Rand Paul gets pulled into the Trump whirl

[Brian4Liberty]

More accurate headline would be "Press attempts to force Rand into Trump Controversy"

Rand Paul gets pulled into the Trump whirl
By Anthony Terrell - 07/21/15

Donald Trump continues to overshadow all other 2016 Republican presidential candidates and Tuesday it was Rand Paul’s turn to get drawn into the mix.

The Kentucky senator had hoped to steer the conversation to a discussion of his plan to change the tax code — even sending a Tweet with images of Paul holding a chainsaw urging voters to watch a Fox News interview Tuesday to “find out what Rand Paul is up to.” But Trump’s dominance in the field meant Paul was prodded to explain GOP voters’ support for the reality TV star.

“It could be the free billion dollars of publicity he has gotten by being on every channel all the time,” Paul said with a smirk. “This is going to happen throughout the campaign. It’s going to be a long year and a half, year process.”

He continued, “I think what you’re going to find is, is that many people will, once their ideas are put out to the public, are going to have a chance. Right now, one individual is getting that chance. But I think you’ll find that people are going to look at all of the candidates before making a decision.”
...
Trump’s surge means he will be a prime target in the first GOP presidential debate on Aug. 6 — just more than two weeks away. Fox News, the network hosting the debate, has said only the top 10 candidates in the field can participate in the debate, using polling averages from the last five national polls. NBC’s First Read on Tuesday detailed the latest polling averages, which suggest Rick Santorum, John Kasich, Bobby Jindal, Carly Fiorina and Lindsey Graham would not make it into the debate if it were held today.

Paul’s campaign also unveiled a new ad Tuesday asking “How would you kill the tax code?” and featuring Jimi Hendrix’s version of the national anthem. The ad shows Paul — wearing a black “Detroit Republican” t-shirt and clear safety goggles — standing in front of a pile of burning papers, pushing a stack of papers into a wood chipper, and also cutting through a stack of paper with a chainsaw.

“We thought we’d have a contest at randpaul.com on how people would want to kill the tax code,” Paul said in the interview.
...
More: http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/rand-paul...he-trump-whirl

[Warlord]

Hey Brian, Rand is too smart to get involved

[Sola_Fide]

The first debate is in 2 weeks? Wow....time flies...

[squirl22]

Hey Brian, Rand is too smart to get involved

That's right; he handled that questioning perfectly.

[timosman]

Nicely done, sir. Nicely done.

[65fastback2+2]

love it...basically marginalized trump without taking a direct swing. now trump has nothing to fire back with

[timosman]

[AuH20]

I personally think that some of the Trump controversy would be beneficial for Rand's sagging numbers.

[65fastback2+2]

I personally think that some of the Trump controversy would be beneficial for Rand's sagging numbers.

if this was a year from now, sure

[Dianne]

That was nicely done. Let the idiots like Perry, Rubio and Jindal take Trump on... Rand's dog is not in this fight. Perfect answer.

[NoOneButPaul]

if this was a year from now, sure

Rand could be done by then. Iowa is 6 months away. If Rand isn't a factor by Super Tuesday it's over. We have 6-8 months left if his numbers don't improve. I hold out hope for the debates but so far his campaign has been lackluster.

[nikcers]

Rand could be done by then. Iowa is 6 months away. If Rand isn't a factor by Super Tuesday it's over. We have 6-8 months left if his numbers don't improve. I hold out hope for the debates but so far his campaign has been lackluster.

He is going on a trip to make blind people see again, he shut down the NSA phone metadata program for a month, he is firing up evangelical voters by pushing for bans on late term abortions, defunding planned parenthood in the highway bill. I think he is doing a great job considering the money he is running against. He just needs to earn the trust of the American people which is impossible, because you have to be crazy to trust a politician.

[CPUd]

Rand could be done by then. Iowa is 6 months away. If Rand isn't a factor by Super Tuesday it's over. We have 6-8 months left if his numbers don't improve. I hold out hope for the debates but so far his campaign has been lackluster.

I think it's a mistake for people to put everything on the debates, because after the first few debates when Rand is not getting an exponential spike in the polling numbers, people will be on here trying to campaign for Ted Cruz or whatever. Not that Rand is gonna suck, I expect he will have several great moments on stage over the next few months, but with 10 people out there, what people are going to be looking for is whether or not their preferred candidate is gonna say something stupid and get castrated by the press. This is how Rand gets his numbers up- by drawing support from the idiot of the month.

I agree if he's not #1 or close #2 in delegates after Super Tuesday, he will end his campaign and make sure he keeps his Senate seat.

[Jackie Moon]

More accurate headline would be "Press attempts to force Rand into Trump Controversy"

Agree. I held my breath for a second when that question came up, but Rand's response was great.

