“Rand Paul has now decided he wants to be a liberal Democrat,” charged Bill Kristol during a heated panel discussion of Paul’s filibuster on the Patriot Act.
Things started rather peaceably on ABC’s “This Week” with conservative commentator S.E. Cupp saying debates about privacy and drone strikes used to be Democrat territory but she thinks Republicans should have these debates.
Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., disagreed with her assertion that Democrats are not concerned about the Patriot Act. He said that he is working with Paul on legislation involving civil forfeiture and mandatory minimum sentencing. “On these basic core issues of freedom, we agree,” said Ellison.
That’s when things really heated up.
“I mean that seriously […] Rand Paul has now decided he wants to be a liberal democrat, undercut necessary intelligence collection, weaken the police officers and our intelligence services,” charged Bill Kristol.
“And Rand Paul thinks that’s going to sell in the Republican primary,” said Kristol disdainfully. “I think he’s deeply misguided about that. But I guess he sincerely believes it.”
“He certainly stands out,” said host Jon Karl, filling in for George Stephanopoulos.
“He does stand out,” repeated Kristol shaking his head.
“We keep looking at these issues as Right vs. Left,” said Vice Chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee Donna Brazile. “It’s really right vs. wrong.”
“I think on this issue Rand Paul understands that it is right to insure that our Constitutional rights are protected, our privacy rights are protected,” said Brazile. “And I don’t think, Bill, it is an issue that’s going to drive him out of the so-called conservative wing of the Republican Party.”
“How about protecting us from terrorists?” Kristol shot back. “There’s no claim that the meta-data collection violates our constitutional rights. Zero claim of that.”
Paul said repeatedly during his 10-hour-long filibuster on the Senate floor earlier this week, as well as in multiple interviews afterwards, that warrantless data collection violates the Constitution and that he would not stand for it.
“You act like this is our only tool in our … intelligence toolbox,” said Brazile. “It’s not. There are more ways to keep us safe and secure than by collecting all of this data.”
“And by the way, we could make everybody safe if we took away everybody’s rights, but that’s not America,” said Ellison. “In America, we fight crime, we fight terrorism with the Constitution in mind.”
“I like the idea that somebody on the Right, and people on the Left, are both saying what about the Constitution, what about privacy, and what about [presuming the] government leave us alone rather than being in the middle of our business,” added Ellison.
