Just returned from Rand Paul speech 1/15

[bgky4paul]

I just returned from the meeting of the Bowling Green Evening Lion's Club, where Rand Paul was the guest speaker. There were 6 of us from the local meetup group in attendance. Here is a rundown of what he talked about.

He spoke for a few minutes about the program he runs for the working poor to get eye exams and glasses. He does this in his office. He even does some free eye surgery if he can do it in the office, or if he can get one of the hospitals to agree to it. He talked about how the American healthcare system is not set up for people w/out health insurance, and how these people are often treated poorly for not having insurance.

Lots of talk about foreign policy. All the usual talking points. No new ground covered.

Gave a shoutout to the grassroots, mentioned the blimp. Said that even if the campaign tells the grassroots not to do something, they do it anyway.

Talked about how amazing it is that his dad gets the votes he gets, when you look at the disproportionality of the media attention to the other candidates.

Took a question about the mechanics of the debates. He said at the very first Republican debate, the candidates drew straws for position. Then in the next 5 debates, the media placed the candidates in their positions, with Romney, McCain, and Giuliani always in the middle. He also said that the time was allotted with the pre-ordained "frontrunners" to get a guarantee of twice as much time as the other candidates. So if Ron Paul gets 7 or 8 minutes, Giuliani always gets 15.

I asked about the post-debate interviews last Thursday night, whether RP was excluded or if he turned down the interview. He replied with, "I asked the same question. I think my dad turned them down. Hannity hasn't been very fair to him."

Afterwards a few of us were talking to him, gauging how likely it is for Rand to run for office. We talked about how great it would be to knock of Mitch McConnell. We agreed that would be nearly impossible. He mentioned that a local congressional race would cost about $1 million. He was very cagey, never saying whether or not he would run. He is obviously very tempted though.

All in all, a great night. Rand would be a wonderful candidate, and I would love the opportunity to have my hometown deliver him to Congress.

[alexa doherty]

Rand should eventually run if he is a good speaker and has an aggressive streak.