BOULDER, Colo. — Sen. Rand Paul plans to jet back to Washington after Wednesday evening’s presidential debate to filibuster the bipartisan budget deal that Republican congressional leaders negotiated with President Obama.
The bill, which includes a suspension of the federal borrowing limit until after the next president is inaugurated in 2017, was expected to clear the House Wednesday and head to the Senate for consideration. Paul, R-Ky., wouldn’t say whether he would seek to delay passage beyond Nov. 3, when Washington’s ability to borrow money to pay the government’s bills will expire.
Paul was also coy when asked by reporters if he would lodge an old-school talking filibuster, as he did to protest reauthorization of federal domestic surveillance powers, or simply use his power as a senator to object to the legislation and force additional procedural votes. Paul opposes the bipartisan budget and debt ceiling deal because it would increase spending, although it would lock reforms to entitlement programs.
“It’s the worst piece of legislation I’ve seen since I’ve been in Congress,” said Paul, who was elected in 2010. “I’m not going to make it easy on them because I think it’s terrible for the country.
Paul was preparing for the third televised Republican debate, set for cablecast at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on CNBC, from the University of Colorado’s Coors Events Center. The faceoff is slated to focus on jobs and the economy, and Paul, lagging the polls, is hoping to use the event to boost his prospects by making the case that the he is the only true fiscal conservative in the race.
The senator dismissed suggestions that his campaign was on the ropes, saying he expects the polls to continue to fluctuate.
“I’d like every American to know that I’m one who says: ‘Enough’s enough. We shouldn’t add any more debt. We should be using the debt ceiling to control spending,'” Paul said, during a press conference on the University of Colorado campus, after meeting with a group of about 20 students who are supporting his presidential bid. “I also want everybody to know that I’m the only fiscal conservative on the stage. And the reason that’s true, is that you’re not fiscally conservative if you’re for unlimited spending for the military. We have to control spending across the board.”
Paul isn’t the only Republican contender opposed to the budget and debt ceiling deal. Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida also intend to oppose the package. But Paul’s support for keeping military spending down, despite myriad foreign national security challenges facing the U.S., does set him apart from most other Republican candidates, who back a bigger Pentagon budget but reduced domestic spending.
Paul was sitting in eighth place nationally among GOP voters, with 3.4 percent in the RealClearPolitics.com average, and ranked sixth in the Washington Examiner’s presidential power rankings. The senator’s hardcore supporters, like University of Colorado aeropsace engineering major Zach McConnel, aren’t without concern about the state of the campaign. But they remain optimistic that Paul’s candidacy has legs. Colorado is a caucus state, which could benefit Paul if he’s still viable by the time the Centennial State votes. Candidates with small blocs of highly committed voters tend to excel in caucus elections.
“Obviously polls matter,” said McConnel, 21, an organizer in the campus group Students for Rand. “We’re going to be trying as hard as we can here on campus. We’ll be campaigning hard for the next year and doing everything we can as well as promoting liberty and the Constitution.”
