GOP - Rand Paul's Presidential Highlight Reel w/ his Libertarian Twist

[Chef Ramsay]

Senators flash anger at Paul — and vice versa

Tempers are flaring in the Senate.

With lawmakers slated to take procedural votes later this evening on a bill to reform the PATRIOT Act, Sens. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) refused to yield the floor to fellow Republican Sen. Rand Paul, who has promised to force a sunset of key parts national security law. The spat prompted a terse back-and-forth during a rare Sunday session prompted by Paul’s refusal earlier this month to allow votes on the issue.

With dozens of Senate onlookers donning “Stand with Rand” T-Shirts, Paul tried to interject as Coats and McCain were speaking in defense of of the National Security Agency. But McCain and Coats wouldn’t yield the floor.
Paul “needs to learn the rules of the Senate,” McCain sniped at the Kentucky Republican.

The dust-up is just the latest sign of discontent over Paul’s willingness to grind the Senate to a halt — annoyance that’s particularly on display among seasoned lawmakers and defense hawks like McCain.

When Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who was presiding over the chamber, said later that time for debate had expired, Paul was incensed. He said he had not gotten to speak and argued the time had been miscounted, even calling for a roll call vote to challenge Grassley’s rulings. Paul ultimately was allowed to speak for a few minutes, but not before McCain objected again to Paul speaking, and the typically tranquil Grassley raised his voice.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/senators-flash-anger-at-paul-and-vice-versa-118467.html#ixzz3blB6nHT0

[Chef Ramsay]

Senate Votes to Consider House Bill on Surveillance

WASHINGTON — In a rare Sunday night session, the Senate voted overwhelmingly to begin a debate on a bill passed by the House to curtail a national security surveillance program approved after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. But the law that authorized the program was set to expire at midnight in the face of continuing opposition from Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky.

The 77-to-17 vote was a remarkable turnabout — grudgingly approved by the majority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, a fellow Kentucky Republican — just a week after the Senate narrowly turned the bill away at his behest. Mr. McConnell, in a desperate attempt to keep the surveillance program going, encouraged senators to vote for a bill that he still found deficient.

“I remain determined to working toward the best outcome for the American people possible under the circumstances,” Mr. McConnell said. “This is where we are, colleagues — a House-passed bill with some serious flaws, and an inability to get a short-term extend to improve the House bill.”

Mr. Paul, whom Mr. McConnell has endorsed as a presidential candidate, made it clear that he would use his procedural weapon — the words “I object” — to ensure that provisions of the law that the government has been using to sweep up vast amounts of telephone data go away, at least temporarily. He said he would decline to let Mr. McConnell move to a rapid passage of the bill, which requires the consent of every senator, before midnight.

More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/01/us/politics/senate-nsa-surveillance-usa-freedom-act.html

[Chef Ramsay]

Paul: 'I’m not going to take it anymore'

Sen. Rand Paul burst back into Washington on Sunday evening making clear that he is not relenting in his battle to hobble the Patriot Act.

“Are we going to so blithely give up our freedom? Are we going to so blindly go along and take it?” the Kentucky Republican and presidential candidate said from the Senate floor, raising his voice to reach the approximately two dozen supporters wearing “Stand with Rand” t-shirts in the chamber gallery. 

“I’m not going to take it anymore,” he added. “I don’t think the American people are going to take it anymore.”

Paul spoke minutes after an altercation with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a frequent sparring partner over the years who accused the Kentucky Republican of not understanding Senate rules.

The Senate is holding a rare Sunday session on National Security Agency legislation in large part because of Paul, who more than a week ago objected to a short-term extension of the Patriot Act.

Paul also appears intent on unilaterally forcing the three provisions of the Patriot Act to expire at midnight, by preventing the Senate from voting on reform legislation until later in the week.

Backers of legislation to renew the Patriot Act provisions but end the NSA’s bulk collection of Americans’ phone records — known as the USA Freedom Act — appeared confident heading into Sunday that they had the 60 votes necessary to proceed.

But Paul can still the stop the bill dead in its tracks — at least temporarily.

The Senate needs unanimous consent of the chamber to begin voting on a second procedural step on Sunday evening, without waiting until 1 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

Paul’s opposition is likely to mean they don’t get it, forcing the Senate over the midnight deadline and killing the three legal measures.

