"of portions" is like some pretty awful fine print. Death to the "Patriot" Act!
Some of the patriot act was made permanent by Obama.
Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
41–50 of 99 posts
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
As far as I know he is pro-states rights when it comes to abortion and gay marriage. That is, he supports a weak federal government and the right of states to make these decisions. But either way, the issue of unconstitutional surveillance, and the entrenched interests in favor of it, is by far the single most important issue facing this country. I will be casting my vote with this fact in mind. It is absurd to judge…
I agree. Libertarians are the original Gay Rights and Abortion Rights supporters, going back to the 1970s. When Obama and Hillary were still anti gay-marriage (in 2013, before it became something they couldn't ignore) and when Bill Clinton was signing the "Defense of Marriage Act" along with 3/4 of Congressional Democrats approval... and for two decades even prior to that, Libertarians were in favor of getting the g…
Just because people downvote you doesn't mean they disagree with you, or what you said is not factual. Hyper-political comments tend to get downvoted on HN in general because of the type of toxic comment threads they breed. Having libertarianism vs democrats categorization, gay rights, and abortion in one thread fits that category quite well.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
He's got a shot in the way anyone who declares a candidacy and meets the legal requirements has a shot. If you're talking about odds of getting the nomination (let alone winning the general), then he's got basicly zero chance.
Over a year out, he only trails Clinton by a few points: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/us/ge... Consider that Clinton has been on the national stage for 30+ years, while Rand has only been on it for months. That's way more than just "a shot", that's damn good.
It doesn't matter how he polls against Clinton, if he has no chance of winning the Republican nomination. Gingrich, Santorum, and RuPaul were similarly "a few points" behind Obama in 2012, and they had just as little chance of ever becoming president.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
What harm is there in hearing what they've got to say? If it's bullshit, then it's bullshit. Refusing to take a day to head down and see their presentation isn't a principled stand, it's being concerned with your brand.
If politicians don't care about their brand, they've pursued the wrong career. The visible nature of a visit would be exploited. He'd be painted as guilty by association. Politics is petty... so much so that, in this case, a superPAC-funded negative campaign ad (running 24-7 in battleground states) would say: "Rand Paul visited the NSA 6 times since he's been a Senator, yet he preaches reform. So let's ask you Senato…
>So let's ask you Senator: 'why are you in bed with the NSA?
Despite what HN believes, the NSA isn't a criminal enterprise, and being associated with it isn't a scandal which would tarnish a presidential candidate to any degree worth being concerned about - associating with the NSA is part of a senator's job. It would definitely be a president's job.
What he should be concerned about is giving the appearance of making principled stands based on willful ignorance. If he intends to run the country, he can't simply pretend the parts of the government he doesn't like don't exist.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
Because visiting the NSA would enlighten him in any way? Critics of the organization would likely be granted zero visibility into their decision making process. Just look how they have treated their own high level employees who voiced concern ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Andrews_Drake ). It would be a waste of a day. Maybe he could have met with Clapper - the man that perjured himself before Congress. Or Kei…
What harm is there in hearing what they've got to say? If it's bullshit, then it's bullshit. Refusing to take a day to head down and see their presentation isn't a principled stand, it's being concerned with your brand.
> What harm is there in hearing what they've got to say?
Having the justification for a program of this nature be a secret is not compatible with democracy. So if they have something to say they should tell it to The Washington Post.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#46Anyone remember a certain president who was supposed to shut down guatanamo within a few months within being in office? This has the same 'smell' to it ...
He was also supposed to protect whistleblowers. I had the same thought as you when I read the title...
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#47Anyone remember a certain president who was supposed to shut down guatanamo within a few months within being in office? This has the same 'smell' to it ...
He is stating intent to do a specific thing on a specific day in the very near future (tomorrow) without precondition or contingency on outcome of any other events. This is not even remotely the same thing as "if I am elected I will..."
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
He represents a certain ideological constituency which will sustain his campaign as a means of getting their ideas heard. If the US were a parliamentary system, then he and his ideological fellows could form a party that would have a decent shot at getting enough votes to form a coalition-of-legislators with another larger party. The US is however not a parliamentary system so coalition-building happens at the voter…
afarrell-- in the early days of the 1992 campaign I felt exactly the way you do, about Bill Clinton. I was a Paul Tsongas supporter then. We all know how that turned out. After losing twice in a row, the Republicans know they have to change. It's still early and the old style christian-conservative out-dated positions on foreign policy, "law and order" etc people are still around, but it's clear they are on the out.…
> After losing twice in a row, the Republicans know they have to change.
Are you sure? Incumbents rarely lose, and it was a very close election. Couple that with the wave the Republicans had in the midterm elections (especially in a few states that typically go blue), I could see the Republican party just thinking it's their turn now. If anything the Republicans would want to avoid a split caused by alienating their base.
I should note that I am not a Christian conservative, just doing some backseat political analysis.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
As far as I know he is pro-states rights when it comes to abortion and gay marriage. That is, he supports a weak federal government and the right of states to make these decisions. But either way, the issue of unconstitutional surveillance, and the entrenched interests in favor of it, is by far the single most important issue facing this country. I will be casting my vote with this fact in mind. It is absurd to judge…
I agree. Libertarians are the original Gay Rights and Abortion Rights supporters, going back to the 1970s. When Obama and Hillary were still anti gay-marriage (in 2013, before it became something they couldn't ignore) and when Bill Clinton was signing the "Defense of Marriage Act" along with 3/4 of Congressional Democrats approval... and for two decades even prior to that, Libertarians were in favor of getting the g…
Gay Marriage Advocates tend to be skittish of embracing poly marriage because that would make them look more extreme. If they can show that their position is not the most extreme one out there, then they have a better chance of seeing their agenda actually become reality. The funny thing is that while poly marriage advocates might not like that right now, in the long run it might actually help them because it will probably speed up the necessary changes.
Re: Rand Paul: 'I will force the expiration' of portions of Patriot Act
#50Earlier quoted context omitted.
If politicians don't care about their brand, they've pursued the wrong career. The visible nature of a visit would be exploited. He'd be painted as guilty by association. Politics is petty... so much so that, in this case, a superPAC-funded negative campaign ad (running 24-7 in battleground states) would say: "Rand Paul visited the NSA 6 times since he's been a Senator, yet he preaches reform. So let's ask you Senato…
>So let's ask you Senator: 'why are you in bed with the NSA? Despite what HN believes, the NSA isn't a criminal enterprise, and being associated with it isn't a scandal which would tarnish a presidential candidate to any degree worth being concerned about - associating with the NSA is part of a senator's job. It would definitely be a president's job. What he should be concerned about is giving the appearance of makin…
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