Rand Paul blows off my question
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Rand Paul blows off my question - Video
Story highlights Rand Paul commemorates MLK day with an op-ed on the need to bridge the "two Americas" The Kentucky Republicans has been active in reaching out to minorities ahead of his likely presidential bid
In an op-ed for TIME the Kentucky Republican, who's made racial politics a centerpiece in his pre-presidential campaign, referenced a 1967 speech by King on the "two starkly different American experiences" between blacks and whites.
Citing King's rhetoric, Paul added that "the uneasy coexistence of the two Americas is brought to bear by the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown."
Paul said that his trips last year to urban areas like Detroit, Atlanta and Chicago, as well as to Ferguson, Missouri, have highlighted what he often calls "an undercurrent of unease," referring to racial tension that saw renewed attention last year after Brown and Garner were killed by white police officers.
Fact-checking Rand Paul's disability claims
Traveling to places with nontraditional GOP voters has been part of Paul's strategy to brand himself as a Republican willing to expand the party's appeal. He's been aggressive in working with Democrats to push criminal justice reform and calling for demilitarization of police forces.
"We need to notice and be aware of the injustices embedded in our criminal system," he said in the op-ed, though noting that he believes "most police are conscientious and want only to provide safety for us."
"The blame," he continued, "should be directed to the laws and the politicians who order police into untenable positions, that insist on 'taking down' someone for selling a couple of untaxed cigarettes."
On Monday, Paul is scheduled to appear on an MTV special commemorating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
"I am optimistic, but peace will only come when those of us who have enjoyed the American Dream become more aware of those who are missing out on the Dream," he wrote in the op-ed. "The future of our country will be secure when we break down the wall that separates us from 'the other America.'"
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On MLK day, Rand Paul laments 'uneasy coexistence of the ...
Travel obligations kept me from addressing until now the attack on Social Security disability recipients made last week by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., but it was too outstandingly ignorant and cynical to go unanswered.
Long story short: If Paul's words truly represent the Republican Party's approach to Social Security, then not just the disabled but everyone else with an interest in the program--taxpayers, retirees and their survivors and dependents--should start panicking now. We reported on the first shot fired at Social Security by the new GOP Congress here. Paul has now raised the stakes.
Here are his words, delivered to an appreciative audience on Wednesday in the key presidential primary state of New Hampshire:
"The thing is that all of these programs, theres always somebody whos deserving, everybody in this room knows somebody whos gaming the system. I tell people that if you look like me and you hop out of your truck, you shouldnt be getting a disability check.Over half the people on disability are either anxious or their back hurts. Join the club.Who doesnt get up a little anxious for work every day and their back hurts? Everyone over 40 has a back pain."
Paul thus associates himself with a slander of disability recipients favored by Republican conservatives abetted by ill-informed journalists, who include the staffs of NPR and "60 Minutes." (We reported earlier on the latter's abandonment of journalistic standards in its disability coverage.
Leaving aside Paul's contempt for people suffering from these conditions ("Join the club"), his numbers are flagrantly wrong. The actual figures can be found in this table from the Social Security Administration. Start with "anxiety": The Social Security Administration classifies anxiety as a subset of mental disorders and places it in the catch-all category of "other," which constitute a total of 3.9% of all disability claims--and that's all otherwise unclassified mental disorders, not just anxiety.
Social Security doesn't regard anxiety as lightly as Paul. According to its definitions, which can be found here, the category includes post-traumatic stress syndrome and phobias or compulsions that result in "marked difficulties" with working or living in society, or "complete inability to function independently outside the area of one's home." Paul wants his audience to think of "anxiety" as the mild sense of dread you might experience when contemplating a bad day at work, or perhaps an unpleasant visit with your family. He's lying about it.
