,865 To Study The Connection Between Drinking Alcohol And Winding Up In The ER</li>
</ol>
When you drink, you make stupid decisions. Sometimes, those decisions take you to the emergency room. This connection apparently needed further study, so the NIH spent more than $4 million looking into it. From the report:
<blockquote>Most recently, the researchers have pursued three goals. The first includes looking at alcohol use in the six hours before an injury, as well as the type of injury that brought patients to the ER, such as “traffic [accidents], falls … near drowning,” etc., in consideration of several factors in different countries, including legal restrictions on alcohol. Second, they are “estimat[ing] relative risk (RR) of injury related to alcohol consumption volume (dose-response relationship) by cause of injury,” (in layman’s terms, if you are more likely to get hurt, and how, if you drink more). Lastly, they are “estimat[ing] alcohol attributable fraction (AAF) by cause of injury…” (or in other words, the degree to which alcohol is responsible for the injury).</blockquote>
<ol start="5">
<li> $300,000 To Fund Debates And Model U.N. Competitions In Afghanistan</li>
</ol>
No one’s saying debate or the Model United Nations programs are wasteful or unimportant, but there is an argument to be made about whether the U.S. government should be funding such competitions and in which countries.
The grants offered by the State Department also require the competitions be held in English, but as Paul notes, just 6% of the Afghan population can speak English. Thus, the competition would be severely limited, making the choice for the grants questionable.
<ol start="6">
<li> $153 Million Spent On The Failing Washington Metro</li>
</ol>
If you’ve ever lived or visited Washington, D.C. and had to take the metro (Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, or WMATA), you know what an absolute disaster it is. No matter what media outlets claim about it being one of the best public subway systems in the country, those who have had to use it every day know this is not the case.
Just this morning a water main broke at the Pentagon metro station causing flooding. Then there are the routine fires, train outages, and massive, constant delays.
Still, the federal government continues to give the failing system more and more money to try and solve the problem, proving each year that throwing more money at a problem doesn’t solve it if the money isn’t spend properly. In addition to all the government funding, the metro also keeps hiking rates on passengers and then wondering why ridership is down. Maybe it’s because people would rather take a comfortable Uber ride to work, even with traffic, than have to stand around waiting for trains just to be smushed together in a thousand-degree subway car.
<ol start="7">
<li> $33,921,175 Spent On Textbooks For Afghan Students</li>
</ol>
Again, no one is saying Afghan students shouldn’t have access to textbooks or an education, but is it really America’s responsibility to provide those resources? We already grapple with the idea of being the “world’s police,” do we need to be the “world’s educators” as well?
Beyond the philosophical questions, the money, of course, is being spent improperly. Many of the textbooks given to Afghan students are subpar and sitting in warehouses instead of even going to the children?
<ol start="8">
<li> $22 Million Spent On Improving The Quality Of Egyptian Schooling</li>
</ol>
Along the lines of the previous entry, should the U.S. be educating the rest of the world? Also, as noted in the wastebook report, the U.S. education system is having its own crisis, and has been for decades. Given the problems with our own education system, how can we afford to be allocating federal funds to help educate students in other countries?

Senator Rand Paul

Here Are The Most Wasteful Government Projects In 2019

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) broke down the recent election results in Kentucky during an interview on Sunday, explaining why he believes, contrary to the narrative in the media, there was actually a &#8220;red-wave&#8221; in the state. Also during the interview, Paul highlighted how existing U.S. law could actually protect President Donald Trump in the Democrats&#8217; impeachment inquiry into his July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
&#8220;Let me start with the Kentucky results first, before we get into the events of later this week, just your initial reactions,&#8221; NBC &#8220;Meet The Press&#8221; host Chuck Todd said. &#8220;Matt Bevin, do you see his loss as something bigger than Matt Bevin, about the Republican Party as a whole?&#8221;
&#8220;Well, when you look at all the races, there were six statewide races, we won five out of six. Republicans won five out of six,&#8221; Paul responded. &#8220;We did lose the governor&#8217;s race. We were disappointed in it. But the interesting thing is we beat a lot of other candidates that no one expected us to. So actually, in many ways, there was sort of a red wave in Kentucky.&#8221;
&#8220;I think it was mostly particularly about one race. And I think the teachers were very unhappy. He tried to fix the pension but got crossways with the teachers,&#8221; Paul continued. &#8220;And I think the teachers&#8217; anger came out. But I think he was trying to do the right thing, which is save the pension for the teachers. But it&#8217;s tough. When you ask people to pay more to keep their pension in place, people get unhappy.&#8221;
Paul also highlighted that in some of the counties where Bevin lost, other Republicans who won in the election won in those counties by over 60%.
On the issue of impeachment, Paul noted that Americans want fairness and that they are not &#8220;going to judge fairness, when they&#8217;re accusing President Trump of the same thing Joe Biden did, threatening the aid, if some kind of corruption&#8217;s not investigated.&#8221;
&#8220;But if it were me, I wouldn&#8217;t give them the aid, because we don&#8217;t have the money,&#8221; Paul added. &#8220;We have to actually borrow the money from China to send it to Ukraine. So I&#8217;m against the aid. And I think it&#8217;s a mistake to do the aid.&#8221;
Paul then highlighted a defense of Trump&#8217;s actions that is likely to pick up steam in upcoming weeks, saying that current U.S. law prevents the U.S. from providing aid to corrupt countries, and so Trump would have to ask for an investigation into the Bidens, who Trump believes is corrupt, in order to be able to provide the aid.
&#8220;Foreign aid, by law, can only go out to countries that are not corrupt,&#8221; Paul said. &#8220;So, if you think that a country is acting in a corrupt way, a president can always withhold aid until the corruption is fixed. So, you&#8217;re going to have to get into the mind of Trump and his advisers and say, &#8216;Well, he didn&#8217;t really believe that the Bidens were corrupt.’ I think he absolutely does. I think you could give him a lie detector test and say, &#8216;Do you think the Bidens were corrupt? And do you think you were investigating corruption, and that corruption is in the law, that you can&#8217;t give aid to a country that has corruption?'&#8221;
&#8220;This ends up being a policy debate and a partisan debate,” Paul continued. &#8220;And it has nothing to do with legality or illegality or impeachment. It&#8217;s purely a partisan way of trying to overturn the election.&#8221;
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Paul Highlights Law That Could Protect Trump In Impeachment Inquiry; Explains Kentucky Election Results

