Rand Paul calls it a day and goes home

Sad thing, but, I knew it was coming.

The Video is at CNN.

The Story via Politico:

Rand Paul dropped out of the 2016 president race on Wednesday, short on cash and support, two days after finishing with under 5 percent in the Iowa caucuses — less than one quarter of the support his father had drawn four years earlier.

The Kentucky senator, who pitched his libertarian-infused brand of conservatism as transformational for the Republican Party, will exit the national stage and instead run for reelection to the Senate. His moment in the 2016 campaign never materialized.

“Brushfires of Liberty were ignited, and those will carry on, as will I,” Paul said in a statement.

Paul told senior staff about his decision on Tuesday. Other staff were notified Tuesday evening and the entire Paul campaign was told via a conference call on Wednesday morning at about 8:45, according to a campaign source. In that call the Kentucky senator talked about smaller government, continuing his fight for “liberty” and the Fourth Amendment.

For months, Paul struggled to gain traction or garner attention in a race that has been dominated by Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. Paul hadn’t registered in double digits in any national poll since May, after he had led some surveys in 2014 and had been declared the “most interesting man” in Republican politics.

Paul had initially been viewed as a stronger contender than his father, former Rep. Ron Paul, who ran for president in 2008 and 2012 on a narrow libertarian appeal. The younger Paul had hope to build on the libertarian grassroots base that had poured tens of millions of dollars into the elder Paul’s campaigns and expand it to more mainstream Republicans.

In the end, he was able to do neither.

Rand Paul’s biggest problem is that he is not his Father and because of that hardcore Ron Paul supporters are leery of him. Paul also tended to flip-flop a bit. He also was very anti-trump and that did not help him one bit.

Other Blogs: American Spectator, Advocate, Morning Consult, Shot in the Dark, Outside the Beltway, addictinginfo.org, Business Insider, CNN, Maryland Scramble, Vox Popoli and New York Times,

A perfect example why I disagree with Ron Paul and the Paleocons on terrorism

Now, I consider myself very much a paleoconservative, as I am not in favor of Wilsonian foreign policy at all. Furthermore, the excessive centralization of Government is not my idea of a good time either. However, I believe that what is happening now in the middle east, goes well beyond Wilsonian foreign policy. Please, if you would, check out this story below:

Check out Hot Air.com: Video: Man arrested in terror probe after police shooting in BostonAlso main story at BostonGlobe.com

Now folks, this right here is proof that ISIS and Al-Qaeda are not some invention of the CIA or Government; like some of the tin-foil hat people would want some to believe. Furthermore, they are not some sort of service organisation like some on the loony left would say as well. These people are true-blue religious zealots, who happen to believe that killing for Allah is their job. They are truly dangerous and a threat to the Republic.

Now who caused ISIS and Al-Qaeda, to me; is irrelevant at this point. What is relevant, is that these people; here and abroad are real, they are willing to die for their cause and they are totally committed. This alone, would be worry and concern anyone, who gives a remote flying flip about this Country. Differences with the neocon right, at this point; seem a bit moot, when I see stuff like this. True, I will never agree with the neocons on much of anything at all. However, when it comes to terrorism; I look at this, not as a Paleoconservative vs a neoconservative — But, rather, as a Christian American, who sees my Country being infiltrated by evil people, who want to kill Americans. Furthermore, I see a liberal controlled Government who is ambivalent, even sympathetic in some cases, to the cause of these demented people.

I think it is an awful shame, that Conservatives cannot at least put philosophical differences aside long enough to realize that our Republican is actually under threat. It is also terrible that we have a President that is more interested in placating the leftists in this Country than he is protecting the Republic. Do not misunderstand me; I am no fan of war. But, this, is really pushing my mind towards a feel that a war with ISIS, here and abroad is going to be a necessary thing.

Needless to say, the next person, especially if he is a Republican; who takes the White House, is going to have his hands full.

Others:  Fox News, CBS Boston, The Daily Caller, Hinterland Gazette, The PJ Tatler, Boston Globe, NBC News, WPRI-TV, Associated Press, Mashable, The Other McCain, Fox News Insider, American Spectator and Daily Mail (via Memeorandum

Why Rand Paul is never, ever going to be President

Because who in their right mind is going to want someone, whose Father says stuff like this, to be President of the United States of America? Not me.

