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;
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UTCN0C9ciic" width="730" height="385" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">﻿</iframe>

Rand Paul

Paul Highlights Law That Could Protect Trump In Impeachment Inquiry; Explains Kentucky Election Results

Donald Trump

Impeachment

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:
<iframe src="https://www.c-span.org/video/standalone/?464457-1/after-words-senator-rand-paul" width="720" height="385" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
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: &#8216;Not Putting Up With Your Republican Bullsh*t!&#8217;

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

U.S. Senate

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>
Video below:
<div class="embed video fluid-video"><iframe frameborder="0" height="260" width="320"></iframe></div>

WATCH: Rand Paul Smashes Robert Mueller Over Trump Investigation, Amash On Impeachment Talk

Robert Mueller

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) says he will vote against President Donald Trump&#8217;s &#8220;national emergency&#8221; declaration, rerouting funds from other federal law enforcement priorities to building a waill along the United States-Mexico border. The announcement likely means Trump&#8217;s border wall plan is dead on arrival in the Senate.
The <a href="https://www.bgdailynews.com/news/sen-paul-vows-to-vote-against-giving-trump-extra-constitutional/article_07a8adb1-e02d-5add-9b0f-d3e4aef3513e.html">Bowling Green Daily News</a> first reported that Rand would vote &#8220;no&#8221; on the national emergency declaration &#8212; and &#8220;yes&#8221; on a resolution to block border wall measure &#8212; on Saturday. The senator followed up on the report with a statement indicating that he would oppose the measure over concerns that the declaration usurped Congressional power to appropriate funds.
&#8220;I can&#8217;t vote to give the president the power to spend money that hasn&#8217;t been appropriated by Congress.&#8221; Paul said. &#8220;We may want more money for border security, but Congress didn&#8217;t authorize it. If we take away those checks and balances, it&#8217;s a dangerous thing.&#8221;
&#8220;I stand with the president often, and I do so with a loud voice,&#8221; the senator continued <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/sen-rand-paul-i-support-president-trump-but-i-cant-support-this-national-emergency-declaration">in an op-ed published late Sunday night on Fox News</a>&#8216; website. &#8220;Today, I think he&#8217;s wrong, not on policy, but in seeking to expand the powers of the presidency beyond their constitutional limits.&#8221;
&#8220;I cannot support the use of emergency powers to get more funding [for a border wall]&#8230;so I will be voting to disapprove of his declaration when it comes before the Senate,&#8221; he concluded.
Trump&#8217;s plan reportedly involves using the &#8220;emergency powers to secure $3.6 billion from the Department of Defense&#8217;s military construction funds to build his proposed border wall,&#8221; <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/04/senate-likely-to-reject-trump-national-emergency-over-border-wall.html">according to CNBC</a>, and then rerouting another $3 billion or so through a series of executive orders. That is in addition to the $1.4 billion authorized in last month&#8217;s 2019 budget bill and in place of the $5.6 billion the White House requested in its initial budget overtures.
The House, which is, of course, controlled by Democrats, voted in favor of the resolution to block the border wall declaration late last week, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/02/26/698345376/house-passes-resolution-to-block-trumps-national-emergency-declaration">according to NPR</a>. That vote ended up being 245-182 in favor of the resolution with thirteen Republicans jumping the aisle to oppose the president, largely over separation-of-powers concerns.
The Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, could have provided the president with a narrow victory, but after members of the GOP&#8217;s House coalition voted to affirmatively block the emergency declaration, prominent Republican senators, including Lamar Alexander (R-TN), said they were privately warning the president that the Senate could vote against his emergency declaration measure as well.
With Sen. Rand Paul now defecting to the &#8220;no&#8221; camp, it&#8217;s likely that the same measure, designed to block the emergency declaration, will pass in the Senate. He joins three other Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) in expressing concern over the Trump&#8217;s plan, providing &#8220;the slim majority Democrats need to send the measure to the president&#8217;s desk, offering a stinging repudiation of the declaration,&#8221; <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/politics/national-emergency-vote-republicans-rand-paul.html">according to The New York Times</a>.
The Senate is expected to vote on the resolution to block Trump&#8217;s national emergency declaration later this week. The president has already said that if the legislation appears on his desk, he will veto it. The House likely has enough votes to override the president&#8217;s veto but the Senate, where the margin of victory for Democrats is much narrower, does not.

