Congress is about to entirely relinquish what little checks and balances they have to prevent the office of the presidency from waging unlimited and unchecked war around the planet.
The post Rand Paul Exposes Congress’ Plot to Give President ‘Unlimited’ Dictatorial Power for War appeared first on The Free Thought Project.
Appearing on “The Laura Ingraham Show” a few weeks ago, the libertarian-leaning former presidential candidate explained that individuals currently in national security positions are essentially free to exercise their power without any checks from elected representatives.
“Absolutely, there is a deep state, because the deep state is the intelligence agencies that do not have oversight,” Paul explained. “Only eight people in Congress know what they’re doing, and traditionally, those eight people have been a rubber stamp to let the intelligence communities do whatever they want. There is no skeptic among the eight people that are supposedly overseeing the intelligence community.”
It goes without saying that even though the intelligence community is supposed to rise above politics and carry out its functions in a bipartisan way, just like nearly every other American institution, it is susceptible to corruption. The difference, however, is that contrary to how most other levels of government operate, the intelligence community doesn’t have a system of checks to prevent it from engaging in activities that fall outside of legal and constitutional parameters – throw rampant corruption into the mix, and you’ve got a recipe for disaster.
The Kentucky senator went on to say that the deep state was on full display within Barack Obama’s administration, specifically with CIA Director John Brennan and National Intelligence Director James Clapper.
“John Brennan and James Clapper were doing whatever the hell they wanted, without any judicial warrants, and I think there were numerous people in the Obama administration who were using intelligence – one, to try to bring Trump down; but two, also, they were using it for political purposes,” he explained, adding that “this is very, very worrisome.”
Indeed, it is very worrisome, because the worse the corruption within the FBI and the intelligence community gets, the closer our country gets to a constitutional crisis of epic proportions. Without any checks or oversight, the intelligence community is basically free to do whatever it wants, and that includes acting in a partisan fashion to both defend and attack people based solely on political ideologies.
One of the most blatant examples of corruption and abuse of power within the intelligence community has to do with how Robert Mueller is carrying out this investigation into Trump’s alleged “collusion” with the Russians in the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election. This is the same investigation that Tom Fitton, the president of conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, referred to as “corruption at its worst.”
First and foremost, it’s very odd – almost too odd – that the majority of people Robert Mueller recruited for his investigative team are liberal democrats who have a history of supporting, financially or otherwise, left wing politicians and organizations. How anyone can look at the partisanship of Mueller’s team and still conclude that Mueller is a fair and balanced investigator is beyond comprehension.
Additionally, the Daily Wire recently reported that Robert Mueller is investigating a $150,000 donation made to Donald Trump’s charity back in 2015 by a Ukrainian businessman, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that this same Ukrainian businessman has donated anywhere between $10 million and $25 million to the Clinton Foundation. Furthermore, this same businessman (whose name is Victor Pinchuk) even lent his private plane to the Clintons back in 2011 to attend Bill Clinton’s 65th birthday celebration in Los Angeles.
For many, this sort of blatant hypocrisy and corruption within the intelligence community demonstrates two things: first, that the investigation into Trump/Russia collusion has turned into an all-out witch hunt, and second, that there is, in fact, a deep state within the federal government.
Via Natural News
The post Kentucky senator Rand Paul says “deep state” is real – there ARE intelligence officials acting WITHOUT authorization appeared first on Intellihub.
(TIM) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced he will introduce a new bill on Monday that would legalize hemp, a non-psychoactive relative of marijuana, as an agricultural product. The bill is co-sponsored by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rand Paul(R-KY). In addition to legalization, the Hemp Farming Act of 2018 would remove the product from the federal government’s schedule of controlled substances, while […]
(ANTIMEDIA) — On Thursday, the House went on a $1.3 trillion spending spree and passed an omnibus package that will fund the government through October. Although the agreement was reached six months late, the legislation passed easily by a margin of 256-167, with 145 Republicans and 111 Democrats voting in favor and 90 Republicans and 77 Democrats […]
This article was originally published by Daisy Luther at The Organic Prepper
Everyone likes to blame the Democrats for gun control, but here’s a news flash: those of us who fervently believe in the Second Amendment are actually being betrayed by members of the Republican party who are in Congress right now. Bills on the table right now would gut our right to bear arms, and the Congress is controlled by Republicans.