Kentucky

Ukraine

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) revealed on Tuesday that he may reveal the identity of the Ukraine whistleblower while speaking to a group of reporters and then doubled down on it later in the evening during an appearance on Fox News.
&#8220;I&#8217;m more than willing to, and I probably will at some point. &#8230; There is no law preventing anybody from saying the name,&#8221; Paul told reporters.
CNN reporter Suzanne Malveaux, apparently upset over the fact that Paul wanted transparency in Democrats&#8217; impeachment inquiry, aggressively confronted Paul over the issue.
&#8220;The whistleblower laws they protect the whistleblower,&#8221; Malveaux said. &#8220;You know it&#8217;s illegal to out a whistleblower?&#8221;
Paul immediately corrected her, saying, &#8220;Actually, you see you&#8217;ve got that wrong.&#8221;
&#8220;No, we don&#8217;t,&#8221; Malveaux falsely claimed as she became agitated.
Paul then proceeded to educate Malveaux on the laws surrounding the whistleblower.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Question: &#8220;The whistleblower laws protect the whistleblower. You know it&#8217;s illegal to out a whistleblower?&#8221;
Sen. <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RandPaul</a>: &#8220;Actually, you see you&#8217;ve got that wrong.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/60oFmtkF7G">pic.twitter.com/60oFmtkF7G</a>
— The Hill (@thehill) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1191762656367169542?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2019</a></blockquote>
Paul later appeared on Fox News&#8217; &#8220;Special Report&#8221; with host Bret Baier, who asked Paul: &#8220;I referenced that tweet moments ago, Andrew Bakaj, the whistleblower&#8217;s attorney, &#8216;If Congress and others do not protect my client&#8217;s anonymity, which my client is afforded by the law, not only does it jeopardize their safety, but it jeopardizes an entire system that took decades to build. It will destroy effective Congressional oversight for years to come.&#8217; Your response to that?&#8221;
Paul responded, &#8220;You know, I don&#8217;t wish harm on anyone. I&#8217;ve been the victim of political violence not once, but twice. I was there at the ballfield when Steve Scalise was almost killed. A staff member was 10 feet from me, who was shot. I had six of my ribs broken by a hater of President Trump. So, I know what political violence is all about. I don&#8217;t want that, at all. But the report was — not correct, in the sense that the statute says the Inspector General can&#8217;t reveal the name. It says the president should enforce the law, but the person you quoted was disingenuous in what they were saying. The statute says the Inspector General can&#8217;t reveal the name. There&#8217;s nothing that prevents me from saying it now, other than that I wanted to be more about the process and less about the person. But there&#8217;s no law that prevents me from mentioning the name of who&#8217;s been said to be the whistleblower. But there&#8217;s also – &#8221;
&#8220;But are you convinced you know?&#8221; Baier pressed.
&#8220;Yeah. And there&#8217;s something important, also. It&#8217;s called the Constitution. The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution says if you are going to accuse me of a crime, I get to stare you down in court,&#8221; Paul continued. &#8220;That is absolutely part of the Constitution. The statute might say one thing, but, I promise you, if there is a trial, you always get to confront your accuser. It&#8217;s in the Sixth Amendment. It&#8217;s in the Bill of Rights. There&#8217;s no way they can stop the defense from asking for that.&#8221;
&#8220;But I can [reveal the identity of the whistleblower] right now, if I want. Nothing stops me. There is no law that stops me from doing it, other than that I don&#8217;t want to make it about the one individual,&#8221; Paul continued. &#8220;But I would say this: I do think that this individual is a material witness to the potential Biden corruption. He was there under Joe Biden. He was there when Joe Biden was trying to fire the prosecutor that was in — that was investigating Hunter Biden. So, this person was a Ukrainian expert on the desk, at that time. I think he should be interviewed, not as the whistleblower, but as a material witness to the Biden corruption in Ukraine.&#8221;

Rand Paul Reveals What He May Do With Ukraine Whistleblower

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) recently appeared on C-SPAN’s “After Words” program to promote his new book, “The Case Against Socialism.”
During the approximately 45 minute interview with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) acting as host, Paul spoke about the dangers of people like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) promoting socialist ideology unchallenged.
When Gaetz asked Paul about the way in which certain politicians and media figures “champion Venezuela,” the senator replied:
<blockquote>Venezuela is just such a disaster. I mean, people literally eating their pets. We tell the story of a young lady who was a teenage girl, and she has a gang, but her gang is to defend the turf of trash. So, there’s certain garbage receptacles and she keeps people out of them because those are her garbage receptacles to look for food. How sad. People killing rats in the street to try to eat them, pigeons, and it just, it really is a sad thing.
Kind of going back to the world economy thing, we have to understand why the world economy got better, and we have to understand why Venezuela’s deteriorating into, you know, chaos – and that&#8217;s, I think, part of what the book is doing – it’s part of also the debate we should be having up here, and we don&#8217;t seem to have it in Congress, is that we don&#8217;t develop, we aren’t really talking about which economically system is better.
And nobody in the media seems to care that what AOC is supporting or what Bernie is supporting is Stalin and Mao and Pol Pot, and all these terrible ideas, and they get away with it because they aren&#8217;t challenged.</blockquote>
The pertinent portion of the video begins at the 16:21 mark:
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Later in the interview, Gaetz brings up Sanders’ <a href="https://thefederalist.com/2019/02/19/bernie-sanders-well-actually-bread-lines-arent-quite-bad/">remark</a> from the 1980’s about breadlines.
“It’s funny, sometimes American journalists talk about how bad a country is, that people are lining up for food. That is a good thing!” Sanders stated. “In other countries people don’t line up for food. The rich get the food and the poor starve to death.”
To this, Paul replied: “Yeah, well, we suggest that he actually go down and see what the lines are like in Venezuela. I don’t think people are too excited about lines.”
On the subject of politicians and media personalities defending socialism, during his October 11 appearance on ABC’s “The View,” Paul received pushback from guest-host Ana Navarro, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-ana-navarro-claims-venezuelas-maduro-is-not-a-socialist">suggested</a> that Venezuela was not a representation of socialism.
<blockquote>NAVARRO: Let me ask you this because I live in Miami, there’s tens of thousands of Venezuelan exiles living there. You talk a lot about Venezuela in your new book. I get a lot of political ads from the Republican Party – Donald Trump has tweeted this, many have tweeted this – “If you vote for Democrats, they will turn the United States into Venezuela.” Do you think that’s a fair statement to make?
PAUL: Well, if you vote for a socialist, you might get socialism.
NAVARRO: Come on. Don’t do that. Maduro is not a socialist; he’s a corrupt, murderous thug who is starving his people.
PAUL: That’s not true.
NAVARRO: That’s not true? Maduro’s not a thug and a murderer who’s starving his people?
PAUL: Let’s have a conversation here. Chavez was a socialist, and socialism was the economic system Venezuela –
NAVARRO: And they stole. [It’s a] kleptocracy. It’s not socialism.
PAUL: But here’s the question … they voted for socialism.</blockquote>
Paul attempted to finish his thought, but Navarro cut him of, falsely implying that Paul wouldn’t condemn Maduro as a “murderous thug.” 
The Daily Wire reached out to Venezuelan expat Daniel Di Martino for a response to Navarro’s claim that Maduro isn’t a socialist, and he stated:
<blockquote>Ana Navarro is wrong to say Maduro isn’t socialist. Nicolás Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, nationalized thousands of companies and greatly expanded welfare programs and government employment. It was as a result of these socialist policies that our economy was destroyed and that today 9 out of every 10 Venezuelans live in poverty and more than four million Venezuelans like myself have been forced to leave our homeland. Corrupt and evil people govern many countries around the world, but these countries don’t see the terrible humanitarian crises that socialist countries like Venezuela and Cuba experience.</blockquote>
“It is insulting that media personalities continue to try to defend the socialist system that has killed so many people throughout history just to protect the radical Democrats that promote those same policies in America,” Di Martino added.