Sen. Rand Paul Will Vote Against &#8216;National Emergency&#8217; Declaration On The Border Wall

Republican Party

Southern Border

On Friday, President Trump announced the declaration of a national emergency in order to collect what he believes is the appropriate amount of funding for a southern border wall.
According to a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trumps-border-security-victory/">press release</a> from the White House, the president will allocate approximately $8.1 billion in funding from, but potentially not limited to, the following three sources:
<blockquote>
About $601 million from the Treasury Forfeiture Fund
Up to $2.5 billion under the Department of Defense funds transferred for Support for Counterdrug Activities (Title 10 United States Code, section 284)
Up to $3.6 billion reallocated from Department of Defense military construction projects under the President&#8217;s declaration of a national emergency (Title 10 United States Code, section 2808)
</blockquote>
During a speech on Friday, Trump <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/02/15/trumps-bewildering-national-emergency-press-conference-annotated/?noredirect=on&amp;utm_term=.90a9a9042973">stated</a> in part:
<blockquote>
[A national emergency has] been signed many times before. It&#8217;s been signed by other presidents. From 1977 or so, it gave the presidents the power. There&#8217;s rarely been a problem. They sign it; nobody cares. I guess they weren&#8217;t very exciting. But nobody cares. They sign it for far less important things in some cases &#8211; in many cases. We&#8217;re talking about an invasion of our country with drugs, with human traffickers, with all types of criminals and gangs&#8230;
And by signing the national emergency, something signed many times by other presidents many, many times &#8211; President Obama, in fact, we may be using one of the national emergencies that he signed having to do with cartels, criminal cartels. It&#8217;s a very good emergency that he signed, and we&#8217;re going to use parts of it in our dealings on cartels. So that would be a second national emergency. But in that case, it&#8217;s already in place.
And what we want &#8211; really want to do is simple. It&#8217;s not like it&#8217;s complicated. It&#8217;s very simple. We want to stop drugs from coming into our country. We want to stop criminals and gangs from coming into our country&#8230;
</blockquote>
When asked by a reporter about the constitutionality of his order, as well as the precedent it could set, Trump said that &#8220;the courts will determine that,&#8221; and that he expects &#8220;to be sued.&#8221;
He added: &#8220;We have an invasion of drugs and criminals coming into our country that we stop, but it&#8217;s very hard to stop. With a wall, it would be very easy. So I think that we will be very successful in court.&#8221;
Trump then noted that former presidents have declared national emergencies in the past, which he cited as the creation of precedent.
Several conservative Republican lawmakers have voiced concern with the president&#8217;s actions.
On Thursday, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) <a href="https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=DF492447-444A-4F9E-B7AC-F26870C9CE08">stated</a>:
<blockquote>
We have a crisis at our southern border, but no crisis justifies violating the Constitution. &#8230; Today&#8217;s national emergency is border security. But a future president may use this exact same tactic to impose the Green New Deal. I will wait to see what statutory or constitutional power the President relies on to justify such a declaration before making any definitive statement. But I am skeptical it will be something I can support.
</blockquote>
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) <a href="https://www.cruz.senate.gov/?p=press_release&amp;id=4324">slammed</a> the bipartisan funding bill, but noted that he would wait to evaluate the legal grounds on which the president declared an emergency before making a judgement:
<blockquote>
Democrats&#8217; intransigence has left the president with no other choice but to take executive action. I am a constitutionalist, and I have long advocated that every president, Republican or Democrat, be bound by the Constitution and federal laws. I will wait to see what specific course of action the president pursues and what legal authorities are cited as a basis for it.
</blockquote>
On Friday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) <a href="https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/dr-rand-paul-releases-statement-funding-deal-and-president-trump%E2%80%99s-emergency-declaration-plans">stated</a>:
<blockquote>
I, too, want stronger border security, including a wall in some areas. But how we do things matters. Over 1,000 pages dropped in the middle of the night and extraconstitutional executive actions are wrong, no matter which party does them.
</blockquote>
Sen. Mike Lee took a slightly different approach, <a href="https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=04D75C88-5D6C-4D71-8725-B166B8E2D7E6">saying</a> that his &#8220;initial assessment is that what President Trump announced is legal.&#8221;
However, he added, &#8220;whether or not it should be legal is a different matter. Congress has been ceding far too much power to the executive branch for decades. We should use this moment as an opportunity to start taking that power back.&#8221;
The laws President Trump specifically cites in his White House press release are 10 U.S. Code § 284 &#8211; Support for counterdrug activities and activities to counter transnational organized crime, and 10 U.S. Code § 2808 &#8211; Construction authority in the event of a declaration of war or national emergency.