The spending bill that Congress hopes to pass is more than 2200 pages, according to Senator Rand Paul, who was outraged at being given less than a day to read the entire bill. Senator Paul live-tweeted his reading of the bill last night, and it’s a pretty safe bet that nobody else in Congress spent the evening reading it before they vote today.
Shame, shame. A pox on both Houses – and parties. $1.3 trillion. Busts budget caps. 2200 pages, with just hours to try to read it.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
Well here it is, all 2,232 budget-busting pages. The House already started votes on it. The Senate is expected to soon. No one has read it. Congress is broken… pic.twitter.com/izvJlUEgUM
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
How the spending bill affects our Second Amendment rights
In this budget bill are some insidious things that affect our Second Amendment rights.
The bill revives an Obama-era restriction on firearms for senior citizens.
Just before President Obama left office, his administration finalized new regulations banning Social Security recipients from buying a gun if they have trouble managing their finances.
Using the Congressional Review Act, Republicans and two Democrats passed a bill overturning the regulation. But the bill did more than that. It also prevents any future president from reinstituting the ban without new legislative authorization from Congress.
Unfortunately, the spending bill passed Thursday allows the ban to be reinstituted because it reauthorizes the 2007 National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Improvement Amendments Act. This act allowed government agencies, not just the courts, to determine if someone is mentally incompetent to buy or possess a gun.
House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions, R-Texas, said during testimony late Wednesday that he was “disturbed” that the bill would undo part of Republicans’ good work. But by Thursday morning, the House leadership had decided to go ahead with the measure. (source)
And that’s not all.
The bill funnels $50 million dollars into strict anti-gun organizations, namely the STOP School Violence Act, designed by the Sandy Hook Promise, which advocates extreme gun control.
At the same time, the bill forbids the use of federal money for arming and training school staff. That’s right – our tax dollars will be put to work against us. And representatives that are supposed to be pro-gun are allowing it to happen.
Finally, the bill will authorize the CDC to research “gun violence.” But the CDC has been allowed to research this for years, despite what you see to the contrary from the MSM. In 1996, the Dickey provision prohibited the CDC from using government funds to advocate or promote gun control.” There is no such provision in the current bill.
It isn’t just Democrats who are passing this bill.
This bill has passed the House by a vote of 256-167. The breakdown in the House of Representatives is 238 Republicans and 192 Democrats. If the Republicans were truly looking after our gun rights, as they like to advertise, this bill wouldn’t have passed the House.
Today it will be going before the Senate, where 60 votes will be needed to pass it. The Senate has 51 Republicans and 47 Democrats, which means that if it passes, the “pro-gun” Republicans have betrayed their constituents yet again.
Here’s what happens next:
Thursday afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell moved to end debate on the bill, triggering a 30-hour window senators can use to discuss it.
The debate time could be shortened if Paul and other senators unanimously agree to do so but it was unclear how far Paul would go to press his point.
If the whole 30-hour time is used, the earliest the Senate could vote to advance the so-called “omnibus” bill would be 1 a.m. Saturday morning.
The Senate would then have to wait even longer before taking any final vote to pass it. (source)
If (when) this revolting turn of events occurs and the bill is passed by the Senate, the President will most likely sign it according to White House budget director Mick Mulvaney.
“In order to get the defense spending primarily, (and) all the rest of our priorities funded, we had to give away a lot of stuff that we didn’t want to give away,” Mulvaney said. (source)
And that’s not all.
The spending in this bill is truly obscene. You’d think an American budget would be focused on American interests, right?
Senator Paul tweeted these highlights lowlights.
o $5m for Vietnam Education Foundation Grants
o $2.579m for Commission on Security and Co-operation in Europe
o $15m to USAID for promoting international higher education between universities
o $2.696bn for International Disaster Assistance— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
o $1m for the World Meteorological Organization
o $218m for Promoting Democracy Development in Europe (yep..the birthplace of democracy needs promoting)
o $25m for International Religious Freedom
o $10m for disadvantaged Egyptian Students— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
o $12m for Scholarships for Lebanon
o $20m for Middle East Partnership Initiative Scholarship Program
o $12m in military funding for Vietnam
o $3.5m in nutrition assistance to Laos
o $15m in Developmental assistance to China
o $10m for Women LEOs in Afghanistan— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
Seriously.