Paul appears primed to chip away at the powers of the National Security Agency (NSA), which he has described as illegal and unconstitutional.

“This is a debate over the Bill of Rights,” he said. “This is a debate over the Fourth Amendment. This is a debate over your right to be left alone.”

http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/243574-paul-im-not-going-to-take-it-anymore

[Chef Ramsay]

Rand Paul blasts PATRIOT Act Surveillance on Senate Floor During Last Minute Debate
Section 215 is set to expire tonight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LGVflk4Pww

"Get a warrant!"

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) took to the Senate floor Sunday afternoon as debate wrapped up to reiterate, very, very loudly, his opposition to renewing the mass data collection authorities of Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act. He had argue with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) over Senate procedures first to get permission to speak. McCain, for his part, argued that the increase in terrorism (he said the Middle East is literally burning) is proof that we need Section 215 "more than ever," despite the lack of evidence that the mass collection under Section 215 actually contributed in any successful efforts to halt terrorist attacks.

Paul noted that "the right to be left alone" is one of our most cherished of rights. And in response to senators like Dan Coats (R-Ind.) saying Americans had been deceived by surveillance opponents, Paul reminded the Senate floor and C-Span viewers, "The head of intelligence agency lied to the American people, and he still works there." And he also reminded the Senate that a federal court has already ruled that Section 215 doesn't actually authorize mass metadata collection about Americans. Paul's position: Want to get records about Americans suspsected of crimes? Get a warrant. Paul is tweeting out some quotes from his speech here.

...

http://reason.com/blog/2015/05/31/rand-paul-blasts-patriot-act-surveillanc

[Chef Ramsay]

Rand Paul's Army Gathers in the Capitol to Help Him Block Patriot Act

Shortly before 5 p.m., when Rand Paul took the Senate floor, his allies outnumbered his opponents. Michigan Representative Justin Amash and Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie sat in benches at the back, silently rooting on the Kentucky senator, whom they'd already endorsed for president. At least 30 young people wearing red and black "Stand With Rand" T-shirts sat transfixed in the public gallery. No supporter of the Patriot Act or the USA Freedom Act stayed around for Paul's opening speech of the debate. The "Stand With Rand" crowd did.

"The president Obama who once was against the Patriot Act, the President Obama who once believed in the Fourth Amendment, is the same person now scooping up all your records illegally," said Paul.

When the senator wrapped, and photographers scrambled to find him, the young supporters stayed in their seats. They were anticipating a 6 p.m. round of votes that could gauge the support Paul had for blocking reauthorization of spying programs. Amash and Massie ambled into the hallway, a place they were ready to spend much of the night if the Senate passed a bill and threw it to the House.

"Technically, the House is able to act," said Amash.

"There can't be unanimous consent if one person objects," said Massie.

"And we would object," said Amash.

...

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-31/rand-paul-s-army-gathers-in-the-capitol-to-help-him-block-patriot-act

[Chef Ramsay]

Paul: Some in D.C. hoping for terror attack to blame him

Sen. Rand Paul said Sunday evening that some people in Washington are “secretly” hoping for a terrorist attack to hit the U.S. to make him look bad.

In a speech on the Senate floor, Paul railed against those accusing him of jeopardizing national security by stalling efforts to renew surveillance programs.

“People here in town think I’m making a huge mistake,” Paul said. “Some of them I think secretly want there to be an attack on the United States so they can blame it on me.”

More...http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/paul-some-in-dc-hoping-for-terror-attack-to-blame-him-118474.html#ixzz3bmAASx5X

[Chef Ramsay]

Rand Paul has defeated the Patriot act! Freedom act is next!

Rand Paul has done it! He has forced the sunset of the Patriot act. In a couple hours, legally the NSA will not have the authority to access your call records, they will anyways however… This is a major triumph and I commend Senator Paul for his efforts and a shout out to his friend from the other side Senator Wydon.

ITS NOT OVER!

The fight has just begun. We need to defeat the freedom act as well! This will be voted on in the coming days. Lets not waste time, you need to call your representatives and tell them to sunset all variations of the patriot act and not pass the freedom act! We must join Senator Paul and continue to fight and protect our fourth amendment rights!