[LawnWake]

I'm glad to see that the campaign has prepared itself for the individual surges of each candidate.

[Warrior_of_Freedom]

I think it's a mistake for people to put everything on the debates, because after the first few debates when Rand is not getting an exponential spike in the polling numbers, people will be on here trying to campaign for Ted Cruz or whatever. Not that Rand is gonna suck, I expect he will have several great moments on stage over the next few months, but with 10 people out there, what people are going to be looking for is whether or not their preferred candidate is gonna say something stupid and get castrated by the press. This is how Rand gets his numbers up- by drawing support from the idiot of the month.

I agree if he's not #1 or close #2 in delegates after Super Tuesday, he will end his campaign and make sure he keeps his Senate seat.

I would rather dive into a pool of testicle-biting fish than vote for Cruz. I'd rather vote for a transgender TRUMP than vote for Cruz. No one here can see a wolf in sheep's clothing, can they?

[nikcers]

I would rather dive into a pool of testicle-biting fish than vote for Cruz. I'd rather vote for a transgender TRUMP than vote for Cruz. No one here can see a wolf in sheep's clothing, can they?

Before I vote for Cruz, Rand Paul has to be crowned king of the undead.

[The Rebel Poet]

I think it's a mistake for people to put everything on the debates, because after the first few debates when Rand is not getting an exponential spike in the polling numbers, people will be on here trying to campaign for Ted Cruz or whatever. Not that Rand is gonna suck, I expect he will have several great moments on stage over the next few months, but with 10 people out there, what people are going to be looking for is whether or not their preferred candidate is gonna say something stupid and get castrated by the press. This is how Rand gets his numbers up- by drawing support from the idiot of the month.

I agree if he's not #1 or close #2 in delegates after Super Tuesday, he will end his campaign and make sure he keeps his Senate seat.

I agree with all this. Additionally, if we work hard on pushing the "you'll love Rand when you see the debates," he will have a hurdle of high expectations. Even if he does above average, it won't be enough to attract Cruz supporters in such a situation.

[Dianne]

I think the debate will become the Donald Trump show. I doubt Rand will have much time at all to make any impression. We've got 10 people and little time per person and knowing the news media as I do, the hosts will try to stir up something between Trump and Rubio since Rubio has called for Trump's withdrawal from the race.

[EBounding]

I think the debate will become the Donald Trump show. I doubt Rand will have much time at all to make any impression. We've got 10 people and little time per person and knowing the news media as I do, the hosts will try to stir up something between Trump and Rubio since Rubio has called for Trump's withdrawal from the race.

Yeah, Rand probably won't have a chance to shine. Trump is punching all over the place and the other candidates are fighting back, so no one else will stand out either.

Rand should focus on Hillary during the debate and stay "neutral" on whatever Trump's saying. Trump isn't going to mention her because he doesn't mind if she wins the presidency.

[dude58677]

Yeah, Rand probably won't have a chance to shine. Trump is punching all over the place and the other candidates are fighting back, so no one else will stand out either.

Rand should focus on Hillary during the debate and stay "neutral" on whatever Trump's saying. Trump isn't going to mention her because he doesn't mind if she wins the presidency.

He should focus on Hillary and Obamacare(his expertise as a physician). Also focus on his voting record.

[Jan2017]

I think the debate will become the Donald Trump show. I doubt Rand will have much time at all to make any impression. We've got 10 people and little time per person and knowing the news media as I do, the hosts will try to stir up something between Trump and Rubio since Rubio has called for Trump's withdrawal from the race.

Could very well be -
but I definitely suspect there will now be more viewers tuning into this long-awaited and overdue first GOP debate - ratings are going to skyrocket,
which will be very good for Rand with a good and intelligent first impression for viewers that will see him for the first time, even if only for a few precious minutes.

Rand needs to be over-prepared - ready for any and all questions/comments not knowing which few might be actually directed to him.

[The Rebel Poet]

Yeah, Rand probably won't have a chance to shine. Trump is punching all over the place and the other candidates are fighting back, so no one else will stand out either.

Rand should focus on Hillary during the debate and stay "neutral" on whatever Trump's saying. Trump isn't going to mention her because he doesn't mind if she wins the presidency.

Yes, yes, and yes. This was Romney's strategy in 2012. He set himself up as the defeat-Obama candidate instead of the defeat-some-random-Republican candidate.

[Spikender]

Before I vote for Cruz, Rand Paul has to be crowned king of the undead.

King of the Undead is a kickass title, that'd make me vote for Rand even harder.

[FreedomProsperityPeace]

Rand needs to be over-prepared - ready for any and all questions/comments not knowing which few might be actually directed to him.

Agreed. Game plans are going to go out the window. He could be attacked by a few of these bottom-feeders, like Christie or Graham, and a plan to stay neutral gets torpedoed.