If you voted Republican to protect your 2A rights, you were betrayed.
The long and the short of this?
As long as our government passes bills with thousands of pages instead of single item bills, the public will continue to be betrayed and deceived. Those who believe that voting Republican will ensure their continued right to protect themselves have been deceived and until we refuse to keep putting these people in office who are there to serve themselves, not their constituencies, we will continue losing our rights as guaranteed by the Constitution.
How is voting for the “lesser of two evils” working out for you?
What if we opted not to put any kind of evil in office, not just the lesser one? What if we opted to put the best of our country in positions of power, not just the less horrible of our country?
When are we going to say that we’ve had enough? At the rate we’re going, probably when it’s already too late and our corrupt system has enslaved us to the point that rebellion is futile.
The mainstream media is acting like Senator Rand Paul is a lunatic who is determined to shut down the government, but in reality, Senator Paul seems to be one of the only people in Washington DC who performing his due diligence.
Write to your local Senators and call their offices. (Find the contact info here.) Demand that they vote no on this spending bill. We have to stop passing policies that haven’t even been read by those voting on them. Lawmaking should not be a game of “Let’s Make a Deal.”
Government shutdowns have happened before and they’re mostly theater. We’ve been perfectly fine without them.
(ANTIMEDIA) — On Thursday, the House went on a $1.3 trillion spending spree and passed an omnibus package that will fund the government through October. Although the agreement was reached six months late, the legislation passed easily by a margin of 256-167, with 145 Republicans and 111 Democrats voting in favor and 90 Republicans and 77 Democrats […]
(TIM) — Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said Tuesday during an appearance on The Laura Ingraham Show podcast that the term “deep state” accurately describes how an unelected bureaucracy of national security officials in positions of power exert influence without Congressional oversight. “Absolutely, there is a deep state, because the deep state is the intelligence agencies that do […]
(TIM) — Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, announced on Wednesday that he would oppose President Trump’s nominees to head the State Department and CIA, potentially impeding their path to Senate confirmation. “I will oppose both Pompeo’s nomination and Haspel’s nomination,” Paul said. Senator Paul Press Conference on Secretary of State and CIA […]
After successfully managing to block the government budget vote late last night, Senator Rand Paul was viciously attacked by several mainstream media and Hollywood liberals who openly wished that the man who previously assaulted Paul had either done a better job or had been in attendance during his “stunt” so he could attack him again.
That’s right, the supposedly tolerant left spent the night hoping that a sitting U.S. Senator would be violently attacked yet again, all because he refused to go along with the establishments plan for a government budget that included “out of control spending”.
“Paul managed to block the vote past a midnight deadline that technically meant the government shut down for a short time, with the Senator insisting that an amendment be added to reign in out of control spending. A two year budget deal was subsequently approved by the Senate,” Paul Joseph Watson reported.
“However, during Paul’s stunt, several leftist celebrities and numerous verified Twitter liberals expressed their disappointment that the Senator’s neighbor wasn’t in attendance to physically assault him.”
Long-time Hollywood liberal Bette Midler led the charge, tweeting that America “needed” Paul’s neighbor in an obvious reference to the 59-year-old Democrat and neighbor of Paul’s who blindsided him and left him with five broken ribs and lacerations to his lungs.
Where’s Rand Paul’s neighbor when we need him?
— Bette Midler (@BetteMidler) February 9, 2018
Despite the fact that Twitter has publicly claimed that calls for violence are not allowed on their platform, the tweet has over 17,000 likes and has actually been promoted by the social media giant itself.
Not wanting to be left out of the fun of calling for violence against your political enemies, numerous mainstream media leftists also chimed in with their calls for another attack on Paul, including a writer for The New York Times Magazine and another for the leftist Huffington Post.
Rand Paul’s neighbor didn’t hit him hard enough.
— Elon Green (@elongreen) February 8, 2018
Tonight, everyone in the Senate is Rand Paul’s aggrieved neighbor.
— Matt Fuller (@MEPFuller) February 9, 2018
Keep in mind that the above Tweets are only a snapshot of the calls for violence against Paul and do not even include the thousands of responses to them (that Twitter has again allowed) that also agree with the idea that Paul needed to be attacked for holding up the vote and essentially shutting down the government for a few hours until a different deal could be reached.