More...https://thelibertytorch.wordpress.com/2015/05/31/rand-paul-has-defeated-the-patriot-act/

Call to action...https://www.opencongress.org/people/zipcodelookup

[Chef Ramsay]

GOP senators tear into Paul

The Rand Paul pile-on session began a few hours before sunset Sunday evening.

Behind closed doors in the Senate’s Strom Thurmond Room, Republican senators lashed out at the junior Kentucky Republican’s defiant stance to force the expiration of the PATRIOT Act, a law virtually all of them support. Indiana Sen. Dan Coats’ criticism was perhaps the most biting: He accused the senator of “lying” about the matter in order to raise money for his presidential campaign, according to three people who attended the meeting.

The message may have gotten through to Paul except for one thing: The libertarian-minded senator skipped the hour-long meeting. That only infuriated his colleagues more.

“Anything that goes against anything he believes, he never comes,” Coats said in an interview. “It’s always helpful if you’re in there working to have your position understood, and we all learn a lot and we all try to come to a much better understanding of what we’re trying to do.”

...

More...http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/gop-senators-tear-into-paul-118475.html

[Chef Ramsay]

Rand Paul Takes On ‘Eye Roll’ Caucus to Oppose Data Gathering in Patriot Act

WASHINGTON — With his presidential campaign flagging, Senator Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican known for a strong libertarian bent and a penchant for dramatics, understood on Sunday that he had to make good on his “Stand With Rand” sloganeering.

He needed to block a vote on the Senate floor to extend the vast surveillance authority the government has used since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. It was a task he performed with relish, and he succeeded, at least temporarily.

The week leading up to the clash on the Senate floor was not good for Mr. Paul. The Republican establishment seemingly rose as one in umbrage after he faulted Republican hawks for the birth of the radical Islamic State, or ISIS. C-Span cameras caught one of those hawks, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, rolling his eyes mockingly on the Senate floor as Mr. Paul denounced the post-9/11 national security state.

More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/01/us/politics/rand-paul-takes-on-eye-roll-caucus-to-oppose-data-gathering-in-patriot-act.html

[Chef Ramsay]

Americans Call C-SPAN "In Droves" To Support Rand Paul's Stand Against NSA Spying (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGwZZiCj65E

[Chef Ramsay]

VIDEO - Brit Hume RIPS Rand Paul Paranoid Views, Fox News Sunday Panel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTsOIdMZtNc

This is what was being fed to Fox viewers/republican voters earlier yesterday on their premiere weekly show. Notice that they left the heavy lifting to one main guy that was the stage actor to spread the FUD and misrepresent the situation. "Fair and Balanced" ya know!

[Bit_Happy]

VIDEO - Brit Hume RIPS Rand Paul Paranoid Views, Fox News Sunday Panel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTsOIdMZtNc

This is what was being fed to Fox viewers/republican voters earlier yesterday on their premiere weekly show. Notice that they left the heavy lifting to one main guy that was the stage actor to spread the FUD and misrepresent the situation. "Fair and Balanced" ya know!

I made it through 3 minutes and that is some convincing propaganda. Fox News is deceptive, but they are really good at what they do.
Hopefully, there are enough Americans who are sick of endless war and not enough freedom at home.

[bryant.coleman]

I made it through 3 minutes and that is some convincing propaganda. Fox News is deceptive, but they are really good at what they do.
Hopefully, there are enough Americans who are sick of endless war and not enough freedom at home.

What's worrying is that the Faux News is still having a large loyal viewer-base, which has remained more or less stable over the years. They managed to survive, when most of their competitors are losing viewership share (such as CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, BBC.etc). Right now, Faux News is the mouthpiece of the establishment section of the GOP.

[Bit_Happy]

I made it through 3 minutes and that is some convincing propaganda. Fox News is deceptive, but they are really good at what they do.
Hopefully, there are enough Americans who are sick of endless war and not enough freedom at home.

What's worrying is that the Faux News is still having a large loyal viewer-base, which has remained more or less stable over the years. They managed to survive, when most of their competitors are losing viewership share (such as CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, BBC.etc). Right now, Faux News is the mouthpiece of the establishment section of the GOP.

Despite the tainted family name, Jeb "Establishment" Bush is a fundraising powerhouse. Having someone like him, combined with Fox "News" makes 'kinder, gentler' elections possible.  