Rand Paul.

Rand Paul: ‘Nobody In The Media Seems To Care’ That Bernie And AOC ‘Supporting’ Ideas Of ‘Stalin And Mao’

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Bernie Sanders

Socialism

Stalin

Top Republicans in Washington, D.C., and right-wing media personalities have started to sour on Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) for not using his power as chairman to call for public hearings to get to the bottom of how the Russia investigation started and for not calling on Kurt Volker, former U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine, to testify in front of the committee while Democrats in the House push for impeachment.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) called out Graham during an interview Monday evening on Fox News over Graham&#8217;s inaction.
&#8220;Senator Graham has the power, he&#8217;s the chairman of a powerful committee, the Judiciary Committee, and yes, I&#8217;ve encouraged him publicly and privately to do this,&#8221; Paul said. &#8220;He needs to go ahead and exercise his power, we&#8217;ve been waiting a long time on this.&#8221;
&#8220;A lot of us want to see it get started, we want to see subpoenas, and we don&#8217;t want to see everything done in secret on the House side and then they parse out what they want to parse out,&#8221; Paul added. &#8220;Most of those people that are testifying over there could easily be asked to testify over here.&#8221;
Fox News&#8217; Tucker Carlson also highlighted multiple promises that Graham has made on cable news but has not followed through on.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Tucker Carlson and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) call out <a href="https://twitter.com/LindseyGrahamSC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LindseyGrahamSC</a> for not using his power as chairman of Judiciary Committee to call for public hearings on the Russia probe and to get those testifying to the Democrat-controlled House to testify in public<a href="https://t.co/D5U49wFDtQ">pic.twitter.com/D5U49wFDtQ</a>
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/1186446522054955009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2019</a></blockquote>
Paul was not the only top Republican to call out Graham on Monday over his inaction.
&#8220;Since Republicans don’t control the House, Senator Graham is in a unique position to call hearings, collect documents, and bring in witnesses on a range of important issues—FISA abuse, impeachment-related issues like Ukrainian election meddling, etc,&#8221; a top House GOP source told The Daily Wire. &#8220;He talks a lot on TV about taking action, but he never actually does anything, and Republicans realize that. It’s a shame because he could really make a difference if he actually did some work.&#8221;
Former White House officials and sources close to Graham also told The Daily Wire that they were becoming increasingly angered by Graham&#8217;s inaction.
&#8220;I’m deeply disappointed in Lindsey,&#8221; a former senior White House official told The Daily Wire. &#8220;I always thought he was someone you could count on, he sure proved me wrong.&#8221;
&#8220;I never knew him to be the type to make empty promises, especially when the stakes are so high,&#8221; a source close to Graham told The Daily Wire. &#8220;I am sick of walking around town making excuses for him.&#8221;
Trump called out Republicans on Monday while speaking to reporters, saying: &#8220;Republicans have to get tougher and fight.&#8221;
&#8220;We have some that are great fighters, but they have to get tougher and fight because the Democrats are trying to hurt the Republican Party for the election, which is coming up, where we’re doing very well,&#8221; Trump continued. &#8220;I think the Democrats fight dirty. I think the Democrats are lousy politicians with lousy policy.”
“They want open borders. They don’t care about crime. They want sanctuary cities. They don’t care about drugs,&#8221; Trump added. They don’t care about almost anything. They don’t care about USMCA.”
Trump then <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-unloads-on-romney-for-basically-being-worse-than-a-democrat">took a shot</a> at weak Republicans, like Senator Mitt Romney (UT), for not sticking with the party when the going gets tough.
“[Democrats have] two things they have: They’re vicious and they stick together,” Trump said. “They don’t have Mitt Romney in their midst. They don’t have people like that. They stick together. You never see them break off. You never see somebody go out and [do their own thing].”
Trump&#8217;s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., also called out Graham on Twitter, writing: &#8220;Paging <a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/LindseyGrahamSC" data-focusable="true">@LindseyGrahamSC</a>. Your country needs you.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Paging <a href="https://twitter.com/LindseyGrahamSC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LindseyGrahamSC</a>. Your country needs you. <a href="https://t.co/061L1roAjg">https://t.co/061L1roAjg</a>
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1186330888113655809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 21, 2019</a></blockquote>

Lindsey Graham

Top Republicans Sour On Lindsey Graham: ‘He Never Actually Does Anything’

Sen. Rand Paul, who suffered serious injuries when he was attacked by a neighbor, was verbally assaulted on Friday by two New Yorkers while eating lunch in a California restaurant.
One was fairly calm but the other one went ballistic.
Sergio Gor, who serves as deputy chief of staff for the Kentucky Republican, posted a short video of part of the confrontation on Twitter.
“While having lunch with @RandPaul in California, we got verbally assaulted by these aggressive libs complaining about incivility,” Gor wrote. “Check out the vid! #unhinged.”
At the beginning of the video, a man says he&#8217;s “not being rude” and declares he has “a right to speak” to Paul because he&#8217;s a public official.
Then a woman steps into view, flipping her middle finger to the camera. She, too, is filming with her phone, then angrily says, &#8220;You just ran into two people from New York, kiddo, and we’re not putting up with your Republican bullshit!”
The man then tries to calm the situation down, saying “All I am saying is that while you and I possibly, probably, don’t have much in common politically, all right? We are Americans.”
Paul wrote on Twitter that &#8220;The left blames incivility on @realDonaldTrump. Watch this video and decide who the rude ones are,&#8221; and attached the video.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The left blames incivility on <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>. Watch this video and decide who the rude ones are&#8230; <a href="https://t.co/qtEx0wLH2A">https://t.co/qtEx0wLH2A</a>
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1185343347117834240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 18, 2019</a></blockquote>
The confrontation came the same day as the release of an audio clip from Project Veritas. In the clip, CNN political director David Chalian urged the news team to get “in their faces” of all Republican senators every day &#8212; whether at work or at home.
“I think we have to be in their faces of all 53 Republican senators on as much of a daily basis as possible, whether they’re at home or on the hill, asking each one of them, is it okay for the President of the United States to apply pressure to a foreign country in hopes of getting a domestic political opponent investigated?” Chalian says.
It&#8217;s not the first time angry leftists have confronted Republican officials.
In October 2018, four restaurant patrons confronted Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who was dining with his wife at Louisville’s Havana Rumba restaurant.
“Why don’t you get out of here? Why don’t you leave the entire country?” a man shouted at the couple.
In June 2018, then-White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders was asked to leave a restaurant by the owner because she works for the Trump administration. The incident took place at the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Virginia.
A few days later, protesters swarmed around Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s home, besieging her family, chanting “no justice, no sleep,” and playing the cries of immigrant children on loudspeakers, <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/22/protesters-descend-kirstjen-nielsens-home-no-justi/">The Washington Times</a> reported.
Protesters outside Nielsen’s home were apparently displeased that Nielsen and the Trump administration insist on enforcing immigration laws, even as the administration reversed its policy on separating detained adults from their minor children while they await an asylum hearing.
&nbsp;