Audio:

The Story:

 

Former Republican Rep. Ron Paul, the father of potential presidential candidate Rand Paul and a former presidential candidate himself, said the Congressional Black Caucus does not support war because they want that money for food stamps.

“I was always annoyed with it in Congress because we had an anti-war unofficial group, a few libertarian Republicans and generally the Black Caucus and others did not—they are really against war because they want all of that money to go to food stamps for people here,” Ron Paul told Lew Rockwell in early February during a discussion on sanctions.

via Ron Paul: Black Caucus Only Against War Because They Want That Money For Food Stamps – BuzzFeed News.

As much as I dislike the neocons of the Kristol and Podhoretz stripe; they have a point about Ron Paul and to a lesser degree Rand Paul. This above is just straight up bigotry. I mean, the N-Word was not used, okay? I see that. However, Ron Paul basically said that all the blacks ever want is hand outs from the Government.

Sorry, but, that is nothing more than blind bigotry.

I mean, between this and Rudy; we’re screwed for 2016. 😡

The best words that John Mccain has ever spoken

These are the words of Senator John McCain from the Senate floor. Via his website:

“Mr. President, I rise in support of the release – the long-delayed release – of the Senate Intelligence Committee’s summarized, unclassified review of the so-called ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ that were employed by the previous administration to extract information from captured terrorists. It is a thorough and thoughtful study of practices that I believe not only failed their purpose – to secure actionable intelligence to prevent further attacks on the U.S. and our allies – but actually damaged our security interests, as well as our reputation as a force for good in the world.

“I believe the American people have a right – indeed, a responsibility – to know what was done in their name; how these practices did or did not serve our interests; and how they comported with our most important values.

“I commend Chairman Feinstein and her staff for their diligence in seeking a truthful accounting of policies I hope we will never resort to again. I thank them for persevering against persistent opposition from many members of the intelligence community, from officials in two administrations, and from some of our colleagues.

“The truth is sometimes a hard pill to swallow. It sometimes causes us difficulties at home and abroad. It is sometimes used by our enemies in attempts to hurt us. But the American people are entitled to it, nonetheless.

“They must know when the values that define our nation are intentionally disregarded by our security policies, even those policies that are conducted in secret. They must be able to make informed judgments about whether those policies and the personnel who supported them were justified in compromising our values; whether they served a greater good; or whether, as I believe, they stained our national honor, did much harm and little practical good.

“What were the policies? What was their purpose? Did they achieve it? Did they make us safer? Less safe? Or did they make no difference? What did they gain us? What did they cost us? The American people need the answers to these questions. Yes, some things must be kept from public disclosure to protect clandestine operations, sources and methods, but not the answers to these questions.

“By providing them, the Committee has empowered the American people to come to their own decisions about whether we should have employed such practices in the past and whether we should consider permitting them in the future. This report strengthens self-government and, ultimately, I believe, America’s security and stature in the world. I thank the Committee for that valuable public service.

“I have long believed some of these practices amounted to torture, as a reasonable person would define it, especially, but not only the practice of waterboarding, which is a mock execution and an exquisite form of torture. Its use was shameful and unnecessary; and, contrary to assertions made by some of its defenders and as the Committee’s report makes clear, it produced little useful intelligence to help us track down the perpetrators of 9/11 or prevent new attacks and atrocities.

“I know from personal experience that the abuse of prisoners will produce more bad than good intelligence. I know that victims of torture will offer intentionally misleading information if they think their captors will believe it. I know they will say whatever they think their torturers want them to say if they believe it will stop their suffering. Most of all, I know the use of torture compromises that which most distinguishes us from our enemies, our belief that all people, even captured enemies, possess basic human rights, which are protected by international conventions the U.S. not only joined, but for the most part authored.

“I know, too, that bad things happen in war. I know in war good people can feel obliged for good reasons to do things they would normally object to and recoil from.

“I understand the reasons that governed the decision to resort to these interrogation methods, and I know that those who approved them and those who used them were dedicated to securing justice for the victims of terrorist attacks and to protecting Americans from further harm. I know their responsibilities were grave and urgent, and the strain of their duty was onerous.

“I respect their dedication and appreciate their dilemma. But I dispute wholeheartedly that it was right for them to use these methods, which this report makes clear were neither in the best interests of justice nor our security nor the ideals we have sacrificed so much blood and treasure to defend.

