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Ad will collapse in seconds CLOSE /the national interest February 22, 2017 02/22/2017 9:11 a.m. By Jonathan Chait

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The Republican Party has largely decided to cover for Donald Trumps massive corruption, grotesque lies, and manifest unfitness for office. But few of them have gone quite so far, or quite so cravenly, as Rand Paul. The junior senator from Kentucky, and onetime hope of the extremely short-lived libertarian moment in American politics, has not only attached himself to Trump, but is actively snuffing out whatever faint stirrings of opposition his colleagues can muster.

While the GOP Congress has ignored the presidents self-enrichment, refusal to disclose his tax returns, and clear violations of the Constitutions Emoluments Clause, some have expressed willingness to investigate his opaque ties to Russia. Paul is not one of them. And not only does he see no need for investigation on Russia, Paul has staked out a stance against any investigations, period, on the brutally frank grounds that it would impair the partys legislative agenda. I just dont think its useful to be doing investigation after investigation, particularly of your own party, he told Kilmeade and Friends. Well never even get started with doing the things we need to do, like repealing Obamacare, if were spending our whole time having Republicans investigate Republicans.

Many Republicans have made piecemeal excuses not to exercise the oversight function. Only Paul has elevated the practice of looking away from the crimes of the Executive branch to an actual principle of governance.

John McCain has staked out the most independent position, most recently likening Trumps description of the media as enemies of the people to the words of a dictator. Paul is having none of it. Last weekend, Paul appeared on CNN to deliver a defense of Trump so fulsome that Breitbart has published it in its entirety. After repeatedly swatting away concerns about the president, Paul explained that McCains criticism of Trumps authoritarian ravings were nothing but a cover for his ideological vendetta:

Obviously Paul has longstanding disagreements with McCain on foreign policy. But the subject of this rant was not foreign policy; it was Trumps creepy, Stalinesque dismissal of the news media as a class enemy, which Paul is excusing by changing the subject to other issues. Every authoritarian requires spineless lackeys who will attack his dissidents. In Trumps Republican Party, the authoritarians best friend is the libertarian.

Update: Paul appeared on Fox & Friends to respond to this. A smirking Steve Doocey asked, So, New York Magazine says youre Trumps most loyal stooge because, while other members of your party have some opposition to Mr. Trump, you seem to want to actually advance his agenda. Presented with a question purporting to dismiss the premise of this piece, but actually confirming it instead, Paul made two defenses:

1. The haters are gonna hate, what are you gonna do? This ignores the possibility that abandoning his blanket opposition to any investigation of Trumps scandals is a thing he could do.

2. Im probably one of the most independent Senators on the Hill I was the only Republican that voted against a budget that would have added $9 trillion in new debt. So Im hardly someone whos afraid to tout the party line.

It is true that Paul cast a symbolic vote against the budget, whose passage was not in doubt. The degree to which this message vote balances out his opposition to conducting any oversight whatsoever on the Executive Branch is for the reader to decide. I will note that Im hardly someone whos afraid to tout the party line may be a case where Paul stated what he is thinking in his head rather than what he meant to say out loud.

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This may be the lowlight of a week that also saw him make an unhinged phone call to a critic that got recorded and published.

Continued here:
Fox News Congratulates Rand Paul For Being Trump's Stooge - New York Magazine

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul met this weekwith a dozen National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) members at The Flynn Group, NFIB member business in Louisville, to talk about plans to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, the federal healthcare law commonly known as Obamacare.

After the event, Senator Paul said, I appreciated the opportunity provided by the NFIB to speak with some of Louisvilles small business owners today about the impact of the current healthcare system on their businesses. I enjoyed answering their questions about my own Obamacare Replacement Act, learning more about the challenges they face in regards to healthcare costs, and discussing potential solutions to ensure Kentuckys businesses can thrive.

He also talked about the work NFIB does on behalf of its members in Washington, D.C.

Tom Underwood, state director of NFIB, said repealing and replacing the healthcare law is a priority for small business owners.

Small business is increasingly concerned about the existing health insurance market that has been absolutely devastated by Obamacare, Underwood said. Small businesses here and across the country have borne the brunt of the higher costs and burdensome regulations associated with Obamacare.

On behalf of our members, I want to thank Senator Paul for educating us about his plan for fixing the healthcare system, Underwood said. The swift action on the part of a newly elected Congress to begin the process of repealing this burdensome mandate is heartening.

NFIB is Americas leading small business association, promoting & protecting the right of our members to own, operate and grow their businesses. They areheadquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, with offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals.