Senate Lawmakers Address The Media After Their Weekly Policy Luncheons

Rand Paul Confronted In Restaurant: ‘Not Putting Up With Your Republican Bullsh*t!’

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) called for a probe into four Democratic Senators on Sunday over a letter that they sent to Ukraine in 2018 that threatened to withhold aid from the country if it did not continue to investigate President Donald Trump.
When asked by left-wing &#8220;Meet The Press&#8221; host Chuck Todd about whether he was concerned over Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani&#8217;s interaction with Ukraine, Paul responded, &#8220;If anything is consistent here it&#8217;s that both parties have tried to involve themselves in Ukraine. So for example, four senators, Democrats, wrote a letter to the Ukrainian government and said, &#8216;If you don&#8217;t keep investigating Trump we may reconsider our bipartisan support for your aid.&#8217; Both parties seem to be doing this.&#8221;
Speaking on Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden&#8217;s son, Hunter Biden, Paul said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t really know enough about what he&#8217;s doing. I knew he traveled over there to try to seek information on Hunter Biden&#8217;s corruption. I think a lot of Americans see the $50,000 a month Hunter Biden was making and it doesn&#8217;t pass the smell test. I think most people do think there was some corruption involved with Hunter Biden. And I hope we do get to the bottom of it.&#8221;
&#8220;If you&#8217;re going to condemn Trump you need to condemn the Democrat senators. It shouldn&#8217;t be just one-sided,&#8221; Paul concluded. &#8220;Everybody&#8217;s going after President Trump. Someone needs to actually, in an objective way, evaluate a letter from four Democrats that said to Ukraine, &#8216;If you don&#8217;t keep investigating Trump we will reconsider our bipartisan support for aid.&#8217; That&#8217;s a threat. And that&#8217;s the same kind of stuff they&#8217;re accusing Trump of. But nobody&#8217;s talking about that the Democrats are doing exactly the same thing.&#8221;
Paul&#8217;s remarks about the four Democratic Senators who wrote a threatening letter to Ukraine comes from an <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/24/democrats-investigation-might-do-more-hurt-biden-than-trump/">article</a> in The Washington Post which noted that three Democratic Senators – Sens. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) and Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) – &#8220;wrote a letter to Ukraine’s prosecutor general, Yuriy Lutsenko, expressing concern at the closing of four investigations they said were critical to the Mueller probe.&#8221;
&#8220;In the letter, they implied that their support for U.S. assistance to Ukraine was at stake,&#8221; the article continued. &#8220;Describing themselves as &#8216;strong advocates for a robust and close relationship with Ukraine,&#8217; the Democratic senators declared, &#8216;We have supported [the] capacity-building process and are disappointed that some in Kyiv appear to have cast aside these [democratic] principles to avoid the ire of President Trump,&#8217; before demanding Lutsenko &#8216;reverse course and halt any efforts to impede cooperation with this important investigation.'&#8221;
The fourth Democratic senator to whom Paul was referring was Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy.
In September, The Hill&#8217;s John Solomon <a href="https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/462658-lets-get-real-democrats-were-first-to-enlist-ukraine-in-us-elections">wrote</a> that Murphy &#8220;delivered a pointed message to Ukraine’s new president, Volodymyr Zelensky&#8221; that &#8220;Ukraine currently enjoyed bipartisan support for its U.S. aid but that could be jeopardized if the new president acquiesced to requests by President Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani to investigate past corruption allegations involving Americans, including former Vice President Joe Biden’s family.&#8221;
&#8220;The implied message did not require an interpreter for Zelensky to understand: Investigate the Ukraine dealings of Joe Biden and his son Hunter, and you jeopardize Democrats&#8217; support for future U.S. aid to Kiev,&#8221; Solomon concluded.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Rand Paul: “Four senators, Democrats, wrote a letter to the Ukrainian government and said, ‘If you don&#8217;t keep investigating Trump we may reconsider our bipartisan support for your aid &#8230; Someone needs to actually, in an objective way, evaluate [the] letter &#8230; That&#8217;s a threat’” <a href="https://t.co/59kyjIN46N">pic.twitter.com/59kyjIN46N</a>
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/1183523297213870080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2019</a></blockquote>

