Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul claimed Tuesday that Donald Trump is “eager to be at war” and wondered why anyone “would elect or even consider voting” for him.
“If you had a meter that gauged temperament and you had to elect a commander-in-chief, would you want someone who jumps up and down and says they’re eager to be at war?” Paul asked supporters during a campaign stop in New Hampshire. “Would you want someone who says that the main problem we have is that we have not been eager enough to use our nuclear arsenal?”
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“Who would say such a thing? Let’s see, where’s a red hat that says ‘make America great again’ on it?” Paul continued, indicating his criticism was of the leading GOP candidate.
“Who would elect or even consider voting for someone who says the problem is we haven’t been eager enough to use our nuclear arsenal? That’s what [Trump’s] spokesman said last week and he has yet to repudiate it,” he noted.
Paul was likely referring to Trump’s national spokeswoman, Katrina Pierson, who recently told Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly: “What good does it do to have a good nuclear triad if you’re afraid to use it?”
The controversial comment followed Trump’s confusing response to a question about the nuclear triad during the final GOP debate of 2015.
“When [Trump] was asked what the nuclear triad was — that we have missiles by land, sea and air — he had no idea what it was,” Paul noted Tuesday. “But then his response was, now that he knows what it is, he’s unhappy we haven’t used it enough in the past.”
“Nobody in this country past the age of 10 would say they’re eager to use the nuclear arsenal, but that’s the leading Republican candidate right now,” he added.
Paul and Trump are sixth and second in the Washington Examiner‘s first presidential power rankings of 2016.