Time and time again the intolerant left proves just that – they are a group of of completely intolerant individuals that have no problem calling for, and using, violence against their political enemies.
This is the new America under Donald Trump, where anything goes as long as you are a part of the “resistance”.
Rand Paul called out Republicans for becoming the definition of "intellectual dishonesty" by supporting the same spending increases with a Republican in office that they condemned when a Democrat was in office.
The post ‘There is No Conservative Party’: Rand Paul Proves Both Parties are ‘Hypocrites’ in EPIC Senate Rant appeared first on The Free Thought Project.
Rand Paul went on the Stephen Colbert show this week and proceeded to call out the war on drugs, the police state, and the ominous abilities of the government to spy on you.
The post Drug War is Racist, Gov’t Can Track Everything You Do: Rand Paul Drops Truth on Colbert appeared first on The Free Thought Project.
“Anybody who thinks we’re not doing too badly has not been flying on an airplane lately. That’s about as authoritarian-fascism as you can get,” Ron Paul said.
Authored by Mike Shedlock via www.themaven.net/mishtalk,
A program that allows gov"t to collect data without a warrant expires this year. Paul opposes a "long-term" extension.
Senator Rand Paul is taking a partial stand against warrantless searches.
I will actively oppose and filibuster any long term extension of warrantless searches of American citizens
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 20, 2017
The Hill reports Rand Paul Threatens to Filibuster Long-Term Surveillance Extension.
The House Rules Committee on Tuesday released a draft bill that would reauthorize the program. Privacy-minded lawmakers have already criticized the bill as doing little to reform 702.
“This bill is an eleventh-hour attempt to sneak an unchecked warrantless surveillance program through Congress,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in a statement Wednesday morning.
“The legislation posted late yesterday is a clear step backward for Americans’ rights. It does nothing to check the warrantless backdoor searches of Americans’ communications,” Wyden added.
“The bill also fails to codify the current prohibition on ‘abouts’ collection, in which communications entirely among innocent Americans can be swept up if they reference a target’s email address.”
There have been rumblings on Capitol Hill that lawmakers could try to include language in must-pass spending legislation to extend the controversial program. On Tuesday, Paul and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) said they would oppose any spending bill that included a permanent reauthorization of the provision, according to the Washington Examiner.
Dear Senator Paul, I have a question:
Dear @RandPaul what does "long-term" have to do with anything. Something is either right or wrong. Why is short-term acceptable? https://t.co/wanpkKyZCb
— Mike Mish Shedlock (@MishGEA) December 20, 2017
According to two top republican politicians, Donald Trump may not seek reelection in 2020, in spite of already raising millions for his campaign. Chris Christie and Rand Paul are casting doubt on Trump’s desire to remain president.
“If he runs again I would support him, yes, but I’m not so sure what will happen,” Chris Christe, the governor of New Jersey said on the Today show on Friday. Senator Rand Paul also cast doubts over whether President Trump would throw his hat into the presidential ring again and argued Republicans should not merely assume he is running.
“I think no one can stop primaries from happening and there could well be a primary that happens,” Paul said on MSNBC when probed about whether the US could benefit from a Republican party primary in 2020. “Before you even get to that, you need to know, is President Trump running for re-election? I think you won’t know that until you get into sort of – second, third year of his presidency,” he said. Paul said he could not see himself supporting anyone else he did suggest the chance of him supporting a candidate who would end the war in Afghanistan.
“So I see the glass as half full. Doesn’t mean I agree with him on everything,” he said. “You know, there would be people that – if we could end the Afghan war, that’s who I would support. But I don’t think that’s going to be an alternative to President Trump.”
Paul’s sentiments are similar to those expressed by Christie. “Four years is a long time, and especially for someone who has not spent a lifetime in politics, so I think those years affect him differently. So I’m sure the president will make whatever decision is best for him and his family and the country,” said Christie.
Christie and Paul both said that if Trump runs again, he’d have both of their support in a reelection campaign. Not running for a second term would be a highly unconventional move for a sitting president. Only three other presidents have deliberately moved out of the White House after just one term as president. But Trump has invested money in his reelection campaign already.
According to the Centre for Public Integrity, Trump’s re-election campaign committee raised just over $10 million from July to the end of September. The former reality star and real estate mogul held a $35,000-a-plate fundraiser event a few blocks from the White House at his Washington hotel back in June. Trump’s historically early campaigning has seen his campaign accumulate more than $7 million in the first three months of this year via small donations and selling Trump-themed merchandise such as his trademark “Make America Great Again” hats.