Rand Paul Calls For Probe Into 4 Democratic Senators Over Threats To Ukraine

Democratic Party

Joe Biden

On Friday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) appeared on ABC’s &#8220;The View&#8221; in order to promote his new book, &#8220;The Case Against Socialism.&#8221;
While two of the regular hosts were absent (Meghan McCain and Joy Behar), political strategist and commentator Ana Navarro filled in. Following an initial sparring match among the hosts and Sen. Paul over military intervention and the ongoing crisis in Turkey, the conversation turned to socialism.
<blockquote>NAVARRO: Let me ask you this because I live in Miami, there’s tens of thousands of Venezuelan exiles living there. You talk a lot about Venezuela in your new book. I get a lot of political ads from the Republican Party – Donald Trump has tweeted this, many have tweeted this – &#8220;If you vote for Democrats, they will turn the United States into Venezuela.&#8221; Do you think that&#8217;s a fair statement to make?
PAUL: Well, if you vote for a socialist, you might get socialism.
NAVARRO: Come on. Don’t do that. Maduro is not a socialist; he&#8217;s a corrupt, murderous thug who is starving his people.
PAUL: That’s not true.
NAVARRO: That’s not true? Maduro’s not a thug and a murderer who’s starving his people?
PAUL: Let’s have a conversation here. Chavez was a socialist, and socialism was the economic system Venezuela –
NAVARRO: And they stole. [It’s a] kleptocracy. It’s not socialism.
PAUL: But here’s the question &#8230; they voted for socialism.</blockquote>
At this point in the exchange, Navarro gave Paul an incredulous look, prompting him to say, &#8220;Let me finish,&#8221; to which Navarro replied: &#8220;No, I can&#8217;t let you finish. If you are going to say Maduro is not a murderous thug, I’m not letting you finish because that&#8217;s a damn lie! And I’ve got a bunch of neighbors and friends who know this.&#8221;
Paul then waved his hands in Navarro’s direction, and Navarro stated: &#8220;Don’t do this to me. Don’t mansplain. I’m a 47-year-old grown woman!&#8221;
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GWGNrAmNsTw?start=103" width="720" height="385" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For comment, The Daily Wire reached out to Daniel Di Martino, a Venezuelan expatriate who fled to the United States in 2016.
Di Martino, who is set to graduate in December with a degree in economics from Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis, stated:
<blockquote>Ana Navarro is wrong to say Maduro isn&#8217;t socialist. Nicolás Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, nationalized thousands of companies and greatly expanded welfare programs and government employment. It was as a result of these socialist policies that our economy was destroyed and that today 9 out of every 10 Venezuelans live in poverty and more than four million Venezuelans like myself have been forced to leave our homeland. Corrupt and evil people govern many countries around the world, but these countries don&#8217;t see the terrible humanitarian crises that socialist countries like Venezuela and Cuba experience.
It is insulting that media personalities continue to try to defend the socialist system that has killed so many people throughout history just to protect the radical Democrats that promote those same policies in America.</blockquote>
During a previous Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/interview-part-ii-venezuelan-expat-how-socialism-frank-camp">interview</a> with Di Martino, he elaborated on the idea posed by individuals like Navarro that &#8220;corruption&#8221; and thuggery are to blame for Venezuela’s problems, not socialism:
<blockquote>There are many other corrupt countries that are not going through starvation. In fact, most Latin American countries are very corrupt. Mexico is very corrupt. Colombia is very corrupt. Brazil, Peru, Guatemala. Those countries are not seeing the kind of economic crisis that Venezuela is seeing, where we have lost two thirds of our economy in just the last three years because of the socialist policies.
In Venezuela, they implemented policies such as price controls, such as excessive government deficits because they spent so much on welfare that they had to print money. That’s what destroyed our country. Huge minimum wage hikes that people don’t talk about at all in Venezuela. We had countless minimum wage hikes to the point that the person who cleans the school earns the same as the principal of the school, and the person who was a doctor in the hospital made the same as somebody who was a construction worker or a teacher.
Everybody started earning pretty much the same, so people just stopped working. We had a huge brain drain of skilled workers leaving our country. That’s a real consequence of drastic increases in the minimum wage.</blockquote>
Sen. Paul’s book, &#8220;The Case Against Socialism,&#8221; will be available to purchase on October 15.

Ana Navarro.

WATCH: Ana Navarro Claims Venezuela’s Maduro Is ‘Not A Socialist’

Ana Navarro

Venezuela

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a lower court, Monday, to revisit a 30-day jail sentence meted out to a man who attacked Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), fracturing six of the senator&#8217;s ribs and causing him long-term health complications.
<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/federal-appeals-court-orders-resentencing-of-man-who-assaulted-sen-rand-paul/2019/09/09/9c9163e2-d331-11e9-86ac-0f250cc91758_story.html">The Washington Post reports</a> that the Sixth Circuit panel defied tradition and requested that the trial court re-sentence Rene Boucher, who attacked Paul from behind back in 2017, allegedly over a disagreement about Paul&#8217;s gardening habits. According to documents filed with the trial court, Boucher ran 60 yards at full speed towards Paul and launched himself at Paul&#8217;s midsection, tackling the senator from behind. Neighbors claim that Boucher was angry that Paul had blown “all of the leaves from his property into Boucher’s yard.&#8221;
The assault ended an ongoing dispute over the senator&#8217;s yard maintenance which had been brewing for several years, according to Boucher&#8217;s testimony. Boucher claimed that he&#8217;d simply &#8220;had enough&#8221; of Paul&#8217;s lackadaisical lawn care. He denied having any political motivation for the attack.
At the time, Paul was hesitant to make a big deal out of the attack, seemingly preferring to keep the incident quiet and handle Boucher&#8217;s subsequent arrest and conviction with a measure of tact. But after Boucher received a mere 30 days in jail and a $10,000 fine for one count of attacking a sitting Member of Congress — a federal offense — in a plea deal, prosecutors appealed the sentence, claiming it was simply too lenient to meet sentencing guidelines for Boucher&#8217;s crime.
&#8220;The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, noted that the guidelines call for 21 to 27 months for the federal crime of assaulting a member of Congress and that Paul’s injuries, including six broken ribs, were serious. Prosecutors had asked for a 21-month sentence,&#8221; the Washington Post reported.
The trial court judge — a Clinton appointee — defied sentencing guidelines because she felt Boucher was an asset to the community, and his status as an &#8220;educated person&#8221; (a physician like Paul) with two grown children &#8220;doing very well,&#8221; justified keeping him out of jail even though the attack was both a federal crime and physically devastating to Paul.
The Sixth Circuit blasted her rationale as favoring the well-off, noting that &#8220;[t]o prioritize a defendant’s education, professional success, and standing in the community [gives a] leg up to defendants who are already in a privileged position.&#8221;
“Indigent defendants are less likely to impress a sentencing court with their education, employment record, or local reputation,&#8221; the court continued, deciding that the information at hand did not provide a &#8220;compelling justification&#8221; for letting Boucher off easy, particularly in light of Paul&#8217;s injuries.
Rand Paul has continued to suffer as a result of the attack, which cracked six of his ribs and left him in serious, chronic pain. Back in early August, Paul <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/kentucky-senator-rand-paul-gets-part-of-lung-removed-after-2017-assault/">had surgery to remove part of his lung</a>, damaged in the attack. He spent most of the August congressional recess recovering from the procedure.
In addition to the criminal proceedings, Paul also sued Boucher in civil court and was awarded $58,000 to cover medical costs incurred as a result of the attack.

