Archive for the ‘Rand Paul’ Category

Sen. Rand Paul: ‘Dr. Fauci Is Disingenuous. He Is Conflicted.’ – Reason

Sen. Rand Paul (RKy.) responded to the recent criticism he received from former White House coronavirus czar Anthony Fauci. In a new documentary, Fauci accused Paul of misrepresenting the science on U.S.-funded gain-of-function research, which Fauci says could not have caused the COVID-19 pandemic.

Paul disagreed.

"He's arguing a straw man argument," said Paul in an interview onRising, the show I host for The Hill. "We have never argued that anything that's been published by the Wuhan lab became COVID-19. What we are arguing is that the lab in Wuhan has over 100 coronaviruses that they have manipulated in a lab and have not published."

Federal health advisers have not been sufficiently forthcoming about the extent of the grants authorized by the National Institute of Health (NIH) for research in Wuhan, China, according to Paul.

"Dr. Fauci is disingenuous. He is conflicted," said Paul. "The reason he is conflicted is that if this came from a lab that he funded, he shares culpability. He's been trying to cover this up from the beginning. There's a great deal of information that from January of 2020, in the early days, a cover-up began, and it continued for Fauci's entire term in office."

Paul also expressed frustration that the Senate did not act on his amendment to repeal the 2001 authorization of military force that undergirds the war on terror. The vote failed Wednesday night.

"The bill before us will repeal the Iraqi resolution, the one that says we are authorized to fight against Saddam Hussein's Iraq," said Paul. "The absurdity is that war's been over for 20 years, that resolution is very specific to Hussein, and we still can't get some of these neocons to vote for it."

To stop the United States' forever wars, Congress must repeal the "forever authorizations," added Paul.

Watch the full interview below.

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Sen. Rand Paul: 'Dr. Fauci Is Disingenuous. He Is Conflicted.' - Reason

Sen. Rand Paul says Manhattan DA leading Trump investigation … – USA TODAY

As Trump indictment lingers, New York City officials prep for protests

GOP leaders have urged against protests outside of the Manhattan district attorney's office ahead of a possible indictment of Donald Trump.

Scott L. Hall, Patrick Colson-Price and Cody Godwin, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said the Manhattan district attorney leading theinvestigation into former President Donald Trump's alleged hush-money payments should "be put in jail."

Paul's comments came in a tweet Tuesday and follows the former president's prediction that he would be indictedfor his alleged rolein making a $130,000payment to adult film actressStormy Daniels just before the 2016 presidential election to silence her about an affair with him.

"A Trump indictment would be a disgusting abuse of power," Paul said in the tweet.

The Kentucky senator did not provide any further details or context on the tweet, and Trump had not been formally indicted by the district attorney's office as of Tuesday afternoon.

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Three Republican House committee chairs have called on the Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, to testify about the probe into Trump's payments and the possible charges.The district attorneys office in Manhattan started investigating Trump in 2018, four years before Bragg took office.

Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio, head of the Judiciary Committee;James Comer of Kentucky, head of the Oversight and Accountability Committee;andBryan Steil of Wisconsin, head of the Administration Committee,sent a letter to Bragg saying his actions could "erode confidence in the evenhanded application of justice."

You are reportedly about to engage in an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority: the indictment of a former President of the United States and current declared candidate for that office, the lawmakers wrote in the letter."In light of the serious consequences of your actions, we expect that you will testify about what plainly appears to be a politically motivated prosecutorial decision."

They set a March 23 deadline for Bragg to testify.

More: What is an indictment? Why would Trump get arrested? Here's what we know about the process

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, thetop Democrat on the oversight committee, said the Republicanchairs acted outside their powers to influence a pending criminal investigation at the state level.

The Republicans' letter to the Manhattan District Attorney represents an astonishing and unprecedented abuse of power as they attempt to use Congressional resources to interfere in an ongoing criminal investigation at another level of government and obstruct a possible criminal indictment," he said in a statement.

New York Rep. Jerry Nadler, top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, saidRepublicans "tie themselves in knots" protectingthe former president.