Prominent Conservative Republican Lawmakers Voice Concern Over Trump’s Emergency Declaration

Drugs

Illegal Immigration

Marco Rubio

Ted Cruz

Trump Administration

On November 3, 2017, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/23172/rand-paul-attacked-his-home-registered-democrat-ryan-saavedra">physically assaulted</a> by a neighbor living in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The neighbor, Rene Boucher, is a <a href="https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article225167965.html">retired anesthesiologist</a>. The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/23172/rand-paul-attacked-his-home-registered-democrat-ryan-saavedra">reported</a>, at the time:
<blockquote>
Kentucky State Police arrested a man who allegedly attacked Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) at his home on Friday in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Authorities arrested Rene Boucher, 59, of Bowling Green for &#8220;intentionally assaulting&#8221; Paul outside his home, according to WKBO.
Police charged Boucher with one count of fourth-degree assault and transported him to the Warren County Detention Center.
</blockquote>
This past June, Boucher was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/15/us/politics/rand-paul-attack.html">sentenced</a> to 30 days in prison, following his guilty plea to the federal prosecution initiated by the United States Attorney&#8217;s Office for the Southern District of Indiana. The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/15/us/politics/rand-paul-attack.html">reported</a>:
<blockquote>
A neighbor of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky was sentenced Friday to 30 days in prison after pleading guilty to felony assault for tackling the lawmaker last year, a spokesman for federal prosecutors said. The attack was fueled by irritation over a pile of debris.
The neighbor, Rene A. Boucher, 60, of Bowling Green, Ky., was also sentenced to one year of probation and a $10,000 fine, said Tim Horty, a spokesman for the United States attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, in a phone interview.
</blockquote>
Boucher also had to perform <a href="https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article225167965.html">100 hours</a> of community service, in addition to his jail time, probation sentence, and $10,000 monetary fine.
In addition to the federal criminal prosecution, Paul has also filed a state civil suit against Boucher. The trial <a href="https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article225167965.html">began</a> Monday in local circuit court in Bowling Green. The Lexington Herald-Leader <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article225167965.html">reports</a> that Paul&#8217;s testimony at trial included his recollection that he had trouble breathing and &#8220;had the thought that he might die:&#8221;
<blockquote>
Paul, 55, pushed back strongly against the suggestion he&#8217;d done anything to prompt the attack, however, saying he never piled limbs or other waste on the property line. 
Paul testified that when Rene Boucher tackled him Nov. 3, 2017, he immediately began having trouble breathing and, with Boucher still on his back, had the thought that he might die.
&#8220;The thought crossed my mind, &#8216;I may never get up from this lawn,&#8217;&#8221; Paul told jurors.
Paul is seeking up to $500,000 in damages to compensate him for pain and suffering and up to $1 million to punish Boucher.
</blockquote>
The neighborly dispute between Paul and Boucher allegedly began over trimmed tree limbs and yard waste that Boucher claims Paul piled up along the property line. 
Punitive damages, such as the $1 million that Paul seeks (in addition to the $500,000 he seeks in compensatory damages), are generally rarely granted in civil actions. States often place statutory limits on the size of punitive damage awards, and the U.S. Supreme Court has previously declared that some excessive punitive damage awards risk unconstitutionality on Due Process Clause grounds. In State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell, the Supreme Court in 2003 <a href="http://www.klgates.com/files/tempFiles/820d03af-93b4-41db-9863-214672f7a581/pla_2003-april.pdf">held</a> that the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause places limits on a state court&#8217;s ability to award punitive damages. Nonetheless, no such constitutional concerns ought to be at issue in Paul&#8217;s suit.

An Assaulter Broke Rand Paul’s Ribs. His Trial Is Now Underway.