Federal Court Orders Resentencing For Rand Paul Attacker Who Got 30 Days In Jail

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) revealed on Monday that he recently underwent surgery to remove a portion of his lung that was injured after his neighbor assaulted him at his home two years ago.
&#8220;Unfortunately, I will have to limit my August activities. Part of my lung damaged by the 2017 assault had to be removed by surgery this weekend,&#8221; Paul said. &#8220;The doctors, nurses, [and] staff at Vanderbilt University Medical Center were great. I should be able to return to the Senate in September.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Unfortunately, I will have to limit my August activities. Part of my lung damaged by the 2017 assault had to be removed by surgery this weekend. The doctors, nurses, &amp; staff at Vanderbilt University Medical Center were great. I should be able to return to the Senate in September
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1158346607542362112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 5, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
The Kentucky senator told police that his neighbor &#8220;came onto his property and tackled him from behind, forcing him to the ground and causing pain.&#8221; The attack <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/22/opinions/kelley-paul-since-the-attack-opinion/index.html">left him</a> with six broken ribs, pleural effusion, and, consequently, pneumonia.
Rene Boucher, 59, was arrested in November 2017 after he attacked Paul outside his Bowling Green, Kentucky home. He was reportedly upset after Paul blew some leaves onto his property with his lawnmower. The judge presiding over the case referred to the attack as a &#8220;dispute between neighbors&#8221; and denied that it was politically motivated.
Boucher ultimately pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress resulting in personal injury. He was subsequently sentenced to 30 days in prison, a year of supervised release, and required to serve 100 hours of community service for the attack. Paul was <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/30/rand-paul-attack-by-neighbor-1138311">further rewarded</a> more than $580,000 in damages and medical expenses.
The news comes only a week after Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) faced widespread backlash for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/50021/ilhan-omar-promotes-tweet-celebrating-violent-ryan-saavedra">circulating a tweet</a> that appeared to celebrate the violent attack.
Omar retweeted actor and outspoken leftist Tom Arnold on July 29 after he wrote on Twitter: &#8220;Imagine being Rand Paul’s next door neighbor and having to deal with [Rand Paul] lying cowardly circular whiney bullcrap about lawn clippings. No wonder he ripped his toupee off.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Wow, it appears <a href="https://twitter.com/IlhanMN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IlhanMN</a> is celebrating/calling for violence against <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RandPaul</a>.
I hope every Democrat and Republican in Congress, as well as members of the media have the courage to call this out.
Calls for political violence should never be tolerated, regardless of Party. <a href="https://t.co/AQcz5gqLI6">pic.twitter.com/AQcz5gqLI6</a>
— Andrew Surabian (@Surabees) <a href="https://twitter.com/Surabees/status/1155890474265251841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 29, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Leading up to Omar seemingly promoting the attack, Paul <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/07/26/rand-paul-maybe-ilhan-omar-would-appreciate-america-more-if-she-visited-somalia/">had expressed his discontent</a> with the freshman congresswoman’s frequent criticism of the country that has provided her so much since she arrived as a refugee fleeing from Somalia.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve met people who have come here from behind the Iron Curtain. They got away from communism, they’re some of the best Americans we have because they really appreciate how great our country is,&#8221; Paul said at the time. &#8220;Then I hear Representative Omar say America is a terrible place – well, she came here and we fed her, we clothed her, she got welfare, she got [schooling], she got healthcare, and then lo and behold, she has the honor of actually winning a seat in Congress.&#8221;
&#8220;And she said we’re a terrible country? I think that’s about as ungrateful as you can get,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;I&#8217;m willing to contribute to buy her a ticket to go visit Somalia and I think she can look and maybe learn a little bit about the disaster that is Somalia – that has no capitalism, has no God-given rights guaranteed in the constitution, and has about seven different tribes that have been fighting each other for the last 40 years.&#8221;
&#8220;Maybe after she’s visited Somalia for a while, she might come back and appreciate America more,&#8221; Paul added.
Omar became America’s first Muslim congresswoman after winning her election in 2018. She has been embroiled in allegations of anti-Semitism and anti-American sentiments since, even prior to taking office.

Rand Paul Has Part Of Lung Removed Days After Ilhan Omar Circulates Tweet Celebrating His Violent Attack

Ilhan Omar

Far-left Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) promoted a tweet that appeared to celebrate the violent attack that befell Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) in 2017, when Paul&#8217;s home neighbor attacked him and broke six of his ribs.
Paul was attacked at his home by his neighbor in November 2017 and was awarded more than $580,000 in damages and medical expenses this year as a result of the attack, <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/30/rand-paul-attack-by-neighbor-1138311">Politico</a> reported. Paul’s neighbor was sentenced to a month in prison, was fined $10,000, and was forced to serve 100 hours of community service.
Republican strategist Andrew Surabian noticed the tweet that Omar promoted on her Twitter account to over 1.4 million followers.
Omar retweeted leftist Tom Arnold, who wrote on Twitter: &#8220;Imagine being Rand Paul&#8217;s next door neighbor and having to deal with @RandPaul lying cowardly circular whiney bullcrap about lawn clippings. No wonder he ripped his toupee off.&#8221;
Surabian took a screenshot of Omar retweeting Arnold&#8217;s tweet, writing: &#8220;Wow, it appears @IlhanMN is celebrating/calling for violence against @RandPaul. I hope every Democrat and Republican in Congress, as well as members of the media have the courage to call this out. Calls for political violence should never be tolerated, regardless of Party.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Wow, it appears <a href="https://twitter.com/IlhanMN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IlhanMN</a> is celebrating/calling for violence against <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RandPaul</a>.
I hope every Democrat and Republican in Congress, as well as members of the media have the courage to call this out.
Calls for political violence should never be tolerated, regardless of Party. <a href="https://t.co/AQcz5gqLI6">pic.twitter.com/AQcz5gqLI6</a>
— Andrew Surabian (@Surabees) <a href="https://twitter.com/Surabees/status/1155890474265251841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 29, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Donald Trump Jr. quickly weighed in on the matter, writing: &#8220;Congresswoman Ilhan Omar retweeting calls for political violence against @randpaul. I’m not surprised, and look forward to the forthcoming silence from the media on the issue.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Congresswoman Ilhan Omar retweeting calls for political violence against <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@randpaul</a>. I’m not surprised, and look forward to the forthcoming silence from the media on the issue. <a href="https://t.co/r9BQloVoL9">pic.twitter.com/r9BQloVoL9</a>
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1155891489228120066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 29, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) called out Omar on Twitter, writing: &#8220;Ilhan Omar’s brilliant Monday idea is RTing this celebration of a violent physical assault on a fellow Member of Congress who was actually attacked. Incredibly gross.&#8221;
&#8220;All good w you @SpeakerPelosi?&#8221; Zeldin added. &#8220;Aren’t you right next to her right now on a CODEL abroad? Do something. Speak! Hold your own Members to the same standards you love to hold others.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">All good w you <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SpeakerPelosi</a>? Aren’t you right next to her right now on a CODEL abroad? Do something. Speak! Hold your own Members to the same standards you love to hold others.
— Lee Zeldin (@RepLeeZeldin) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepLeeZeldin/status/1155897790444101634?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 29, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Arnold&#8217;s tweet came in response to a tweet from far-left Mehdi Hasan, who works for Qatari-owned Al Jazeera, who attempted to spin comments that Paul had made about Omar.
Hasan tweeted: &#8220;1) Paul claims Omar called America a ‘terrible country’. She never said it. A lie. 2) Paul hails America’s refugee record, ignoring the Muslim ban. 2) Omar has visited Somalia more than Paul has &#8211; &amp; knows far more about it. 3) Paul’s dad published a white nationalist news letter.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">1) Paul claims Omar called America a ‘terrible country’. She never said it. A lie. 
2) Paul hails America’s refugee record, ignoring the Muslim ban. 
2) Omar has visited Somalia more than Paul has &#8211; &amp; knows far more about it. 
3) Paul’s dad published a white nationalist news letter <a href="https://t.co/jnZocmV9Pu">https://t.co/jnZocmV9Pu</a>
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) <a href="https://twitter.com/mehdirhasan/status/1155625927243632640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 28, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Paul was calling out Omar for her attitude toward the United States, <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/07/26/rand-paul-maybe-ilhan-omar-would-appreciate-america-more-if-she-visited-somalia/">saying</a>: &#8220;I&#8217;m in a town where we have a lot of people who are refugees who have come, some from Somalia, some from Bosnia, I&#8217;ve never heard one of them say America is a terrible place or be unappreciative of our country. Most of them are thankful.&#8221;
&#8220;I’ve met people who have come here from behind the Iron Curtain,&#8221; Paul continued. &#8220;They got away from communism, they’re some of the best Americans we have because they really appreciate how great our country is and then I hear Representative Omar say America is a terrible place.&#8221;
&#8220;Well, she came here and we fed her, we clothed her, she got welfare, she got school, she got healthcare, and then, lo and behold, she has the honor of actually winning a seat in Congress, and she says we’re a terrible country?&#8221; Paul added. &#8220;I think that’s about as ungrateful as you can get.&#8221;
Paul concluded: &#8220;And so, while I&#8217;m not saying we forcibly send her anywhere, I’m willing to contribute to buy her a ticket to go visit Somalia and I think she can look and maybe learn a little bit about the disaster that is Somalia — that has no capitalism, has no God-given rights guaranteed in a constitution, and has about seven different tribes that have been fighting each other for the last 40 years and then maybe after she’s visited Somalia for a while she might come back and appreciate America more.&#8221;