Ron Paul noted that not only is the United States military in Niger, but U.S. troops are stationed in 53 out of the 54 nations in Africa.
As many Americans struggle to get back on their feet after their homes were destroyed by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, the United States government has insisted that the only way to raise money for relief efforts is to increase the national debt—while setting aside another $75 million in aid for Israel.
Just one year ago, the Obama Administration signed the largest military aid deal in U.S. history, promising Israel $38 Billion over the next 10 years. However, while the deal stated that Israel was expected to return any money that was more than the original amount, the Trump Administration is breaking the rules.
According to a report from the Jerusalem Post, while Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was against giving an additional $75 million to Israel, a senior State Department official insisted that, “The administration is committed to ensuring that Israel receives the assistance that has been appropriated by Congress,” and that Trump will “work to ensure the $75 million in additional aid is delivered.”
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While Congress had no problem giving Israel another $75 million in military aid, it did so by once again turning a blind eye to the long list of human rights abuses carried out by the Israeli military—and funded by the United States. Israel has occupied Palestine since 1967, and in those 50 years, it has been accused of numerous categories of human rights violations, according to a report from Human Rights Watch:
“At least five categories of major violations of international human rights law and humanitarian law characterize the occupation: unlawful killings; forced displacement; abusive detention; the closure of the Gaza Strip and other unjustified restrictions on movement; and the development of settlements, along with the accompanying discriminatory policies that disadvantage Palestinians.”
When Donald Trump ran a campaign based on “Making America Great Again” and truly putting “America First,” his supporters latched on to his promises, as if his presence in the White House would make everything different. While some of Trump’s supporters were adamant about his support for Israel, it should be noted that the Trump Administration is not just putting Israel first—it is also putting every country that is a recipient of U.S. foreign aid at a time when Americans desperately need help, first.
Went out to Rockport to help law enforcement families who have devastating loss & damage due to Hurricane Harvey. #TexasStrong pic.twitter.com/EPgzHjfnJV
— Destiny ❁ (@dessttinyy) September 10, 2017
As Congress debated raising the Debt Ceiling, in order to find money for hurricane relief efforts, Sen. Rand Paul proposed an amendment that would allocate $7.85 billion in aid for repairing the damage caused by Hurricane Harvey, with an additional $2.5 billion set aside to prepare for Hurricane Irma—all by simply making cuts to foreign aid.
READ MORE: Trump Says He Saw Muslims Celebrating On 9/11 -- But He Was Wrong, It was Israeli Mossad Agents
“My amendment, the ‘America First’ amendment, would take the money from money that we were going to send to foreign countries,” Paul said. “We send billions and billions of dollars to countries who hate us. We send billions and billions of dollars to countries who burn our flag. I think it’s a very simple choice that when we’re looking at those in need in our country, we quit sending money to other countries.”
Stunning drone footage captures severe damage, flooding in Naples after Hurricane #Irma plows through the area. https://t.co/OXfmsaECNM pic.twitter.com/2sK1Kqcz4g
— ABC News (@ABC) September 11, 2017
In response to Paul’s proposal, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made a motion to table it, which passed 87-10. Unfortunately, while the majority of Congress does not seem to care about how much money the U.S. is wasting on foreign aid, it also does not seem to care about the status of the National Debt.
The United States’ National Debt surpassed $20 TRILLION this week, after jumping $317,645,000,000 in one day. The Trump administration’s $75 million gift to Israel is in addition to the record-breaking $3.8 billion a year the country already receives from the U.S.
The idea that the United States should continue to hand out obscene amounts of money it doesn’t have to the nations it favors—with no oversight—is a reminder that the vast majority of the elected officials who claim to represent the will of the American public, do not have their best interest in mind.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has forced a debate and vote on his amendment to repeal the authorization for the 2001 war on Afghanistan and 2002 authorization for war on Iraq. His colleagues in the Senate are pulling out all stops to avoid even a debate on the issue. Why?
Washington, D.C. — (RT) The US Senate has voted 61-36 to kill the amendment, proposed by Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) which would repeal the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force (AUMF) in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Senate can’t repeal the AUMF without replacing it with a new authorization, said Senator John McCain (R-Arizona).