Lawsuit

On Monday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) was widely criticized for the announcement that he would have hernia surgery in Canada, a country with socialized medicine. Despite the hospital being private and specializing in hernias, critics cited Paul&#8217;s opposition to socialized medicine.
The surgery is related to an injury Paul suffered when his neighbor, Rene Boucher, attacked him while he was doing yard work, leaving him with six broken ribs and damage to his lungs, The Washington Times <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jan/14/sen-rand-paul-scheduled-to-have-hernia-surgery-in-/">reports</a>.
Boucher is <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/425222-rand-paul-to-have-surgery-in-canada">reportedly</a> being sued by Paul for $4,000 in medical expenses plus the costs of the hernia surgery. The Courier Journal reports the court documents cite the cost of the hernia procedure as ranging between $5,000 and $8,000. Boucher was sentenced to 30 days in prison for assaulting a member of Congress; federal prosecutors are reportedly appealing the case.
Paul&#8217;s lawsuit says that he will undergo an outpatient surgery in Canada later this month at Shouldice Hernia Hospital, which <a href="https://www.shouldice.com/">claims</a> to be &#8220;the only licensed hospital in the world dedicated to repairing hernias.&#8221;
&#8220;This is a private, world renowned hospital separate from any system and people come from around the world to pay cash for their services,&#8221; Kelsey Cooper, a spokeswoman for Paul, told The Hill.
Paul&#8217;s chief strategist Doug Safford responded to the unwarranted outrage on Twitter. 
&#8220;It is one of a handful of private hospitals grandfathered to exist outside their normal healthcare laws,&#8221; Safford added. &#8220;Try fact checking, it&#8217;s not hard.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Attention fact-challenged media: &#8220;More fake news on a story that has been reported terribly from day one &#8211; this is a PRIVATE, world renowned hospital and people come from around the world to PAY CASH for their services.&#8221; It&#8217;s literally the opposite of socialized medicine.
&#8212; Doug Stafford (@dougstafford) <a href="https://twitter.com/dougstafford/status/1084887411568582656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
But this didn&#8217;t stop the critics. 
&#8220;Sen. Rand Paul &#8212; one of the fiercest critics of socialized medicine &#8212; is heading to Canada for surgery,&#8221; The Daily Beast tweeted. 
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Sen. Rand Paul&#8212;one of the fiercest critics of socialized medicine&#8212;is heading to Canada for surgery <a href="https://t.co/oia2FFhEl6">https://t.co/oia2FFhEl6</a>
&#8212; The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) <a href="https://twitter.com/thedailybeast/status/1084890419610177537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;[B]rave of rand paul to offer himself up as a guinea pig to showcase the savagery of socialized medicine,&#8221; Matt Binder, a reporter at Mashable wrote. 
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
brave of rand paul to offer himself up as a guinea pig to showcase the savagery of socialized medicine <a href="https://t.co/QXKTNZOyyH">https://t.co/QXKTNZOyyH</a>
&#8212; Matt Binder (@MattBinder) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattBinder/status/1084883560232898563?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;Rand Paul, an outspoken critic of universal healthcare, is traveling to Canada for hernia surgery, where they have universal healthcare, because America&#8217;s health care system wasn&#8217;t good enough for a sitting US Senator,&#8221; John Aravosis, an editor for AMERICAblog wrote.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Rand Paul, an outspoken critic of universal healthcare, is traveling to Canada for hernia surgery, where they have universal healthcare, because America&#8217;s health care system wasn&#8217;t good enough for a sitting US Senator. <a href="https://t.co/sVtkIBoGFW">https://t.co/sVtkIBoGFW</a>
&#8212; John Aravosis (@aravosis) <a href="https://twitter.com/aravosis/status/1084900981542961152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;Rand Paul, enemy of socialized medicine, will go to Canada for surgery,&#8221; Talking Points Memo tweeted from their official account. 
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Rand Paul, enemy of socialized medicine, will go to Canada for surgery <a href="https://t.co/8TESKnG0oB">https://t.co/8TESKnG0oB</a> <a href="https://t.co/w5sdzSkhq1">pic.twitter.com/w5sdzSkhq1</a>
&#8212; Talking Points Memo (@TPM) <a href="https://twitter.com/TPM/status/1084861268559884291?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Daniel Dale, a correspondent for the Toronto Star, responded to the criticism. &#8220;This isn&#8217;t really a good &#8216;gotcha,&#8221; he tweeted. &#8220;This hernia clinic, in my hometown of Thornhill, is one of a very small number of private, for-profit clinics that were grandfathered into Ontario&#8217;s socialized health system.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
This isn&#8217;t really a good &#8220;gotcha.&#8221; This hernia clinic, in my hometown of Thornhill, is one of a very small number of private, for-profit clinics that were grandfathered into Ontario&#8217;s socialized health system. <a href="https://t.co/Z6MmI5ojTV">https://t.co/Z6MmI5ojTV</a>
&#8212; Daniel Dale (@ddale8) <a href="https://twitter.com/ddale8/status/1084885794530230273?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;Shouldice is not socialized medicine &#8212; it&#8217;s a little bastion of capitalist medicine Canadian politicians allow to keep existing,&#8221; Dale added. 
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Fair enough. But the gotcha is &#8220;he&#8217;s an enemy of socialized medicine but look he&#8217;s going to the land of socialized medicine.&#8221; Shouldice is not socialized medicine &#8212; it&#8217;s a little bastion of capitalist medicine Canadian politicians allow to keep existing. <a href="https://t.co/0opGvr8nSS">https://t.co/0opGvr8nSS</a>
&#8212; Daniel Dale (@ddale8) <a href="https://twitter.com/ddale8/status/1084886914275180545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;It&#8217;s an opportunity for the Left to take a cheap shot at Rand for no reason, and without any facts on their side,&#8221; Safford told The Daily Wire. &#8220;It&#8217;s disgusting clickbait for them.&#8221;

