I keep forgetting that Rand Paul is running for president, which is kind of sad. I mean, at one time, I thought it would be at least interesting to see if he could put together a new kind of coalition of folks who might be able to help him be as competitive as his father was, if not significantly more so. You know, he could have held on to most of the Ron Paul supporters and gone after the youth vote on things like marijuana legalization and criminal justice reform. He could have poached some of the Edward Snowden acolytes who are consumed with dread about drones and electronic surveillance. He could have brought on some folks who are fully supportive of a truly more humble foreign policy that entails far less intimate involvement in the Middle East. He could have called for massively reduced Pentagon-spending and won some support from unexpected quarters.
But I don’t think he ever had the balls to buck the Republican Party’s orthodoxies in any kind of consistent and clear way. He didn’t have a vision or the work ethic to build a new coalition of voters or to inspire masses of people to get involved in politics for the first time.
We’re seeing Bernie Sanders have some success with this kind of unorthodox campaign, but he’s actually got some energy and a willingness to stick to his guns.
I think Paul is just too lazy to do the work and he’s too lacking in imagination. It’s really a disservice to the issues he claims to care about.
In any case, when he drops out, I don’t think anyone will even notice.
I don’t think it a shame at all.
The libertarian children got a candidate just like themselves: Shallow, self-centered, lazy, entitled.
Trump will notice just long enough to insult and mock him one last time.
Aside from Trump’s awesome “puppets?” tweet, my favorite moment of his campaign so far was when he started off the second debate by saying, in effect: “first things first. Rand Paul sucks!”
When Trump is right, he’s right. Rand was never more than a preening fraud high on the smell of his own farts.
Isn’t Paul now down in Lindsay Graham territory?
btw Tarheel, I assume you would have seen this, but just in case
http://gothamist.com/2015/09/23/abu_ghraib_cop_lombardo.php
via Adam Johnson and Carne Ross
https://twitter.com/carneross
Figures.
Oh no. Among GOP voters, Paul still has an acceptability rating of 35% and is only unacceptable to 58%. Graham’s at 16% acceptable and 67% unacceptable.
Plenty of time left to make himself look like more of a fool. Daddy didn’t have to worry about that because he had a lock on his House seat. A shame Democrats squandered Grimes against the invulnerable McConnell. She could have been a contender against a wounded POTUS wannabe that limps home expecting to win a second Senate term.
Maybe he and George Pataki could make it twofer.
This is another example of the insightful sort of analysis I come here for. It’s amazing to me that you’re not famous by now, Martin, because I think you’re smarter than many of the folks who are.
Paul has tried to have it both ways and it comes across as pandering to everyone because that’s so obviously what it is. His only true passion is for Aquabuddha. He’s a senator only because his daddy was a senator. Really, he’s just another spoiled rich kid.
Thanks.
His daddy was a representative, though, not a senator.
Yes, of course. I guess Rand seems like such a ninny, it’s hard to fathom that he didn’t just take daddy’s place. But daddy refused to run and suggested Rand take his place so it was his status as son-of-Ron that got him where he is. There too he played this game of claiming to stand for all things to Republican and Libertarian alike. He was lucky Grayson had voted for Clinton years earlier and fessed up and that the Republican rank and file had been so turned off to political insiders (and bought the BS that Paul wasn’t one).
The lack of work ethic, that Boo points out, is a major factor imo. Actually kind of hard to believe he’s so work challenged, but sure looks like it. compare Al Gore, for example, for a different kind of son of privilege politician. Agree with you about Booman’s analysis and this blog.
As I said in my diary:
-Trump in a morning tweet.
My first thought was he’s playing the guy, not wanting too many to drop out too soon. Of course Rand shot right back, claiming to piss longer, harder, higher, faster.
That’s a picture I don’t need in my head.