Rand Paul will have an uphill climb in all directions, but it's a worthwhile fight.
I remember when Rudy Ghouliani seemed a shoe-in for the nomination, perhaps Jeb will somehow make big mistakes and fall short?

[Chef Ramsay]

EXCLUSIVE — RAND PAUL SLAMS ESTABLISHMENT REPUBLICANS, DECLARES VICTORY OVER NSA, THANKS MATT DRUDGE AS BULK COLLECTION SHUTS DOWN

Late Sunday the National Security Agency (NSA) shut down its bulk data collection program as the PATRIOT Act expired thanks to Paul’s efforts. He tells Breitbart News exclusively that “we’re excited by the fact that the battle has been won.”

“The president has been told in no uncertain terms—and by the end of the week this will be in writing—that he can no longer illegally collect all of Americans’ phone records and keep them in Utah,” Paul said.

I think this is a big rebuke for the president. The courts told him it was illegal and he just kept doing it anyway. I think most Americans, particularly Republicans, don’t trust this president. This is the same president who went after Tea Party groups and went after religious liberty and religious groups. I don’t understand why some of the big government Republicans up here don’t get it because most Republicans I meet across the country don’t want this president to have access to all their phone records.

Paul criticized—without naming names—GOP senators including Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) of Florida, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) of Arizona and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) of South Carolina and other Republicans like Jeb Bush for failing to listen to voters about their concerns with the NSA program.

More...http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/06/01/exclusive-rand-paul-slams-establishment-republicans-declares-victory-over-nsa-thanks-matt-drudge-as-bulk-collection-shuts-down/

As shown in prime territory on the Drudge Report which is the number one political link showcase/blog in the US.

[Bit_Happy]

"...most Republicans I meet across the country don’t want this president to have access to all their phone records."
Maybe it's time to tell the Fox News talking heads how "most Republicans across the country" view this issue, or perhaps they are trained to not pay attention?

[Chef Ramsay]

"...most Republicans I meet across the country don’t want this president to have access to all their phone records."
Maybe it's time to tell the Fox News talking heads how "most Republicans across the country" view this issue, or perhaps they are trained to not pay attention?

And the ones that do are being lied to and fear mongered by Fox 24/7 it seems. I mean, all these folks were beside themselves when the IRS was targeting conservative groups but then this is somehow supposed to be a different thing..? I'm glad that Rand is calling these pyschos out in such a large way.

[Chef Ramsay]

Rand Paul hails expiration of key parts of Patriot Act on the Today Show which is seen by many of those that don't get their news on payed cable shows like Fox, MSNBC et al. Good clip tho there are some digs in there which should seem obvious to the average boob out there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jV32ZG_2lgY

[Chef Ramsay]

Today - How would Rand Paul fix the Patriot Act? | "Glenn Beck Radio Program" - One of largest programs/republican audiences in the country.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsVKSAHkcLk

[Chef Ramsay]

The Patriot Act Is Not Fit for Purpose. Nor Is Its Replacement.

Perhaps nowhere on earth is the will to ignore facts stronger than in America’s Capitol. The ongoing debate over whether to reauthorize three expired provisions of the 2001 Patriot Act is a perfect case in point. And the proposed reforms in the USA Freedom Act hardly fare better.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr and presidential hopeful Senator Marco Rubio have repeated more times than I can count that these Patriot Act provisions are “vital” to preventing another 9/11.

But they are objectively wrong. Last month the Department of Justice Inspector General (DoJ IG) released a partially declassified version of a long overdue Patriot Act compliance report.

Nearly 14 years of using this provision—which has swept up tens of millions of records of innocent Americans in the process—has resulted in zero terrorist plots against America being uncovered, much less disrupted.

And this applies not simply to the telephone metadata program exposed by Edward Snowden two years ago, but to every Sec. 215-related program since the Patriot Act was enacted in October 2001. The DoJ IG report’s findings mirror those of President Obama’s own Review Group on Intelligence and Communications Technologies, which issued its own report over 18 months ago.

http://www.newsweek.com/patriot-act-not-fit-purpose-nor-its-replacement-337970

This Newsweek Piece Echos Paul's Concerns w/o Mentioning him - Rubio linked to McConnell/Burr.