“The knowledge of torture’s dubious efficacy and my moral objections to the abuse of prisoners motivated my sponsorship of the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, which prohibits ‘cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment’ of captured combatants, whether they wear a nation’s uniform or not, and which passed the Senate by a vote of 90-9.

“Subsequently, I successfully offered amendments to the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which, among other things, prevented the attempt to weaken Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, and broadened definitions in the War Crimes Act to make the future use of waterboarding and other ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ punishable as war crimes.

“There was considerable misinformation disseminated then about what was and wasn’t achieved using these methods in an effort to discourage support for the legislation. There was a good amount of misinformation used in 2011 to credit the use of these methods with the death of Osama bin Laden. And there is, I fear, misinformation being used today to prevent the release of this report, disputing its findings and warning about the security consequences of their public disclosure.

“Will the report’s release cause outrage that leads to violence in some parts of the Muslim world? Yes, I suppose that’s possible, perhaps likely. Sadly, violence needs little incentive in some quarters of the world today. But that doesn’t mean we will be telling the world something it will be shocked to learn. The entire world already knows that we water-boarded prisoners. It knows we subjected prisoners to various other types of degrading treatment. It knows we used black sites, secret prisons. Those practices haven’t been a secret for a decade.

“Terrorists might use the report’s re-identification of the practices as an excuse to attack Americans, but they hardly need an excuse for that. That has been their life’s calling for a while now.

“What might come as a surprise, not just to our enemies, but to many Americans, is how little these practices did to aid our efforts to bring 9/11 culprits to justice and to find and prevent terrorist attacks today and tomorrow. That could be a real surprise, since it contradicts the many assurances provided by intelligence officials on the record and in private that enhanced interrogation techniques were indispensable in the war against terrorism. And I suspect the objection of those same officials to the release of this report is really focused on that disclosure – torture’s ineffectiveness – because we gave up much in the expectation that torture would make us safer. Too much.

“Obviously, we need intelligence to defeat our enemies, but we need reliable intelligence. Torture produces more misleading information than actionable intelligence. And what the advocates of harsh and cruel interrogation methods have never established is that we couldn’t have gathered as good or more reliable intelligence from using humane methods.

“The most important lead we got in the search for bin Laden came from using conventional interrogation methods. I think it is an insult to the many intelligence officers who have acquired good intelligence without hurting or degrading prisoners to assert we can’t win this war without such methods. Yes, we can and we will.

“But in the end, torture’s failure to serve its intended purpose isn’t the main reason to oppose its use. I have often said, and will always maintain, that this question isn’t about our enemies; it’s about us. It’s about who we were, who we are and who we aspire to be. It’s about how we represent ourselves to the world.

“We have made our way in this often dangerous and cruel world, not by just strictly pursuing our geopolitical interests, but by exemplifying our political values, and influencing other nations to embrace them. When we fight to defend our security we fight also for an idea, not for a tribe or a twisted interpretation of an ancient religion or for a king, but for an idea that all men are endowed by the Creator with inalienable rights. How much safer the world would be if all nations believed the same. How much more dangerous it can become when we forget it ourselves even momentarily.

“Our enemies act without conscience. We must not. This executive summary of the Committee’s report makes clear that acting without conscience isn’t necessary, it isn’t even helpful, in winning this strange and long war we’re fighting. We should be grateful to have that truth affirmed.

“Now, let us reassert the contrary proposition: that is it essential to our success in this war that we ask those who fight it for us to remember at all times that they are defending a sacred ideal of how nations should be governed and conduct their relations with others – even our enemies.

“Those of us who give them this duty are obliged by history, by our nation’s highest ideals and the many terrible sacrifices made to protect them, by our respect for human dignity to make clear we need not risk our national honor to prevail in this or any war. We need only remember in the worst of times, through the chaos and terror of war, when facing cruelty, suffering and loss, that we are always Americans, and different, stronger, and better than those who would destroy us.

“Thank you.”

God Bless Him for standing up for what is right.

(via Memeoradum)

With Audio: Think Ron Paul is wrong about the Fed? Think Again

Many people might think Ron Paul is kooky, when it comes to the Federal Reserve and monetary policy. I think this program here, that covers this issue here; proves that as very wrong.

