Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has already made it clear that he does not stand with Rand, but now the 2008 presidential nominee is openly attacking Paul and his libertarian leaning allies.
“It’s always the wacko birds on right and left that get the media megaphone,” McCain told the Huffington Post. “I think it can be harmful if there is a belief among the American people that those people are reflective of the views of the majority of Republicans. They’re not.”
McCain listed Sen. Paul Rand (R-Ky.), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) as just a few examples of these “wacko birds. ”
After Paul spent almost 13 hours filibustering CIA Director John Brennan’s nomination over President Barack Obama’s drone program Wednesday, McCain took the Senate floor the next morning to denounce the Kentucky senator.
The McCain said Paul “should know better” and that his distress over the drones killing American citizens on American soil was “unfounded,” adding that his filibuster as a whole was not “helpful to the American people.”
Despite McCain’s claims, Paul finally got Attorney General Eric Holder to state in writing Thursday that the administration would not bomb non-combatant Americans who did not represent an immediate threat. Paul’s efforts were praised by other fellow Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who said he was “proud” of his fellow Kentucky senator, and Republican National Committee Chair Reince Preibus, who urged the Senate’s Republican members to stand with Rand during the filibuster.
If you can’t take it, don’t dish it out. Justin Amash fired back at McCain on twitter, noting the Senators whereabouts during the filibuster.
Sen McCain called @senrandpaul @sentedcruz & I "wacko birds." Bravo, Senator. You got us. Did you come up with that at #DinnerWithBarack?
— Justin Amash (@repjustinamash) March 8, 2013
Oooh, burn.
About Laura Byrne
Facebook
Google+