Media Attacks Rand Paul For Going To Socialized-Medicine-Canada To Get Surgery, Fails To Mention It’s A Private Hospital

Canada

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is on the warpath against failed presidential candidate Mitt Romney for virtue-signaling his way to a 2020 primary challenge against President Trump in a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mitt-romney-the-president-shapes-the-public-character-of-the-nation-trumps-character-falls-short/2019/01/01/37a3c8c2-0d1a-11e9-8938-5898adc28fa2_story.html?noredirect=on&amp;utm_term=.9d421470c080">Washington Post op-ed</a> in which he mercilessly trashed the leader of the free world for falling short of character.
&#8220;To a great degree, a presidency shapes the public character of the nation,&#8221; Romney said. &#8220;A president should unite us and inspire us to follow &#8216;our better angels.&#8217; A president should demonstrate the essential qualities of honesty and integrity, and elevate the national discourse with comity and mutual respect.&#8221;
The newly-minted U.S. senator from Utah then lamented that President Trump stands out of line with the great presidents of the past. &#8220;As a nation, we have been blessed with presidents who have called on the greatness of the American spirit,&#8221; said Romney. &#8220;With the nation so divided, resentful and angry, presidential leadership in qualities of character is indispensable. And it is in this province where the incumbent&#8217;s shortfall has been most glaring.&#8221;
&#8220;The world needs American leadership, and it is in America&#8217;s interest to provide it,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;A world led by authoritarian regimes is a world &#8212; and an America &#8212; with less prosperity, less freedom, less peace.&#8221;
As one of President Trump&#8217;s loyal defenders, especially in the face of his more controversial decisions, Sen. Rand Paul blasted Romney on Twitter as a &#8220;Big Government Republican.&#8221;
&#8220;Like other Big Government Republicans who never liked Reagan, Mitt Romney wants to signal how virtuous he is in comparison to the President,&#8221; Paul tweeted. &#8220;Well, I&#8217;m most concerned and pleased with the actual conservative reform agenda <a data-mentioned-user-id="25073877" data-scribe="element:mention" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump">@realDonaldTrump</a> has achieved.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Like other Big Government Republicans who never liked Reagan, Mitt Romney wants to signal how virtuous he is in comparison to the President. Well, I&#8217;m most concerned and pleased with the actual conservative reform agenda <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a> has achieved. 
<a href="https://t.co/vNvp2ZwyK7">https://t.co/vNvp2ZwyK7</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1080482589176152065?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 2, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
According to the <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/its-war-rand-paul-hits-big-government-romney-trump-an-actual-conservative">Washington Examiner</a>, Sen. Rand Paul&#8217;s deputy chief of staff, Sergio Gor, later said that Rand Paul largely endorses President Trump&#8217;s conservative policies, including his tax cuts and judicial appointments. He said, &#8220;Sen. Rand Paul considers President Trump a friend, but beyond that, he is thrilled with his conservative policies, which have included historic tax cuts, massive regulation cuts, the appointment of constitutional jurists, and implementing an &#8216;America First&#8217; foreign policy by focusing on America and not every problem around the world. This president is delivering on his promises, and moderate Republicans should work with him to fulfill even more.&#8221;
The Republican National Committee Chairwoman, <a data-cms-ai="0" href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/congress/not-so-niece-gop-chairwoman-goes-after-romney-her-uncle-for-his-trump-criticism" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ronna McDaniel</a>, Mitt Romney&#8217;s niece, equally slammed her own uncle for committing what was tantamount to political betrayal.
&#8220;POTUS is attacked and obstructed by the MSM media and Democrats 24/7. For an incoming Republican freshman senator to attack <a data-mentioned-user-id="25073877" data-scribe="element:mention" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump">@realdonaldtrump</a> as their first act feeds into what the Democrats and media want and is disappointing and unproductive,&#8221; McDaniel tweeted.
On Twitter, President Trump also rightly scolded Romney for being a failed presidential candidate, openly hoping he will not behave like former Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake. He tweeted, &#8220;Here we go with Mitt Romney, but so fast! Question will be, is he a Flake? I hope not. Would much prefer that Mitt focus on Border Security and so many other things where he can be helpful. I won big, and he didn&#8217;t. He should be happy for all Republicans. Be a TEAM player &amp; WIN!&#8221;