Ilhan Omar Promotes Tweet Celebrating Violent Attack On Rand Paul

Al Jazeera

Violence

The vote on the largely bi-partisan bill to replenish the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund has been stalled by Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rand Paul (R-KY) for budgetary reasons.
&#8220;Sen. Mike Lee of Utah placed a procedural hold on an <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/07/12/house-passes-bill-to-extend-9-11-victim-compensation-fund/">extension of the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund</a>, a Senate aide confirmed to The Post, effectively blocking the bill from coming up for a vote despite overwhelming support on both sides of the aisle,&#8221; reports the <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/07/17/activists-blame-senator-mike-lee-for-holding-up-the-9-11-victims-fund/">New York Post</a>. &#8220;Shortly after Lee kicked the can down the road, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) requested a unanimous consent agreement on the Senate floor, only to have the motion swatted down by Sen. Rand Paul.&#8221;
Sen. Paul cited the $22 trillion debt as part of his rationale to hold the bill up, arguing that spending should be cut elsewhere before committing to something for another 70 years.
“I reserve the right to object,” said Paul. &#8220;It has long been my feeling that we need to address our massive debt in this country — we have a $22 trillion debt, [and] we’re adding debt at about a trillion dollars a year — and therefore any new spending that we are approaching, any new program that’s going to have longevity of 70, 80 years, should be offset by cutting spending that’s less valuable.&#8221;
According to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/453519-rand-paul-blocks-senate-vote-on-9-11-victim-compensation-fund">The Hill</a>, Paul said that if the bill were brought up for a vote in the U.S. Senate, he would be offering up an amendment, &#8220;but until then I will object.&#8221; A spokesperson for the Kentucky senator that he is &#8220;not blocking anything&#8221; and that he is &#8220;simply seeking to pay for it.&#8221;
&#8220;As with any bill, Senator Paul always believes it needs to be paid for. Senator Paul is simply offering an amendment, which other senators support, to pay for this legislation,” the spokesperson told The Hill.
A spokesperson for Sen. Mike Lee said he wants to give the legislation one more look to &#8220;prevent fraud and abuse.&#8221;
&#8220;Sen. Lee is seeking a vote to ensure the fund has the proper oversight in place to prevent fraud and abuse,&#8221; said the spokesperson.
The 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund was created to aid the first responders who led the rescue effort on Ground Zero for several months after the Twin Towers collapsed on 9/11 — a tragedy that caused many permanent illnesses. Last Friday, the U.S. House passed the replenishments for the funds by an overwhelming majority — 402 to 12. Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/house-passes-9-11-victims-fund-bill">reports</a> that it &#8220;comes as the $7 billion 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund is being depleted and has cut benefit payments by up to 70 percent.&#8221; The bill would ensure the fund can pay benefits for 70 years.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has expressed support for the bill and praised the 9/11 first responders as &#8220;American heroes and patriots.&#8221;
&#8220;The first responders who rushed into danger on September 11th, 2001 are the very definition of American heroes and patriots,&#8221; McConnell said. &#8220;The Senate has never forgotten the Victim Compensation Fund and we aren’t about to start now. Nothing about our shared goal to provide for these heroes is remotely partisan. We will consider this important legislation soon.&#8221;

Rand Paul, Mike Lee Block 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund Vote

