Having just recently returned from Russia, Republican Senator Rand Paul was seen boarding Air Force One today in Morristown, New Jersey with Donald Trump. Given that, during the campaign, Trump had referred to Paul as “a spoiled brat without a properly functioning brain,” and that the Senator from Kentucky had countered by calling Trump “delusional,” and less qualified than “a speck of dirt” to be president, this, I’m sure, may be shocking to some. The truth, however, is that Paul has emerged as one of Donald Trump’s most loyal defenders since the election, especially on issues relating to Russia. [It’s funny how Russia keeps coming up, isn’t it?]
When Donald Trump traveled to Iceland a month ago to meet in private with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, causing an uproar among leaders of both parties, Paul was one of the few in Congress to come forward to praise the President. And he’s spoken out against the Mueller investigation on several occasions, attributing it to what he calls “Trump derangement syndrome,” and saying that “special prosecutors have too much power and that we really shouldn’t have them.” And, as we now know, when he left for Russia about nine days ago, Paul carried with him a letter, written by Donald Trump, to give to Putin’s representatives upon landing.
So, just to recap, Donald Trump went to meet with Putin about four weeks ago, over the objections of the intelligence community, who are unanimous in their belief that the Kremlin not only interfered in the 2016 election, but are preparing to do so again during the midterms. And, since this private meeting between Trump and Putin, during which no other U.S. officials were allowed to be present, several Congressional Republicans have traveled to the Kremlin, for reasons that aren’t terribly clear. And the most recent elected official to do so was Rand Paul, who came back talking about how we needed to lift sanctions against some of Russia’s most powerful leaders. And, today, he traveled with Donald Trump aboard Air Force One, where they no doubt discussed Paul’s meetings with Kremlin officials.
I’m not suggesting that Rand Paul is being used as a courier between Trump and Putin, but, when you look objectively at the facts, it’s not difficult to see why people might think that something odd is going on, going so far as to wonder if, back in in 2016, when the Russians hacked the accounts of both Democrats and Republicans, the Kremlin may have found something to use against the Senator. [Some on the left, perhaps inspired by the insanity of QAnon, are even speculating that the Senator’s beating outside his home a few months ago may be related.]
Personally, I think it’s just as likely that Paul isn’t being blackmailed, but merely likes what Putin, as the global poster boy for the white, christian ethnostate, is doing, and sees an opportunity through Trump to enact cruel, racist and authoritarian policies that otherwise never would have passed through Congress.
I don’t think, in the whole scheme of things, it really matters what Paul’s motivation is… whether he’s been blackmailed into assisting the Kremlin, or whether he’s doing it of his own free will. What matters is that, as John McCain said not too long ago on the floor of the Senate, “The Senator from Kentucky is now working for Vladimir Putin.” And we need to stop it.
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Washington Times: “Rep. Dana Rohrabacher recruits Rand Paul in bid to arrange Trump meeting regarding WikiLeaks”
Read more:
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/oct/11/dana-rohrabacher-recruits-rand-paul-bid-arrange-tr/
Former House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy caught on tape in 2016, during a private conversation on Capitol Hill with his fellow GOP leaders:
“There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump.”
Read more:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/house-majority-leader-to-colleagues-in-2016-i-think-putin-pays-trump/2017/05/17/515f6f8a-3aff-11e7-8854-21f359183e8c_story.html
The New Yorker on the role Assanage played on behalf of Russia.
Read more:
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/what-the-latest-mueller-indictment-reveals-about-wikileaks-ties-to-russia-and-what-it-doesnt
Rand Paul was also the person who suggested to Donald Trump that they revoke the security clearance of John Brennan.
It was Rand Paul who proposed stripping anyone who dares to call Trump’s actions “treasonous” of their security clearance, while Rand is actively cozying up to the Russians. It may have been Trump’s decision, but whose IDEA was it to begin with? #Russia
https://twitter.com/JuliaDavisNews/status/1031174564355760128
I wound’t be at all surprised during season three of this series that both Lindsay Graham and Rand Paul had been coerced into service by Putin.
We are coming up on the 17th anniversary of our invasion of Afghanistan (in case you missed it, we are currently loosing as the Taliban carries out its summer offensive and our drug/war lord allies turn and run). Think about this for a second. If we still had a draft, kids who were less than one when the war started would be registering–but since we rely upon an economic draft who cares? All you liberals out there screaming at the Russians because our “Intelligence community” says they are the bad guys, never learn. How many war criminals are our “intelligence community” protecting?
G. Bush did say this was going to be a generational conflict-seems like we are almost there-Trump did run as a peace candidate. Though like everything else about him, that too was a fraud.
Republicans may not turn on Trump, but plenty of them are running away from him.
https://politicalwire.com/2018/08/19/the-blue-wave-is-obscuring-the-red-exodus/
Paul: “Hello, Mr. President. As you requested, here’s the master copy of the pee-pee tape, direct from Putin’s vault.”
Trump: “Excellent, Rand … good work! As I promised, I will now appoint you to be Vice President in my second, third, and fourth terms … just as soon as I dump that low-energy Pence …”
Paul: “Praise be to Ayn!”
Rand Paul on Fox News today: “James @Comey has so tarnished the reputation of the @FBI that most people would think, ‘Well, gosh, if I go in and maybe that they hate President Trump and because I’m a Republican they’re going to hate me, too.'”
Speaking of Russian hacks against Republicans for the purposes of blackmail, did you see this in today’s NYT?
“The Russian military intelligence unit that sought to influence the 2016 election appears to have a new target: conservative American think tanks that have broken with President Trump and are seeking continued sanctions against Moscow, exposing oligarchs or pressing for human rights.”
The Weekly Standard: “Rand Paul, Russian Stooge”
Read more:
https://www.weeklystandard.com/stephen-f-hayes/rand-paul-russian-stooge
Let’s conduct the mass treason trials – then promptly line these traitor bastards up for the firing squad. Make America America Again.
Lindsey Graham said that he was hacked by the Russians, which might explain his behavior. My guess is that Paul was hacked as well, although he always has had a boner for the Kremlin. His dad too.
https://www.cnn.com/2016/12/14/politics/lindsey-graham-hacking-russia-donald-trump/index.html
Libertarians for Putin is like vegetarians for lamb chops.