"Jim Jordan and Kevin McCarthy: hands off NYC & quit meddling in ongoing investigations," he tweeted.

Contributing: Bart Jansen

Opinion: Donald Trump wants you to think he's constantly the victim. Maybe he's just a bad dude.

Opinion: Will Trump get arrested? Between sketchy witnesses and the law, case comes up short.

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Sen. Rand Paul says Manhattan DA leading Trump investigation ... - USA TODAY

Rand Paul calls for DA Alvin Bragg to be jailed for disgusting abuse of power in Trump probe – New York Post

News

By Victor Nava

March 21, 2023 | 8:42pm

Sen. Rand Paul ripped into Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Tuesday over his handling of the criminal investigation into Donald Trump that might lead to the former president being indicted.

A Trump indictment would be a disgusting abuse of power. The DA should be put in jail, Paul (R-Ky.) wrote in a scathing tweet on Tuesday.

Paul is the latest Republican to accuse Bragg of leading a politically motivated investigation into the 76-year-old former president, who is accused of directing a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016 in exchange for her silence about an alleged 2006 affair.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) wrote to the Democratic Manhattan DA on Monday calling his plans to charge Trump an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority.

The two lawmakers stopped short of Pauls demand that Bragg be jailed, but asked the prosecutor to hand over documents and testify about what plainly appears to be a politically motivated prosecution of the ex commander-in-chief.

Trump himself, who announced over the weekend that he expected to be arrested on Tuesday, has accused Bragg of Prosecutorial Misconduct and Interference with an Election. Last November, Trump declared that he would be running for president again in 2024.

Investigate the Investigators! the former president wrote in a Truth Social post on Sunday.

Even Trumps top potential 2024 GOP presidential primary rival has criticized Bragg for his efforts to charge the former president.

While indicating that he wouldnt get involved in any way, Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday called Bragg a [George] Soros-funded prosecutor that is using the Manhattan DAs office to impose a political agenda.

He, like other Soros-funded prosecutors, they weaponize their office to impose a political agenda on society at the expense of the rule of law and public safety, DeSantis told reporters during a news conference on Monday.

DeSantis went on to call Bragg and other Soros-backed district attorneys a menace to society for their soft-on-crime policies.

Pauls tweet Tuesday wasnt the first time hes singled out Bragg on social media.

In July 2022, the senator shared a news report on Braggs offices decision to go easy on a 16-year-old with three prior felony arrests after the teen allegedly assaulted a police officer who confronted him for not paying his subway fare.

Democrat DA allows a violent attack on a cop to go unpunished Paul said in the tweet, referring to Bragg.

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Rand Paul calls for DA Alvin Bragg to be jailed for disgusting abuse of power in Trump probe - New York Post

Dr. Rand Paul Continues Efforts to Return War Powers to Congress … – Senator Rand Paul

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:March 21, 2023Contact:Press_Paul@paul.senate.gov,202-224-4343

WASHINGTON, D.C. Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, continued his longtime efforts to return war making powers to Congress by introducing an amendment to repeal the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF).

As we vote to repeal the 1991 and 2002 AUMFs, we need to take the additional step of also repealing the Authorization for the war in Afghanistan. The 2001 authorization to bring the 9/11 terrorists to justice was warranted, but like the Iraq war, the Afghan war has long ago ended yet its authorization remains on the books, said Dr. Paul. War is sometimes necessary, but going to war should not be the decision of one person. Ending congressional authorization for the Gulf war, Iraq war and Afghanistan war returns the war power to the American people and their representatives.

Dr. Pauls amendment would formally end the authorization for the Afghanistan war nearly 22 years after the AUMF was first passed. It would sunset the 2001 AUMF after six months, during which time Congress can debate exactly where and how to authorize future force.

The amendment was introduced ahead of the Senate voting on bipartisan legislation to repeal the 1991 and 2002 AUMFs, formally ending the Gulf and Iraq wars, which Dr. Paul cosponsored.

Background:

Recently, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which Dr. Paul is a member of, debated legislation to repeal the 1991 and 2002 AUMFs, it was approved out of committee by a vote of 13-8.