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Dr. Rand Paul speaks to small business owners about health care - Outbreak News Today

Sen. Rand Paul responded this morning after being branded by New York magazine as the "most loyal stooge" of President Donald Trump.

In an article yesterday,Jonathan Chait wrote that Paul has "attached himself to Trump" and refused to support an investigation into Trump's alleged ties to Russia.

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Paul said on "Fox & Friends" that the evidence is actually "quite to the contrary," arguing that he's one of the most independent senators in D.C., working with Democrats and Republicans.

"Haters are gonna hate. ... If I like what the president is doing - and I think a lot of what he's doing is good - I'm happy to support it. I'm not embarrassed to support conservative policies," said the Kentucky Republican, noting that he was the only Republican senator to oppose the budget.

The conversation then turned to the GOP effort to repeal and replace ObamaCare, including agreeing on a plan to put forward. Steve Doocy asked about criticism from the left and right about the delay from Republicans in putting forward a new plan.

Charles Krauthammer said last night that the angry response at GOP lawmakers' town hall events is coming from the uncertainty and fear by Americans that they'll lose their health insurance.

Paul said he has put forward a plan and most of the aspects have been around for 20-30 years. He said at least half of his replacement plan comes from prior legislation put forth by former Rep. Tom Price, who is now Health and Human Services Secretary.

He said under his plan, individuals would be allowed to join an insurance "association," creating less expensive insurance and preventing them from being dropped from their coverage.

Watch the interview above and read more about Paul's proposal, here.

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Rand Paul Fires Back After Being Called Trump's 'Most Loyal ... - Fox News Insider

Billy Aouste Billy Aouste is the new media specialist for The Heartland Institute. He is responsible for many projects at Heartland, including producing and managing social media outreach; pitching op-eds to print and digital publications; producing Heartland's weekly email; editing Heartlands blog, the Freedom Pub; and tracking Heartland experts media hits.

Aouste is a graduate from DePaul University with a BA in Political Science. While studying he participated in the Fund for American Studies program in Washington D.C. Prior to joining Heartland in 2015, he was a staff intern on Bruce Rauners successful Illinois gubernatorial campaign. Aouste resides in Hainseville, Illinois.

By: Barry Poulson

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was the only legislator to vote against Senate Concurrent Resolution 3, which sets the framework for budget negotiations in the 115th Congress. His vote was dismissed as an alleged example of libertarian extremism, but I suggest this vote is a measure of the extent to which legislators have lost touch with their constituents.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 proposes to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) without changes to other parts of the budget. The truly surprising (and disappointing) part of the legislation is it exempts future health care legislation replacing the ACA from current budget rules meant to impose fiscal discipline. In other words, although the legislation would repeal ACA, it would also allow the government to continue spending money at ACA-imposed levels. Because we can expect health care spending to grow at even higher rates than those projected by the Congressional Budget Office, this legislation is particularly problematic.

Even more shocking is Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 assumes business as usual in future budget negotiations. Total spending is projected to grow from $3.2 trillion to $4.9 trillion over the next decade. Annual deficits will roughly double to more than $1 trillion; and total debt will increase from $20 trillion to $29 trillion.

In a press release, Paul explained his no vote on Senate Concurrent Resolution 3:

As a physician, I cannot wait to repeal Obamacare and replace it with a health care system that relies on freedom to provide quality, comprehensive, and affordable care. But putting nearly $10 trillion more in debt on the American peoples backs through a budget that never balances is not the way to get there. It is the exact opposite of the change Republicans promised, and I cannot support it, even as a placeholder.

In January, Paul introduced S. 222, the Obamacare Replacement Act, which would repeal Obamacare and balance the budget by 2024. In this legislation, Paul calls for fundamental reforms of Medicare and Medicaid, significantly reducing the cost of these entitlement programs. There is no question such reforms are essential to address the current federal fiscal crisis. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates rising health care costs are the single most important cause of the projected increase in deficits and debt in coming decades.

Unfortunately, the prospects for passage of the health care reforms proposed by Paul are not good. The universal support of Senate Concurrent Resolution 3, with Paul the lone dissenter, suggests legislators are not willing to enact the fundamental reforms in Medicare and Medicaid required to balance the budget.

Nor should we look to Trump for leadership on this issue. He has made it clear entitlement reform is not on his agenda, stating, A balanced budget is fine, but sometimes you have to fuel the well in order to really get the economy going. Paul Krugman and the Neo-Keynesians must be screaming bloody murder over Trumps theft of their mantra.