“It would mean that we would immediately need to start winding down” US forces abroad, said Senator Bob Corker (R-Tennessee), who also opposed Paul’s amendment.
Paul had vowed to delay the passage of the $700-billion dollar National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) if he didn’t get a vote on repealing the AUMF.
“We have been there for 16 years. It is time for [the wars] to end. It is time for Congress to vote on whether or not they should end,” Paul said on Monday.
We have been there for 16 years. It is time for them to end. It is time for Congress to vote on whether or not they should end.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
The Kentucky Republican noted that his protest was for the soldiers, adding that “hypocrites” are happy to “pretend concern over our constitutional duty to declare war” but are happy to “block any vote on ending any of our 7 current wars.”
Where is the anti-war left demanding the wars end? Where is the constitional conservative right demanding Congress reclaim its war powers?
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
To fight the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorist group, the Trump administration relies on authorization for the use of military force that was approved by Congress in 2001, shortly after the 9/11 attacks.
READ MORE: ‘They’re terrified that peace was going to break out’ — Ron Paul on Why Trump Bombed Syria
The measure was specifically designed to give the president powers to go after “those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons, in order to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States by such nations, organizations or persons.”
Last month, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told lawmakers the 2001 authorization provides sufficient authority to wage war against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Critics argue it’s a legal stretch at best, as the Islamic State group did not exist 16 years ago and that the US now uses the legislation to carry out military operations in Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Libya and other countries.
A separate authorization, which in 2002 approved the war against Saddam Hussein in Iraq, is also still in force.
The War Powers Resolution, enacted in 1973, prohibits US troops from being sent into combat for more than 90 days unless Congress has approved authorization for military force.
The war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001 as a US response to the 9/11 attacks, is the longest war in US history.
Washington, D.C. — (RT) Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has vowed to delay a $700 billion defense bill until he is promised a vote on amending the use of military force in Afghanistan and Iraq, aiming to end the wars in the two countries.
The Senate on Monday took up the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), passing a motion in an 89-3 vote which allowed the legislation to proceed. That action essentially limits the procedural debate on the legislation and moves the NDAA to a full vote as early as Wednesday morning.
However, Paul made clear on his Twitter account that he had every intention of slowing down the passage of the NDAA – which sets forth the Pentagon’s budget and major programs for the next fiscal year beginning October 1 – until he was guaranteed a vote on amending the AUMF in Afghanistan in Iraq.
Tonight, the Senate is attempting to move forward with the Defense Bill. I am seeking an amendment to end the AUMF in Afghanistan and Iraq.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
“I will object to all procedural motions and amendments unless and until my amendment is made in order and we vote on these wars,” Paul wrote.
I will object to all procedural motions and amendments unless and until my amendment is made in order and we vote on these wars
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
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He went on to note the length of time that the US military has been present in Afghanistan and Iraq.
READ MORE: Paradigm Shift — Solar & Wind Jobs Growing 12 Times Faster Than US Economy
“We have been there for 16 years. It is time for them to end. It is time for Congress to vote on whether or not they should end.”
We have been there for 16 years. It is time for them to end. It is time for Congress to vote on whether or not they should end.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Paul noted that the Senate was in a “quorum call,” unable to act because of his protest.
The Senate is now in a quorum call, unable to act because of my protest. This is why I sit on the floor, in silent protest.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
He vowed to continue the protest until Congress agreed to vote on whether or not to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I will continue this protest and these objections for as long as needed to ensure Congress do its duty, and vote on ending these wars.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Paul noted that his protest was for the soldiers, adding that “hypocrites” are happy to “pretend concern over our constitutional duty to declare war” but are happy to “block any vote on ending any of our 7 current wars.”
Hypocrites, they pretend concern over our constitutional duty to declare war and then block any vote on ending any of our 7 current wars
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
The senator said that he “sits nearly alone,” but he is happy to fight by himself if needed.
In addition to Paul, the NDAA cloture motion was opposed by Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden.
READ MORE: Angry Protesters Storm FBI Building, Back Scared Cops into Corner
Paul took aim at both the “anti-war left” and the “conservative right” in his series of tweets.
“Where is the anti-war left demanding the wars end? Where is the constitional [sic] conservative right demanding Congress reclaim its war powers?” he wrote.