Rand Paul Blasts ‘Big Government’ Mitt Romney For Signaling &#8216;How Virtuous He Is&#8217; In Anti-Trump Op-Ed

Mitt Romney

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) ignited a firestorm on Twitter over the weekend with a series of comedic tweets trolling the government and people in Washington, D.C.
&#8220;GOOD MORNING!&#8221; Paul tweeted early on Sunday. &#8220;Welcome to everyone&#8217;s favorite holiday, #Festivus!&#8221;
The Hill <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/422691-rand-pauls-festivus-grievances-include-comparing-lindsey-graham-to-senator">notes</a> that &#8220;Festivus is a made-up holiday that served as the theme of a &#8216;Seinfeld&#8217; episode.&#8221;
Here are all the tweets from Paul&#8217;s two Twitter threads, starting with the most comedic thread:
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I came to say Happy <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Festivus?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Festivus</a> to my friend Elizabeth Warren. Cant find her. <a href="https://t.co/A4xSJ7Nf7x">pic.twitter.com/A4xSJ7Nf7x</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928042616918017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
You&#8217;ll be surprised to learn I have some grievances with people in Washington, fellow members and others. It&#8217;s time to talk about them now, because it&#8217;s the holiday season.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928047641751553?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Let&#8217;s start with POTUS I like the President, I honestly do. I know people don&#8217;t believe me. But the man seems to have a problem keeping staff around him. But they solved the problem. I went to the White House the other day and there were at least 14 ppl in Mick Mulvaney masks. <a href="https://t.co/u0nnGWQ7V0">pic.twitter.com/u0nnGWQ7V0</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928048522579968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Mick is a good friend of mine, in fact a lot of people probably don&#8217;t remember he was the national co-chair for my Presidential campaign. Uh oh, probably just got him fired. <a href="https://t.co/3jH3ZsZh8r">pic.twitter.com/3jH3ZsZh8r</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928050481246211?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
People are saying that with the recent passage of criminal justice reform, and coming home from wars, that I have a lot of influence on the President. It is true I&#8217;m on the phone with him a good amount. But I have to tell you, I haven&#8217;t gotten a word in on him in over a year.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928051651452930?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Speaking of criminal justice reform, I have to give Jared Kushner credit. He was great on this. And I&#8217;m glad I got to know him, because before that I was a bit suspicious he was the kid from the Omen movie all grown up.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928052477726720?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
And folks, that is NOT who you want in charge of your Middle East peace plans.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928053178191872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I did something to help the President out though. I found him a wall I think will work on the border. <a href="https://t.co/gx7ejwn1RU">pic.twitter.com/gx7ejwn1RU</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928053710856193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
It will be quite lovely really. And It was on sale for $99, so we can open the government back up now.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928054956572672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
So moving down the road to Congress. Oh, Congress. Every year it seems things get more absurd. They were so bad this week they made my friend Mike Lee say &#8220;doggone&#8221;. It was nuts.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928055631843330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Congress has now decided to shut down the government because they aren&#8217;t spending enough money. I got suspicious when Ted Cruz came back from Thanksgiving break with that beard. <a href="https://t.co/y0r3dpFbbG">pic.twitter.com/y0r3dpFbbG</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928056294551554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Ted really should have grown that beard before he ran for President. He looks less Canadian now.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928057657692160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
My friend Lindsay Graham is a bit mad right now. You see, he&#8217;s never seen a war end before. He&#8217;s going to have to console himself with the fact that we still are in about 8 more. I know it will be hard for him, but I think he&#8217;ll get by.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928058375000064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I have to tell you; I haven&#8217;t seen a Senator who loves war this much since the Star Wars Prequels. <a href="https://t.co/UFU242XYQK">pic.twitter.com/UFU242XYQK</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928059209601024?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Lindsay and I were on the same side on foreign policy for about 5 minutes a few weeks ago, regarding the Saudis. He said it was a sign of &#8220;end times&#8221;. I guess we are all gonna live a bit longer after all.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928060937654272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Grievance against the foreign policy establishment of both parties in DC:
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928061717839879?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Many of these people hold these two views: 1 &#8211; that it was horrible to leave the war in Syria and 2 &#8211; that it is horrible that General Mattis left, since he was what kept the President from starting WWIII or something. I don&#8217;t understand how you hold both of those views.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928062376284160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;m going to go a bit easier on the grievances against the neocons and warmongers this year though. The Weekly Standard has folded, wars are ending &#8212; I really think their holiday is already bad enough, I don&#8217;t want to pile on.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928063059963908?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Well, actually&#8230;let&#8217;s talk about John Bolton. I don&#8217;t have a grievance. I just really would have liked to have been in the room when the POTUS told him to END a war. How many times do you think he made the President repeat it because he didn&#8217;t even know what the words meant?