Dr. Paul continues to be a leading voice in Congress on the need to repeal outdated AUMFs to prevent potential misuse by the executive branch. He has also raised concerns over the use of military force without congressional authorization.

Ahead of introducing his amendment, Dr. Paul wrote an op-ed which was published by Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, you can read it HERE. Dr. Paul also recorded remarks on his amendment which can be viewed HERE.

You can read Dr. Pauls amendment in its entirety HERE.

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Dr. Rand Paul Continues Efforts to Return War Powers to Congress ... - Senator Rand Paul

Sen. Rand Paul serves as top Republican on Homeland Security … – Spectrum News 1

Correction: A previous version of this story misspelled Associate Professor Stephen Voss name. The error has been corrected. (March 22, 2023)

WASHINGTON Sen. Rand Paul is the top-ranking Republican on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Senates primary oversight group. The committees responsibilities include studying the efficiency, economy, and effectiveness of all agencies and departments of the federal government.

Oversight is an important job, Paul said in an interview with Spectrum News.

Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., serves as the partys oversight lead in the House of Representatives. Since Republicans gained control of the House in January, Comer gets to set the agenda there. Democrats remain in control in the Senate.

Im essentially the ranking member of the equivalent committee on our side, Paul explained. In my particular instance, I have to convince Democrats to be interested in any of this because most of the power goes to the majority party.

Pauls seat was one of the first races called on Election Night in November and he spoke confidently about the red wave of support for Republicans. During his acceptance speech, he detailed what topics he would take on if he became chairman of a committee.

Sometimes your predictions arent right, Paul said. In the Senate race we have, you know, three or four states each time that are very, very close and we didnt win them.

When it comes to his goals as ranking member, Paul said Republicans will try to put a focus on the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, Paul made lots of headlines sparring at committee hearings with Dr. Anthony Fauci, who at the time was the nations top infectious disease expert.

He [Paul] started injecting himself into controversial national issues even while he was running for his first election to take his Senate seat, said Stephen Voss with the Department of Politics at the University of Kentucky. He has continued, for the most part, to be that sort of flashpoint, controversial warrior type of member of Congress.

During a recent Homeland Security Committee meeting, Paul tried to submit an amendment that would punish fire departments that required COVID-19 vaccinations by making them ineligible for federal grants.

Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the chairman of the committee decided to override Pauls amendment and avoid a vote.

If this is the way you are going to run the committee, I would suggest Republicans leave, Paul said to the group. I dont see why we should stick around.

This interaction led Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., to address both leaders asking them to take a couple of minutes to lower the temperature.

Theres no need for us to turn this committee hearing into a partisan, ugly place like weve seen in other committees, Sinema said.

Paul later walked out of the committee meeting. Peters told reporters he hopes to find common ground with Paul in the future which Paul will need in order to get things accomplished while serving in the minority.

Also, at the top of Pauls list to focus on is reducing what he calls government waste. Paul, a libertarian-leaning lawmaker, started holding press conferences with a group of other Republicans who call themselves the Breakfast Club late last term. The group generally feels the partys leadership in the Senate is not conservative enough when it comes to spending.

Its a group that feels like we need to do more about spending and debt. Its the primary thing that brings us together, said Paul. In some of the recent battles, such as the end of the year omnibus spending, one its wrong to lump all the spending together in one bill. Its wrong to put it up against a deadline like Christmas and just force it through.

Another member of the Breakfast Club is Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., Scott challenged Kentuckys senior senator, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in the race for leader at the beginning of the term. In a private vote, McConnell was re-elected by senate Republicans in a 37-10 vote.

Sometimes being the thorn in the side of your party leaders can result in influence, explained Voss. But, its a dangerous game. Much of the power in Congress results from you helping people when the need it and then they turn around and reciprocate.

In addition to serving as ranking member of Homeland Security, Paul serves on the Foreign Relations Committee, the Health, Labor and Pensions Committee and the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee this term.

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Sen. Rand Paul serves as top Republican on Homeland Security ... - Spectrum News 1