Where is the anti-war left demanding the wars end? Where is the constitional conservative right demanding Congress reclaim its war powers?
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Although an increasing number of lawmakers have been calling on Congress to pass a new AUMF for Afghanistan, Paul has largely been alone in his mission to put a deadline on Congress for a vote.
Paul did appear to strike at least a partial deal with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) about an hour after initially issuing his threats to delay the NDAA passage, with McConnell guaranteeing Paul four hours on Tuesday to state his AUMF reasoning on the Senate floor, the Washington Post reported.
Senate leaders have agreed not to try to end debate early, and have agreed to four hours of debate under my control to debate these wars.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 12, 2017
However, that wasn’t enough to get Paul to back down, with the senator later reiterating his plan to “continue to fight, and if necessary, object, to continue this debate, secure a vote, and force Congress to do its duty.”
The war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001 as a US response to the September 11 attacks, is the longest war in US history.
(ANTIMEDIA) Washington, D.C. — After 16 years at war, one U.S. senator appears to have had enough. Kentucky Senator Rand Paul sat on the floor of the United States Senate Monday night to protest the lack of oversight regarding the U.S. government’s foreign policy.
As the legislative body attempts to push through the $692 billion Defense Authorization Act, the Republican senator is trying to block the bill from moving forward until his colleagues are forced to vote on an amendment that would put an end to the 2001 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force.
Late Monday evening, the Senate passed a motion, to a vote of 89-3, which allowed the legislation to proceed. While the motion limits procedural debate on the legislation, Senator Paul was guaranteed four hours to be able to make his case on Tuesday.
A full vote on the NDAA could come as early as Wednesday morning, which means there is still time for your voice to be heard.
Paul wrote on Monday:
As Congress takes up the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), I will insist it vote on my amendment to sunset the 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force.
Why?
Because these authorizations to use military force are inappropriately being used to justify American warfare in 7 different countries. Sunsetting both AUMFs will force a debate on whether we continue the Afghanistan war, the Libya war, the Yemen war, the Syria war, and other interventions.
Our military trains our soldiers to be focused and disciplined, yet the politicians who send them to fight have for years ignored those traits when developing our foreign policy.
The result? Trillions spent in seemingly endless conflicts in every corner of the globe, while we find ourselves 16 years into the war in Afghanistan wondering what our purpose there even is any more, or if we’ll ever bring our troops home.
If we don’t get this rudderless foreign policy under control now, we’ll still be asking the same questions another 16 years down the road.
It’s time to demand the policymakers take their own jobs as seriously as the men and women we ask to risk it all for our nation.
You can contact your senators by calling (202) 224-3121 if you wish to stand with Rand to help put an end to the needless wars and U.S. occupation of foreign nations.
Tonight, the Senate is attempting to move forward with the Defense Bill. I am seeking an amendment to end the AUMF in Afghanistan and Iraq.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
I will object to all procedural motions and amendments unless and until my amendment is made in order and we vote on these wars
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
An attempt was made to run the clock on the bill overnight. I objected and am now sitting on the floor of the Senate to stop that
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Tonight I sit silently to protest the thousands of American soldiers who have died over the past decade in these wars.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
We have been there for 16 years. It is time for them to end. It is time for Congress to vote on whether or not they should end.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
The Senate is now in a quorum call, unable to act because of my protest. This is why I sit on the floor, in silent protest.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
I will continue this protest and these objections for as long as needed to ensure Congress do its duty, and vote on ending these wars.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
I sit for our soldiers young and brave. Sent to fight in distant lands in our forgotten, forever war
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Hypocrites, they pretend concern over our constitutional duty to declare war and then block any vote on ending any of our 7 current wars
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
I sit nearly alone, but that’s fine. I’ll fight by myself if need be. This is too important pic.twitter.com/PRymNnafi8
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
Where is the anti-war left demanding the wars end? Where is the constitional conservative right demanding Congress reclaim its war powers?
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2017
The Senate attempted to shorten debate & move forward without consideration & debate on my amendment to end our AUMF in Afghanistan and Iraq
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 12, 2017
Senate leaders have agreed not to try to end debate early, and have agreed to four hours of debate under my control to debate these wars.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 12, 2017
I will continue to fight, and if necessary, object, to continue this debate , secure a vote and force Congress to do its duty.
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 12, 2017
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