Does Rand Paul believe the road to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is paved with endless pandering?

At a time when GOP leaders, led by Mitch McConnell, are engaging in the ultimate betrayal and funding Planned Parenthood and all their butchery, Rand Paul is training his fire on….Ted Cruz! He lashed out at the senator from Texas, predicting that he’s “done for in the Senate.” He seemed particularly perturbed by Cruz calling McConnell a liar, even though the senior senator from Kentucky indeed engaged in one of the most verifiable and public acts of lying earlier this year.

Sadly, the negativity Rand is projecting on Cruz for fighting back against the political enemies of our time is precisely why Paul is “done for” in the presidential race. The voters are looking for someone who has no respect for the current system and those who broke it, not someone who is trying to pander to it. They are looking for not just a pandering vote, but a robust voice. Rand would be wise to watch Cruz’s epic speech this week, which essentially encapsulates all the frustrations all of us have had with the current political system. If Rand has a better way forward, it’s clearly lost on everyone.

It Didn’t Have To Be This Way

Back in the summer of 2009, like many conservatives, I was revved up by the prospect of Rand Paul storming the establishment castle and challenging the hand-picked Senate candidate in Kentucky, Trey Grayson, who was chosen by Mitch McConnell of all people. This was the ultimate act of defiance to the permanent political class, and his candidacy gave the grassroots much needed hope that a new GOP majority would actually be different from its predecessors.

Sure, many of us traditional conservatives understood that there would be an occasional issue where the libertarian-leaning Paul would take a different view, but for the most part everyone in the grassroots anticipated the promise of an intellectually honest fighter.

Indeed, his first year or two in the Senate stood out and met most of our expectations. Rand had no problem mixing it up with the D.C. establishment, helped lead the fight against gun control, and brought back the talking filibuster when he blocked Obama’s CIA nominee over concerns of due process. He also proposed a bold five-year balanced budget guided by constitutional limited government principles.

But then he became transfixed with visions of running for president and occupying the White House and that goal became his true north. It started off innocuously with his desire to expand the party and bring the conservative message to non-traditional Republican voters –Blacks, Hispanics, and youth. This in itself was a laudable goal. But in recent months, this pursuit has become an end-game on to itself and has transformed into ubiquitous pandering and watering down of both his conservative and libertarian message.

Here are just six examples of areas where Rand has dissented in a way that not only violates conservative principles but even core libertarian/constitutional principles (putting Iran and immigration aside):

Judicial Tyranny/Religious Liberty: In March 2014, Paul said “I think that the Republican Party, in order to get bigger, will have to agree to disagree on social issues.” But even from a libertarian standpoint, he has made it clear that pandering to popular perception of public opinion overrides constitutional principles. In June 2013, he praised Justice Kennedy’s DOMA decision for helping government “keep up with public opinion.” Some libertarians might disagree with conservatives on marriage, but all constitutionalists agree that there is no constitutional right, and judicial activism based on public opinion is an anathema to those principles.

While Paul has repeatedly said that marriage should be left to the states, he was stone silent as an unelected federal judge tossed out his state’s marriage law last year, which passed with support of 75% of voters in Kentucky. He has also been largely silent as the debate has moved to the broader sexual identity agenda, which attacks religious liberty and private property rights – again – an anathema to libertarianism.

In April, Rand was one of 10 Republicans to vote for a Leahy amendment discriminating against religious social service groups who disagree with the sexual identity agenda.

Rand was not exactly the libertarian warrior he claimed to be when Kim Davis was jailed for being a Christian and refusing to violate her conscience, which Madison referred to as “the most sacred of all property.”

Global Warming: Earlier this year, Rand joined a group of Democrats and moderate Republicans in supporting an amendment to the Keystone bill expressing the sense of the Senate that human beings contribute significantly to climate change. Here is what Barbara Boxer said on the floor at the time: “I think will be recorded as a breakthrough moment in the climate debate. For the first time we will go on record saying the following: Climate change is real and human activity contributes to climate change. What a breath of fresh air this amendment is, and I urge an “aye” vote very strongly.” Is this another issue Rand views as hip with the younger crowd?

Spending: Rand voted for the massive $141 billion deficit-inducing Medicare doc fix bill. It’s great to propose balance budgets that won’t pass, but conservatives need their members to block new spending that will actually be signed into law. This bill could add as much as $500 billion to the deficit. Is Rand scared of the health care lobby? He has also sponsored a bill along with Barbara Boxer that would use new tax revenue to continue purveying the failed federal highway system. Anyone advocating for limited government would agree that transportation is one of the first functions that should be returned to the states.

Obamacare: After quietly opposing the effort to defund Obamacare and remaining largely silent on the issue (not even mentioning it in his announcement speeches), Paul joined a group of senators blocking Sen. David Vitter from enforcing Obamacare laws on members of Congress.

Endorsing McConnell: Nobody expects a sitting senator to support the ouster of his colleague from the same state in a primary, but did Rand have to pull out all the stops in backing McConnell? Cruz declined to support Cornyn in the primary, even though he faced no serious opposition. We now see the full extent of the destruction from McConnell’s leadership in the Senate.

Racial Preferences: After the Supreme Court invalidated sections of the Voter Rights Act (Shelby County v Holder, 2013) on the premise that federal intervention in state’s voting laws was unnecessary in this day and age, Rand hinted at supporting the restoration of those sections. He told The Hill: “I won’t sit idly by and watch our criminal justice system continue to consume, confine and define our young men. I say we take a stand and fight for justice now. Not only do I support the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, I’m a Republican who wants to restore a federal role for the government in the Voting Rights Act.”

Paul also cosponsored a bill (S. Res. 511) that encourages private institutions to interview at least two minority candidates for managerial positions. This resolution was strongly criticized by conservatives for its overreach into the employment market and the discriminatory outcomes that it would encourage.

Senator Paul likes to tout himself as something new and refreshing. But aside from issues pertaining to privacy and the Fourth Amendment, he has recently demonstrated that political considerations reign supreme. While every politician has to engage in some degree of strategizing and even pandering, Rand’s recent actions represent a disconcerting trend that begs the question: where is Rand headed and how far will he go?

Acquiescence and pandering to the powers at be is what has gotten us into this mess. People are looking for a leader who is willing to tear down the structure that has already dismantled our constitutional Republic. Much to the chagrin of many eager fans, Rand is increasingly proving himself not to be that man. (For more from the author of “Paul’s Pandering, and His Attack on Cruz” please click HERE)

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