Check out this little program:

[podcast]

Blogger reactions: Techdirt, Firedoglake and Capitol ReportBloomberg View and Hullabaloo

(H/T to This American Life Via Memeorandum)

Another really good reason why I simply do not agree with Ron Paul

I might agree with Ron Paul on economics. I might agree with Ron Paul on wars and Wilsonian foreign policy. This below negates all of that, because what you see below is not a legitimate criticism of those things, what this is below is simply blind hatred of Jews and Israel in general.

I might not approve of Zionism, as it is, in this Christian separatists opinion, an unholy alliance between Christians and Jews; but I will never support this bile, which is below at the link.

Go read: The Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity : ‘We Are With You…Here Are The Missiles’.

The truth is that Israel is defending itself from a Islamic terrorist organization, whose charter calls for the destruction of Israel. An organization who started this latest conflict, by kidnapping three Israeli kids, killing them and then burning their bodies. Then, when Israel enacted a blockade of Gaza; they began aimlessly firing rockets into Israel. Finally, Israel decided enough was enough, and invaded that strip of land to rid Gaza of these terrorists. If the United States of America wants to help Israel defend itself from Muslim terrorists, by sending them missiles, then by-golly let them do it. Frankly, America’s prosperity in the past has come from being a friend of Israel. 

Even I as a paleoconservative, think that what Israel is doing, is proper, right and moral. Furthermore, I question the motives, patriotism, Christianity and sanity of those who disagree with belief. I may have a beef with some of the political players here in America, who happen to be Jewish. But, my support of Israel and what it is doing in Gaza is without measure and frankly; I hope they bomb the strip of land to a pile of dirt and rubble.

Do not misunderstand me here; I do not wish to see American boots on the ground in the Gaza strip, nor in Israel. They do not need our help. But, they do need our support to fight the battle and I say let them have it.

Enough is enough! It is time that we Conservative Christians begin to call out those, like The Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity; which is nothing more than a clearing house for anti-Jewish and Anti-Israel bile. If this think-tank was a legit group that put out papers or articles against Wilsonian foreign policy, it would not be a problem. However, this think-tank is nothing more than an Jew-bashing group of thugs, whose purpose is to issue blood libels against Israel and the Jews. They have proven that time and again with postings like the one above.

Bottom Line: It’s time to get real folks, and call these haters out for what they truly are; and expose them for what they are. That is not a neoconservative thing; that is an American thing, and it is about time we did it.

 

Memo to Chris Rossini: Please, cut the crap!

I have Ron Paul’s new institute for freedom feed in my rss reader.

More specifically I have the sub-blog “Neocon Watch” in the reader; which I do enjoy reading; because quite frankly I believe the neocon right should be watched. 

But, there was a blog entry that was done on November 6, 2013; that really makes me wonder, what exactly is the point of that blog? Is it for the honest reporting of the actions of the neoconservative right; or is it just another idiotic love fest of the former Representative from Texas?

What I am referring to; is this entry here, which is about the actions of a Democratic Senator from Illinois. 

Quoting the entry:

Congressman, Brad Schneider (D-IL), was in the process of introducing a bill in the House that sought to delay a new round of sanctions on Iran. That is, until the neocon Free Beacon caught wind of it.

How dare Schneider suggest waiting a measly four months before increasing sanctions?

Following the Free Beacon’s story, Schneider shelved the bill. He then“organized an impromptu conference Tuesday evening to explain to pro-Israel leaders why he authored a bill that could delay a new round of Iran sanctions…”

So Schneider shelves the bill, and then explains himself to pro-Israel leaders? What?

The story gets even better. The Wall Street Journal reports that:

Congressman Schneider has called upon the Senate to immediately pass the ‘Preventing a Nuclear Iran Act’ and opposes any legislation that would delay, hinder, or stop current or future sanctions.

Okay, that is all fine and dandy; but this is where the blog entry stops being about factual reporting and starts sounding like an idiotic Ron Paul commercial.

Quote:

What a turnaround!

Kinda makes you miss Congressman Ron Paul, doesn’t it?

Here’s how the story would have been different were he still in the House. Congressman Paul would have drafted a bill that would abolish all sanctions against Iran. After all, sanctions are an act of war.

The neocon Free Beacon could then write whatever it wanted to show its displeasure. They would surely use every derogatory name in the book. Congressman Paul would still file the bill. There would be no apologies, and the great American Congressman would surely not feel the need to explain himself to special interest groups.

While it may be sad that the voice for liberty is no longer in Congress, there is a tremendous bright side to the story. The much freer, and non-restrained Ron Paul is representing liberty like never before!

