Rand Paul Wins 2014 CPAC Straw Poll
YouTubeBy Seth McLaughlin and Stephen Dinan
Sen. Rand Paul demolished his competition in the 2014 Washington Times/CPAC presidential preference straw poll on Saturday, winning 31 percent of the vote — nearly three times the total of second-place Sen. Ted Cruz.
The poll also found a strong plurality of attendees at the Conservative Political Action Conference believe marijuana should be fully legalized, with 41 percent saying it’s time to change the law and tax it. Another 21 percent said it should be legalized only for medicinal purposes, while just 31 percent said it should remain illegal in all cases.
In the presidential poll, Mr. Cruz’s 11 percent was a big improvement for the freshman senator, who won just 4 percent in last year’s straw poll. Neurosurgeon Ben Carson was third with 9 percent and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was fourth with 8 percent in results that signal growing discontent with the GOP establishment in Washington.
Indeed, CPAC voters now have an unfavorable view of Republicans in Congress, with 51 percent saying they disapprove of the job the GOP is doing on Capitol Hill. Just last year the GOP had a 54 percent approval rating, and in 2012 they held a 70 percent approval rating.
But a series of tough votes over the last few months that saw Republican leaders work with President Obama to boost spending and raised the government’s debt limit have deepened a rift between the GOP’s leadership on Capitol Hill and conservative activists around the country.
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Rand Paul: Obama is Shredding the Constitution
By Cathy Burke
Sen. Rand Paul gave full voice to his libertarian principles Friday, telling a cheering Conservative Political Action Conference crowd “our freedom is in our DNA and in our founding document,” and urging young “liberty lovers” to “stand and be heard.”
The Kentucky Republican’s speech focused on personal freedom, the Fourth Amendment, and constitutional rights that he charged were being “shredded” by the Obama administration.
“Imagine when the White House is again occupied by a friend of liberty,” he said.
“You may think I’m talking about electing Republicans. I’m not … It isn’t good enough to pick the lesser of two evils, we need men and women of principle, conviction and action.”
Paul declared there was “a battle for the future of the entire country,” reminding conservatives that the the Fourth Amendment — prohibiting searches and seizures without probable cause — is as important as the Second Amendment, guaranteeing the right to bear arms.
“Will you, America’s next generation of liberty lovers, will you stand and be heard?” he asked to applause and whistles.
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