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928063814942721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I opposed John Bolton being hired. But I really can&#8217;t think of anything that makes me happier then thinking of him having to end wars for the rest of his time in the White House.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928064574115840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I hear they&#8217;re piping this into his office now for the entire Christmas season. .<a href="https://t.co/KLPpLHavSy">https://t.co/KLPpLHavSy</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928065228410880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;m going to close today by talking about something good that has happened. In fact, some could even say it has its beginnings right here on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Festivus?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Festivus</a> twitter a few years ago. I poked a little fun at my friend Corey Booker.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928065895391232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
But then we exchanged some thoughts about bipartisan reforms we could work on, like hemp legalization and criminal justice reforms. Well, it&#8217;s a Festivus miracle because Congress passed and the President signed BOTH of those things this week.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928066583171073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
All kidding aside, they were important, bipartisan reforms that show how Washington CAN work if people from both sides of the aisle get together on things that make sense. I&#8217;m proud to have been a part of both.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928067287822338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
So everyone enjoy your feats of strength today. Air your grievances here or in your home. But remember, thanks to Donald Trump we are ALL saying Merry Christmas this year &#8212; so repeat after me: MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to everyone even the haters and losers.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076928067967377409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
</div>
Here is Paul&#8217;s first thread:
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
GOOD MORNING! Welcome to everyone&#8217;s favorite holiday, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Festivus?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Festivus</a>! <a href="https://t.co/bZEUyPID1b">pic.twitter.com/bZEUyPID1b</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824657729384448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;ve got a lot of problems with you people, and now you&#8217;re gonna hear about them! <a href="https://t.co/sahSMrsdml">pic.twitter.com/sahSMrsdml</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824659562246144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;m going to start out with a grievance against the entire foreign policy establishment of Washington DC, who 2 years ago were swearing that Donald Trump was going to start multiple nuclear wars or something.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824661114138624?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Now they are mad because he is STOPPING two wars. How about you just admit you hate the President, love war and have been wrong for the last 20 years on every part of foreign policy?
Consider that my Christmas present. You don&#8217;t have to get me anything else.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824661856579590?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;m on some Sunday shows this morning, I hope you&#8217;ll tune in to <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSotu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CNNSotu</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FaceTheNation</a> to hear some serious policy discussions.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824662527672320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
I&#8217;ll be back later this afternoon for some serious, and not so serious grievances, along with lots of my Festivus Waste Report. So come on back later!
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824663114829826?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Oh, by the way, before I go &#8211; Die Hard is a Christmas movie, don&#8217;t @ me <a href="https://t.co/UukKhRCzCB">pic.twitter.com/UukKhRCzCB</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076824663794294784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
So we are back with more <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Festivus?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Festivus</a> goodness. <a href="https://t.co/k8tPeEU4g0">pic.twitter.com/k8tPeEU4g0</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915852371472384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
One of the things I hate most about Washington is that they have literally NO IDEA how to spend your money. That&#8217;s why I do waste reports, and do a FESTIVUS WASTE REPORT with some of the worst offenders of the year. Here are some of the worst in waste.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915854338609152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Everyone&#8217;s favorite frisky quail are back with an update on how much money they blew: <a href="https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc">https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc</a> <a href="https://t.co/KjPL4fKzvt">pic.twitter.com/KjPL4fKzvt</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915855479459845?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
The USAID spending $18 mil to promote tourism&#8230;.in Egypt: <a href="https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc">https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc</a> <a href="https://t.co/SBbcUU2uDi">pic.twitter.com/SBbcUU2uDi</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915857324994560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
$2 mil on daydreaming: <a href="https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc">https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc</a> <a href="https://t.co/IWWDtK3kyg">pic.twitter.com/IWWDtK3kyg</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915859141132288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
$75k to throw lizards around with a leaf blower: <a href="https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc">https://t.co/vbTkpbKVOc</a> <a href="https://t.co/nA7ZA9JdCA">pic.twitter.com/nA7ZA9JdCA</a>
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915860403613696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
So of course, instead of fixing waste like this and reforming government, the geniuses in Congress decided to have a fight over how much MORE money they were going to &#8220;spend&#8221; aka borrow from China.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915862613815296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
Speaking of which, buried in the foreign aid reports last year, I discovered something &#8212; we give foreign aid to China. So government is so dumb, it is literally borrowing money from China, to give it back to China, while paying interest on it.
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915863364796416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
This is actually my grievance with liberals. They want the government to do more and more, take over more healthcare, more education &#8212; I mean you seen what it ALREADY is doing?
&#8212; Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1076915864153264128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
</div>