Again, I ask; what exactly is the point of this blog; is it to legitimately report on the Wilsonian right and left……..or is it an continuous Ron Paul commercial?

Not to make this about personalities; but when it comes to pro-American policies; especially those of economics, Patrick J. Buchanan wins that hands down. Ron Paul would rather see America undermined in trade, than to protect the American worker. Which is why I prefer him over Ron Paul any day of the week.   

In case anyone has forgotten: Al-Qaeda is still here and they ain’t playing

Ron Paul hardest hit:

AFP – Al-Qaeda’s military chief in Yemen warned Americans in an audio message posted online Sunday that the Boston bombings revealed a fragile security as he urged Muslims to defend their religion.

Qassim al-Rimi, the military chief of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, said making bombs such as the ones used in the twin blasts in Boston in April, is within “everyone’s reach”.

“The Boston events… and the poisoned letters (sent to the White House), regardless of who is behind them, show that your security is no longer under control, and that attacks on you have taken off and cannot be stopped,” he said, in the message entitled: “A letter to the American people.”

“Every day you will be hit by the unexpected and your leaders will not be able to defend you,” warned the man whose organisation is considered by Washington the world’s most dangerous Al-Qaeda branch.

Rimi said the killing of Al-Qaeda’s founder Osama bin Laden in May 2011 and top Yemeni-American cleric Anwar al-Awlaki in September 2011, had not ended the struggle.

“Have you eliminated the jihadist groups that have spread everywhere after they had only been in Afghanistan? Today, they are in your land or close to it,” he warned.

To the Muslims in the United States, he said: “We encourage you to carry on with this way, be steadfast in your religion

via Qaeda chief warns attacks on US in ‘everyone’s reach’ – FRANCE 24.

This is why I could never quite get into the whole idea of Ron Paul dismantling our Military. I want, as anyone else does, a reasonable foreign policy. However, I do want our Government to defend the Republic.

Irregardless of why they hate us; whether it is because of our foreign policy decisions of the past or because we are free or because of capitalistic society — the fact remains — they hate us and they want to kill us and we do have to be able to defend ourselves.

…..and that my friends — is no laughing matter. 😡

 

Ron Paul proves to the whole world that he is an Anti-American twit.

…and an Military-hating Son-of-a-bitch.

Go Read: Disgusting: Ron Paul attacks murder victim, war hero Chris Kyle; Updated | Twitchy.

I do not link to that site often, and I happen to agree with the Ron Paul’s position on economics; but this was obviously not written by Paul himself, but by some smart alleck staffer. Either way, it was low-class and Paul should apologize for it and fire the staffer involved.

Update: Now a memeorandum thread.

Update #2: I just thought of this, and I figured I would bring it up, before someone else did: Yes, I did vote for Ron Paul in the 2012 primary. I did so, because, then, I felt that Ron Paul was about the only person that I could actually vote for. I did, however, vote for Mitt Romney in the general election. The election that the Republicans lost, because of the stupidity of the Republican Party. Just to clarify: I believe that Ron Paul does have some good ideas on economic policy; it is just his attitude towards this military and towards any sort of foreign policy, outside of isolationism, is simply off-putting; this little remark is a perfect example of that.

 

 

Rand Paul sells out his Father’s Birthright

I saw this morning and I could not believe what I was hearing. Rand Paul has basically sold out his Father’s Libertarian Birthright. Just so he can have a shot at running in 2016.

The video comes via the neoconservative blog HotAir.com:

Rand Paul sells America out.

The Quote:

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul took what very well could be considered his most pro-Israel stance yet, saying in an interview that an attack on Israel should be treated as an attack on the United States.

Asked whether the United States would stand with Israel and provide it foreign aid if the Jewish state were attacked by its enemies, Paul went a step further.

“Well absolutely we stand with Israel,” he said in an interview with Breitbart News, “but what I think we should do is announce to the world – and I think it is pretty well known — that any attack on Israel will be treated as an attack on the United States.”

There is no two ways about it, Rand Paul is not his Father at all. His Father has principles; Rand sold his out for a little power and to placate a protected minority. It is sad that Rand Paul is more interested in pleasing a small part of the so-called “right” in order to get the blessing of the banksters and mobsters of the elitists in DC.

But, that is politics and it is proof that we need real Americans in DC. Not these rich elitists, who never had to use their backs to make a living.