For those of us expecting more from the 115th Congress, passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 is a bitter pill to swallow. As I argued in Capitulation before the first shots are fired, published February2, Republicans in Congress have chosen a budget process likely to result in deficits and debt. This is a familiar story that we have witnessed for decades. For example, in 2016, Republicans in the House drafted a concurrent resolution calling for significant reductions in federal spending, which they said would help balance the budget, over the next decade. But later in the year, they approved budgets calling for significant increases in spending.

In 2016 alone, legislators proposed 192 bills to address budget deficits and the national debt. Pauls bill, the Cut Cap and Balance Act of 2015, was one of only a dozen of these bills to be reported out of committee, and like other similar measures, it was rejected by his fellow members of Congress on both sides of the aisle. On second thought, perhaps it is not surprising Paul was the only legislator to vote in opposition of Senate Concurrent Resolution 3; supporting a balanced budget in the face of legislative apathy is a losing proposition.

Despite his failures to get significant reforms passed in Congress, it is Paul, not his colleagues, who is in touch with his constituents. Nationwide polls conducted on behalf of the Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force, of which I am a founding member, reveal 83 percent of citizens support a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

If Paul is the only legislator in the Senate willing to stand up for a balanced budget when the chips are down, perhaps it is time for citizens to look for an alternative solution to the federal fiscal crisis. Twenty-eight state legislatures have now passed resolutions proposing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. Only 34 states are needed to call an Article V convention, which, given the current restraints in Washington, D.C., may be a better option than waiting for Congress or the president to act.

Barry W. Poulson (think@heartland.org) is emeritus professor of economics at the University of Colorado and a founding member of the Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force.

[Originally Published at American Thinker]

Guest Article: On Spending, Is Rand Paul the Last Man Standing? was last modified: February 21st, 2017 by Billy Aouste

The rest is here:
Guest Article: On Spending, Is Rand Paul the Last Man Standing ... - Somewhat Reasonable - Heartland Institute (blog)

Throughout the election cycle, Donald Trump often clashed with members of his own political party over policy and tactics. A number of proposals by the controversial then-candidate were unsettling, and the tactics would put career politicians in uncomfortable positions. When Trump was a candidate, it was easier for politicians to disavow him. Believing he was never going to win made it easy to keep him at a distance. Now that hes President, Republican politicians have been forced to come up to bat and play ball for Team Trump.

Some, like failed presidential candidate Senator John McCain, refuse to work with President Trump. What is Senator McCains issue with the President?

President Trump himself has earned a great deal of criticism for attacking critical news outlets and labeling them as being enemies of the American people. Journalists, anchors, and politicians all lined up to parrot shallow lines about the First Amendment being under attack and how a free, independent press is critical to democracy. There has been no shortage in the politicking and hyperbole.

Senator McCain himself took issue with the criticism and even implied President Trump wanted to be a dictator.

For all the concerns about uncomfortable tactics, Senator Paul believes theres another issue in play and that the ongoing feud is personal. In a recent interview, the Kentucky United States Senator slammed his colleagues repeated criticisms of the President. The issue for McCain, Senator Paul alleges, is the difference in foreign policy opinion.

As a candidate, President Trump lashed out at the Bush family and criticized former President George W. Bush over the Iraq War. He stood up against regime change and nation building as part of his overall America First agenda. This is in direct contrast to Senator McCains career of ambitiously supporting war and wanting to involve the United States military in any conflict the government can get its hands on.

Is Senator Paul correct?

President Trump isnt without his own problems, but the constant attacks by Senator McCain appear personal, to a degree. Senator McCain has been a strong advocate for the military-industrial complex over the years. He has been a strong supporter of the endless War on Terrorism, a ploy to keep the war state alive. Along the way, he has also been a strong advocate for the invasion and occupation of Iraq, which cost the United States massively in more ways than one.

The President, on the other hand, has been critical of the Bush Administration, the War on Terrorism, and the Iraq conflict. The War On Terrorism has no clear objective and threatens to keep the United States forever engaged in foreign conflicts abroad, including in Iraq.

Democratic and Republican Presidents have long been apart of the war problem in America, with foreign aggression being a bipartisan objective. For decades, regime change both overt and covert has worsened global politics. Senator Rand Paul, who himself has been a consistent critic of war, is right to note Senator John McCains top priority is strengthening the war state.

Excerpt from:
Senator Rand Paul says America is lucky warmonger John McCain ... - The Liberty Conservative