As for back pain, no one gets disability for the kind of mild stiffness that Bayer aspirin claims to relieve in its TV ads. That's the condition Paul tries to evoke by saying "everyone over 40 has a back pain." But he shows no empathy whatsoever for the real sufferers of this condition--those who get it not from laboring in a physician's office or in Congress, as Paul has, but from years of hard physical toil or workplace injury.
Social Security classifies back pain as a "disease of the musculoskeletal system." Some 30.5% of disabled workers fell into this category in 2013, according to the latest available figures. But that category covers a lot more than "back pain." It also comprises amputations, joint failures, leg and arm fractures, spine disorders and burns.
These are the official figures; no one has documented any others. Paul didn't cite a single source for his assertion that "over half the people on disability are either anxious or their back hurts," so it's reasonable to conclude that he has no sources. But that's all right, because his goal isn't to offer a considered analysis of the pressures facing Social Security in general or its disability component in particular, but to rationalize an attack on the whole program by ridiculing disability recipients as a step toward legislating their benefits out of the system. Fabricated statistics are more than useful for that purpose.
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Rand Paul steps up the GOP attack on Social Security
Story highlights Rand Paul commemorates MLK day with an op-ed on the need to bridge the "two Americas" The Kentucky Republicans has been active in reaching out to minorities ahead of his likely presidential bid
In an op-ed for TIME the Kentucky Republican, who's made racial politics a centerpiece in his pre-presidential campaign, referenced a 1967 speech by King on the "two starkly different American experiences" between blacks and whites.
Citing King's rhetoric, Paul added that "the uneasy coexistence of the two Americas is brought to bear by the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown."
Paul said that his trips last year to urban areas like Detroit, Atlanta and Chicago, as well as to Ferguson, Missouri, have highlighted what he often calls "an undercurrent of unease," referring to racial tension that saw renewed attention last year after Brown and Garner were killed by white police officers.
Fact-checking Rand Paul's disability claims
Traveling to places with nontraditional GOP voters has been part of Paul's strategy to brand himself as a Republican willing to expand the party's appeal. He's been aggressive in working with Democrats to push criminal justice reform and calling for demilitarization of police forces.
"We need to notice and be aware of the injustices embedded in our criminal system," he said in the op-ed, though noting that he believes "most police are conscientious and want only to provide safety for us."
"The blame," he continued, "should be directed to the laws and the politicians who order police into untenable positions, that insist on 'taking down' someone for selling a couple of untaxed cigarettes."
On Monday, Paul is scheduled to appear on an MTV special commemorating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
"I am optimistic, but peace will only come when those of us who have enjoyed the American Dream become more aware of those who are missing out on the Dream," he wrote in the op-ed. "The future of our country will be secure when we break down the wall that separates us from 'the other America.'"
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On MLK day, Paul laments 'uneasy coexistence of the two Americas'
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul appeared in a black and white TV spot for MTV on Monday, calling for a unified America in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. (MTV) more >
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul appeared in a black and white TV ad for MTV on Monday, calling for a unified America in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.
I think peace will come when those of us who have enjoyed the American Dream become aware of those who are missing out on the dream, the Kentucky Republican says in the ad.
The future of our country will be secure when we break down the wall that separates us from the other America, Mr. Paul says. Lets wish Martin Luther King a happy birthday by uniting the two Americas into one America that includes justice for one and justice for all.
MTV is programming in black and white on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to encourage people to talk about race in America.
The retro-look programs will air for 12 hours and include statements from politicians, such as Mr. Paul, Rep. John Lewis and Sen. Cory Booker, and celebrities, including Kendrick Lamar, Big Sean, Jordin Sparks, Pete Wentz and actor David Oyelowo, who played the role of Dr. King in Selma, The Associated Press reported.
The device of turning us black and white is going to be really visually a jolt to say, you know what, there are differences and if we are going to ever get to a freer, more equal society, the best thing we can begin to do is talk about them, MTV President Stephen Friedman said.
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Rand Paul talks race on MTV: 'Break down the wall that separates us'