Rand Paul Seeking The Bottom

Long time readers to this blog know I have no warmth for Ron Paul or his son Rand. To them government is something just to dismantle and scorn. They always like to make it seem they are so erudite and as such the people should hush, listen, and learn as they tell the story of how once upon a time our nation was stolen from us by unconstitutional means. There is always the sense that black helicopters are lurking just over the horizon.

I follow those who I find adrift from reality but seek public office. (Yes, my days are busy.) As such I am following the campaign of Rand Paul in his quest for the White House.

My first thought on the day he entered the contest is the same I have today.  What is he doing in the Republican Party?

Paul does not agree with Republicans on many matters, such as foreign and military policy, and they do not think him worthy of their time.   There seems no one willing to quench Paul’s thirst which results from Potomac Fever.

The latest story to make the news sums up the pitfalls that is now the Paul campaign.

Something is awry at the Rand Paul campaign. The main super PAC supporting his presidential bid raised just $3.1 million in the first half of 2015, about $100 million less than Right to Rise, a super PAC backing Jeb Bush. In fact, the pro-Paul group’s fundraising total was lower than that of every other major super PAC that is backing a Republican candidate and has announced its totals. On Sunday, a new NBC News/Marist poll showed support for the Kentucky Republican declining to just 4 percent in New Hampshire (compared with 14 percent in February).

The Des Moines Register and Quinnipiac University polls found that Paul’s net favorability had dropped in Iowa by 18 and 14 percentage points, respectively, compared with the beginning of the year. In New Hampshire, Paul’s net favorability rating has sunk by 15 percentage points according to the University of New Hampshire and 11 percentage points according to Suffolk University.

Rand Paul Wants Change To Election Process In Kentucky For His Benefit

At the end of the day, in spite of all the big talk that libertarians spew, they are not as pure as they pretend to be.  Changing the rules to make it easier for one candidate is never a good idea. 

Sen. Rand Paul is seeking a way to run for re-election to the Senate at the same time he pursues a presidential bid, has formally asked the Kentucky GOP to clear the way for him by changing the state’s presidential nominating contest from a primary to a caucus in 2016.

In a letter sent earlier this month to members of the Kentucky GOP Central Committee, Mr. Paul said the change would “help me get an equal chance at the nomination” by allowing him to circumvent a state law barring candidates from appearing twice on the same ballot.

Republicans Need To Get Serious About Foreign Affairs

This election season should be seen by everyone as one big insult to our collective intelligence.

At a time of great international flux, two wars being waged by the U.S., a determined element bent on terrorist activities, and restless regions around the globe there was hardly any mention of anything other than gross simplification of taxes and repealing the health care bill.

Now the ones who thought it best to win an election without any real mental preparation for the issues that confront the nation and the world have some serious issues to ponder.

One of those issues involves Russia and three treaties that will need U.S. Senate ratification.  They involve an arms control treaty to reduce nuclear arsenals and resume inspections; a civilian nuclear agreement to permit greater cooperation; and a repeal of cold war-era trade restrictions so Russia can join the World Trade Organization.

This morning on the Sunday news shows the issue of these treaties was presented in the form of a question to one of the new thinkers that was elected, Rand Paul of Kentucky.  He stated he was unlikely to be able to support the treaties.  It would appear from his interview this morning he was potty trained at gun point, so he will not be productive on many issues. Being unreasonable seems more his intent than anything else.   But for the sake of international relations and stability there must be a bi-partisan mass of mature and reasoned senators that jells for passage of the treaties. 

This issue is not new, and while it should have had air-time in the recent elections, requires attention now.

The New York Times had a reminder of the significance of the issue in today’s newspaper.

“This is not a traditionally Democratic or Republican issue but rather an issue of American national security,” Mr. Obama said. “And I am hopeful that we can get that done before we leave and send a strong signal to Russia that we are serious about reducing nuclear arsenals, but also sending a signal to the world that we’re serious about nonproliferation.”

If he fails to win approval before the old Senate adjourns, Mr. Obama’s advisers and allies worry that the relationship with Russia will be frozen at a time when they consider it critical to increase Russian cooperation on several fronts, most notably pressuring Iran to give up its nuclear program.

“If that goes down, everything else is on ice,” said Samuel Charap, an analyst at the Center for American Progress, a liberal research organization. Cooperation on Iran, nonproliferation, Afghanistan and terrorism could be affected, he said. “None of that, zero, is going to happen. It really could have a major effect.”

Within the administration, a nightmare scenario envisions even worse consequences. Russian leaders traditionally have looked for weakness in American counterparts, and Mr. Obama’s failure to impose his will on Congress would be seen as a sign of impotence. That could undercut President Dmitri A. Medvedev, who has made the improved relationship between Russia and the United States a centerpiece of his tenure despite Mr. Putin’s doubts. If the reset comes undone, some analysts suggested it would hurt Mr. Medvedev’s chances of persuading Mr. Putin to let him run for a second term in 2012. It could embolden those in the security establishment who want to keep close ties with Iran. By some estimates, Russia’s decision to go along with sanctions on Iran could cost as much as $13 billion in arms sales.

Most important among those abandoned sales was the transfer of a sophisticated S-300 anti-aircraft system to Tehran that Mr. Medvedev blocked. If relations with the United States deteriorate and Moscow resumed the sale, security specialists said it could provoke Israel to attack Iran’s nuclear program before the S-300 missiles are delivered because, once in place, they would make it far more dangerous for attacking warplanes.