Mike Lee

Wondering why the GOP has not yet defunded Planned Parenthood of its $500 million in taxpayer funds despite previously holding both chambers of the U.S. legislature and the presidency? According to Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), the leadership fears that &#8220;we might win.&#8221;
In a speech at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s &#8220;Road to Majority&#8221; <a href="https://www.ffcoalition.com/about/road-to-majority/">conference</a>, the unapologetically pro-life U.S. Senator said that Republicans are not following the will of pro-lifers despite the movement&#8217;s growth, reports <a href="https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/sen-rand-paul-gop-leadership-wont-vote-on-defunding-planned-parenthood-because-we-might-win">LifeSiteNews</a>.
&#8220;We still lose in the legislation,&#8221; Rand Paul said. &#8220;We lose because the people who come to you and give you lip service and say, ‘Oh I’m pro-life, I’m pro-life,’ and then they don’t seem to vote that way.&#8221;
The senator from Kentucky related an anecdote of how he tried pass a spending bill defunding Planned Parenthood only to have the GOP leadership shut it down for no other reason than to play political football.
<blockquote>Last year, I tried to attach to a spending bill a prohibition to have any money spent by Planned Parenthood.
You know what happened? [GOP leadership] sat me down and one of the senior Republican senators said, &#8216;We cannot have the vote today.&#8217;
I said, &#8216;Why?&#8217;
He said, &#8216;We might win.&#8217;</blockquote>
According to Paul, when he challenged this unnamed individual as to why the GOP would not fight to protect unborn life as promised, the person just smiled.
&#8220;What does this mean? Does this mean that passing your spending bill, getting the Democrats to vote for your spending bill, is more important than life?&#8221; Rand Paul said he asked the person. &#8220;Then he just smiled.&#8221;
Speaking to the crowd of mostly Evangelical Christians, all of whom were horrified to hear this news, Rand Paul lamented that D.C. has &#8220;Republicans that are more concerned with spending money than protecting the unborn.&#8221;
As The Daily Wire&#8217;s Matt Walsh <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/39271/walsh-republicans-didnt-defund-planned-parenthood-matt-walsh">argued</a> when Republicans failed to defund Planned Parenthood time and time again, the GOP leadership may indeed be using the issue as a bargaining chip to win future elections rather than an actual cause they feel passionately about.
<blockquote>A pro-life party wouldn&#8217;t need any encouragement to defund the abortion industry. It would get the job done on the first day and then it would move on to passing legislation that offers more direct protections to the unborn. The Republican Party, despite all the power it was given, did neither of those things.
Why? Well, it&#8217;s always the same ingredients with Republicans: cowardice and dishonesty. They are cowards because they fear the tidal wave of impotent outrage that would come their way if they ever actually did anything pro-life. They are dishonest because, contrary to the unconvincing talking points they spew, they don&#8217;t really want abortion banned or funding cut off. If they ever solved the problem, they wouldn&#8217;t be able to use the problem in their campaign speeches. I do not know how most of them personally feel about abortion itself, but it&#8217;s quite clear that they love the issue of abortion. They know that no matter how often they betray us, we will keep coming back, keep giving them our support, always with the desperate and pitiful hope that they will actually do something for a change.</blockquote>
President Trump, however, has promised to make the<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/48617/trump-blasts-abortion-every-life-sacred-gift-god-paul-bois"> pro-life cause a central tenet </a>to his 2020 platform and has openly blasted Democrats for pushing extreme late-term abortion measures in states like New York and Virginia.

Rand Paul Gives Shocking Reason Why GOP Won’t Vote To Defund Planned Parenthood

Abortion

Planned Parenthood

Speaking with Fox Business Network&#8217;s Stuart Varney on Thursday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) blistered special counsel Robert Mueller, saying he&#8221; completely and fundamentally misunderstands our justice system,&#8221; and also took a shot at fellow libertarian Rep. Justin Amash, (R-MI), who said Congress should go forward with the impeachment of President Trump. Paul stated, &#8220;I don&#8217;t understand a libertarian who would take this investigation and say we should pursue it and impeach the president. It goes against everything libertarians are for.&#8221;
The exchange went like this:
<blockquote>
Varney: What do you make of all this impeachment talk?
Paul: The thing that shocks me is that someone like Mueller, who is supposed to be esteemed and has been around for decades, completely and fundamentally misunderstands our justice system. The burden on the government is to prove that you&#8217;re guilty. Nobody proves that you&#8217;re innocent. You&#8217;re presumed to be innocent. So he&#8217;s out there, all over television, saying, &#8220;We never said, we never concluded the president was innocent.&#8221; Completely misunderstands our judicial system. You&#8217;re presumed to be innocent; they have to prove you&#8217;re guilty. He was not charged. He was not indicted, so he is innocent, and so it&#8217;s really wrong-headed but misunderstands our system for him to go around saying, &#8220;If he was innocent we would have said he was innocent.&#8221; That never happens in our country. Grand juries never issue a bill about innocence. They only either indict you or try to prove that you&#8217;re guilty. But you&#8217;re presumed to be innocent in our country and Mueller completely misunderstands that.
Varney: If we go with all the impeachment talk and investigations and subpoenas, and heaven knows what else, am I right in saying the government is essentially stalled, nothing gets done?
Paul: Yes, and I think people are sick and tired of this. You talk in my hometown to people who have been watching all this overwrought from some of the networks, it has become so partisan, so malevolent and hateful towards the president. People are sick of watching it, to tell you the truth. Can you imagine how sick they are gonna get if we get a year or two of some sort of partisan impeachment process? It&#8217;s going to be terrible for the country.
Varney: I think of you as a libertarian. Justin Amash is a libertarian, he&#8217;s a Republican, and he is saying, yeah, he was the first person to say, it&#8217;s in Congress&#8217;s court, go forward with impeachment, what do you make of that?
Paul: Libertarians like myself have for a long time said the intelligence community has too much power and that we&#8217;re very concerned that either CIA or FBI could be investigating Americans for political purposes. That&#8217;s long been our complaint. So I don&#8217;t understand a libertarian who would take this investigation and say we should pursue it and impeach the president. It goes against everything libertarians are for. We don&#8217;t like too much power. We don&#8217;t like the secret FISA court going after Americans. Foreigners are one thing, but always we&#8217;ve been very concerned about the FISA court being used against Americans. So I&#8217;ve been talking with the president. I spoke with him last night about how do we try to prevent this from happening to the next president or to the Americans at large? I think the president is open to trying to figure out a way, either legislatively or through executive order, we can try to prevent this abuse of power from happening again.
Varney: So you&#8217;re really involved in taking steps to make sure this does not get repeated?
Paul: Absolutely, while I&#8217;m a supporter of the president, I&#8217;m really a supporter of every American whether you&#8217;re a Republican donor, Democrat donor, activist politically, you should not be targeted by your government. I fear if this happens that from now on the new normal will be that administrations will go after their enemies. We&#8217;ve had a problem with that in our country before and that&#8217;s why we&#8217;ve had reforms. Right now this shows me, the whole Trump investigation shows me we need more reforms. It&#8217;s about trying to control the government. Government, they say power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We need to limit the power of the government to spy on Americans. I think the president may do some of this so I&#8217;m working with him on ideas, if they want to look at foreign intelligence, if they want to look at an American, they have to go to a public court, the district court here in New York, in public, and say we have probable cause we want to investigate an American. Otherwise, it shouldn&#8217;t happen. They abused the FISA system, which is supposed to be about going after foreign spies, to go after an American campaign. This is a terrible abuse of power and I want to be part of making sure it never happens to anybody again.
</blockquote>
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