Rand Paul Sets Twitter On Fire By Trolling Everyone In Washington

Conservatism

The Washington Post&#8217;s &#8220;conservative&#8221; columnist has said some nutty things in the past, but this one takes the cake.
After special counsel Robert Mueller released new court filings from his investigation into allegations that President Trump colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 election, Jennifer Rubin said the president is likely planning an 11th hour stunt to avoid going to jail.
&#8220;I would predict here on MSNBC that when Trump leaves office he will resign the presidency 10 minutes before Mike Pence leaves office, allowing Pence to pardon him if there is not a Republican president to follow him,&#8221; Rubin said on the network&#8217;s &#8220;AM Joy&#8221; show.
So, here&#8217;s the plan, according to Rubin. On January 20, 2021 (or, more likely, 2025), Trump will resign the presidency at 11:50 a.m. (the incoming president is sworn in at the capitol at noon.) Then, the vice president will be sworn in as president (he&#8217;d have to be), and whip out a presidential pardon, which he&#8217;d sign. At noon, poof, Pence is no longer president and Trump is in the clear.
Like we said, we&#8217;ve heard some dumb stuff before from Rubin, but nothing this dimwitted. Still, there&#8217;s no doubt the viewers of MSNBC gobbled it up, especially coming from a &#8220;conservative&#8221; columnist.
The Post describes Rubin &#8212; who it once was touted as a &#8220;conservative&#8221; author of the paper&#8217;s blog &#8220;Right Turn&#8221; &#8212; as an &#8220;opinion writer reporting from a center-right perspective.&#8221; But in her Twitter profile, Rubin still describes herself as a &#8220;conservative blogger at @WashingtonPost, MSNBC contributor.&#8221;
That description doesn&#8217;t go over too well with the American Principles Project, which last month sent a letter to the Post signed by 37 top conservative leaders to urge the paper to stop promoting Rubin as a &#8220;conservative&#8221; and to instead hire a columnist who could &#8220;eloquently and effectively&#8221; defend the policies of Trump and his party.
&#8220;We, of course, respect the right of The Washington Post to employ whatever writers it pleases &#8212; even Jennifer Rubin. However, we ask for the sake of intellectual honesty that the Post cease to identify her as in any way &#8216;conservative,'&#8221; the conservative leaders wrote. &#8220;Given the Post&#8217;s standing as an important platform for political opinion in our nation&#8217;s capital, we also respectfully request that you consider hiring a voice who can eloquently and effectively defend the positions held by our President, his party, and the millions of voters who elected him. We would be happy to provide recommendations.&#8221;
A look at her recent columns certainly reinforces that notion. A few headlines:
<ul>
<li>Trump&#8217;s misogyny reaps diminishing returns</li>
<li>If we want to protect the Supreme Court&#8217;s legitimacy, Kavanaugh should not be on it</li>
<li>Trump has made America less respected than ever</li>
<li>It just keeps getting worse for Republicans</li>
<li>Ford runs circles around hapless Republicans, who now have a second scandal</li>
</ul>
In her MSNBC appearance, Rubin also ripped Sen. Rand Paul (R-TN), who said on NBC&#8217;s &#8220;Meet the Press,&#8221; &#8220;I don&#8217;t see what&#8217;s illegal about trying to build a hotel in Russia. This is pretty common and I see no problem with it. Now if you&#8217;re asking and saying I will give you something in exchange for letting us build a hotel, that would be wrong, but I haven&#8217;t heard any evidence of that.&#8221;
Rubin said Paul&#8217;s remarks were &#8220;shameful,&#8221; adding, &#8220;I think there was a $50 million penthouse, if I remember it correctly, that was going to be offered to Vladimir Putin.
&#8220;The president has been implicated in a crime. If Rand Paul wants to say Republicans are no longer in favor of holding the president to the same standard of law we hold ordinary citizens, that is his right. But I think this kind of willful ignorance &#8230; really is beneath someone who is in the United States Senate.&#8221;

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