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Rand Paul for President, Inc.
Rand Paul for President, Inc.
Issue Videos - "Dr. Rand Paul on...
17 videos from April 7, 2015.
Civil Liberties
(0:47) +
The Founding Fathers warned of a Federal Government bent on usurping
the power, rights and privacy of its states and citizens. The list of
federal overreach is alarming: a proposed National ID Card,
establishing secret courts and utilizing warrantless searches, and
betraying the medical privacy of ordinary citizens. We must defend our
4th Amendment rights. The Federal Government has overstepped its
limited powers. I thoroughly believe that America can prosper, preserve
personal liberty, and repel national security threats without intruding
into the personal lives of its citizens.
Criminal Justice
Reform (0:40) +
Martin Luther King spoke of two Americas. He described them as “two
starkly different American experiences that exist side by side.” I have
seen the other America in my trips to Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago,
Appalachia. Liberal policies have failed our inner cities and our poor
communities. Our schools are not equal and the poverty gap continues to
widen. It is time for a new way, a way predicated on opportunity and
freedom. We must break down the wall that separates us from “the other
America.”
Education
(0:56) +
As the size of the Department of Education increases, test scores and
scholastic performances have decreased. More money, more bureaucracy,
and more government intervention are eroding our educational standards.
I believe in more local control over education, where states,
localities, and parents can play a much more significant role in their
children’s schooling. That’s one of the reasons I want to abolish the
Department of Education. I oppose Common Core. I think that local
schools should develop their own standards and encourage innovation. If
you have a national curriculum and rules, you’ll never get new ideas.
Once education is nationalized, one person can insert bias into the
curriculum. And, that’s why I oppose Common Core.
Energy
(0:54) +
The United States is poised to become energy independent. For decades,
our country relied heavily on imports, making us vulnerable to hostile
regimes and supply disruptions. Today, creativity and competition are
driving our domestic energy sector forward allowing the U.S. to access
abundant resources here at home. Washington’s bureaucratic regulations,
corporate subsidies, and excessive taxation have made it difficult for
energy developers to take advantage of these new forms of cheap and
clean energy. If we encourage energy freedom and new technologies, we
can lower energy costs for families, small businesses and American
industry. Washington politicians and bureaucrats must stop limiting our
energy choices so domestic energy production can grow.
The Federal Budget
(1:30) +
We borrow a million dollars a minute. Our $18 trillion dollar debt has
become an anchor. Some economists argue that the burden of debt costs
us a million jobs a year. I fear that this enormous burden of debt
threatens our currency. I fear
that another 2008-style panic is possible, and I fear that this degree
of debt is an imminent threat to our national security. You cannot
project power from bankruptcy court. Washington politicians are busting
the budget, looting the treasury,
and bankrupting the nation. Lobbyists and special interests, game the
system, promote pork barrel spending, and enrich themselves at the
expense of the taxpayer and future generations. We can defeat the
Washington Machine with term limits for Congress and
lobby reform for special interests. We can stop wasteful spending by
balancing the budget by law. We can cut over regulation by requiring
Congress to approve every major
rule proposed by the Executive Branch, which has an annual economic
impact of 100 million dollars or more before it can be forced on the
American people. My plan balances the budget in five years, without
relying on revenue
increases. Restoring our fiscal house will revitalize America’s economy
and
strengthen our national defense.
Government Reform
(0:52) +
Our Constitution provides for an elected executive, not a King. In the
United States, Congress makes the laws, not the President. As
President, I will restore the Constitutional balance our Founder’s
intended and repeal President Obama’s unilateral, illegal executive
orders. To fix Washington we must end business as usual. I believe
Congress should read every bill they pass. And, Congress should live
under the laws they pass. That’s why I have a Constitutional Amendment
that says Congress shall pass no law that exempts themselves. And, to
change the culture of Washington, we should pass term limits – and send
career politicians packing.
Government
Regulations (0:22) +
Regulations cost our economy over two trillion dollars a year. I
believe we should repeal two regulations for every new one proposed.
Government does have a role in protecting the environment, but we must
have a balanced approach that also protects the economy.
Health Care (0:57)
+
President Obama’s fundamental promise that if you like your doctor, you
can keep your doctor, was a lie. Now, millions of Americans are now
facing the real-life consequences of Obamacare, including dropped
coverage and higher premiums. Obamacare puts big government between you
and your doctor. And, when government gets in the way, health care
costs rise, patient choice is lost, and medical innovation is
diminished. I support making all medical expenses tax deductible,
allowing insurance to be bought across state lines, and empowering all
citizens to have access to Health Savings Accounts. As a doctor, I
promise you this: I will make it my mission to heal this nation,
reverse the course of Obamacare and work to repeal every last bit of
it.
Immigration (0:30) +
[Music] Paul:
I
do
not
support
amnesty. I support legal
immigration and recognize that those who seek the freedom to make a
life for themselves have enriched the country. However, millions of
illegal immigrants are crossing our border without our knowledge and
causing a clear threat to our national security. We should secure our
border immediately, increase border patrols, and build a border fence.
Internet Freedom
(0:55) +
A revolution is occurring around the world. It is occurring in the
private sector, not the public sector. The technology revolution has
created vast new markets where none previously existed. Internet and
digital technology has unlocked individual self-empowerment, innovation
and the creation of new markets in ways never before imagined in human
history. But big government wants to centralize, intervene, subsidize,
micromanage, and regulate the Internet and digital commerce. I oppose
any attempt by Government to tax, regulate, monitor or control the
Internet. This is our technology revolution… and government needs to
get out of the way.
Israel
(0:44) +
I’m proud to support Israel, America’s longtime friend and ally in the
Middle East. Israeli café’s and buses are bombed, towns are victimized
by hundreds of rockets, and its citizens are attacked by Palestinian
terrorists. It’s time we took a stand for Israel by standing up to the
enemies of Israel, the enemies that murder Israeli citizens. That’s why
I proposed a bill called the “Stand with Israel Act” to cut off the
flow of U.S. taxpayer dollars to the Palestinian Authority. As long as
the Palestinian Authority is allied with Hamas not one more tax dollar
should flow to them.
National Defense
(0:52) +
The primary Constitutional function of the federal government is
national defense, bar none. We need a national defense robust enough to
defend against all attacks, modern enough to deter all enemies, and
nimble enough to defend our vital interests. Our freedom is threatened
from outside our borders. We must protect ourselves against jihadists
without losing who we are as a people in the process. It angers me to
see mobs burning our flag and chanting ‘death to America’ in countries
that receive our foreign aid. That must end--not one penny more
should go to these haters of America. Like Ronald Reagan, I believe in
peace through strength.
Privacy (0.59)
+
We must remember that our rights are unlimited, un-enumerated, and
given to us by God. You have civil liberties… and you have a right to
privacy, but those rights are under assault by an arrogant,
out-of-control government. Your rights are who you are, your rights are
what you are, your rights are in your DNA – and the government can,
quite frankly, get over it. From your records, the government can tell
whether you drink, whether you smoke, whether you gamble, what books
you read, what magazines you read, whether you see a psychiatrist, or
what medications you take. Are we to trust government to collect and
hold every American’s phone records? I believe your phone records are
yours. I say the phone records of law-abiding citizens are none of
their damn business. I believe you have a right to privacy, and it
should be protected.
The Sanctity of
Life (0:48) +
Can a nation conceived in liberty carry its head
high if it denies protection to the youngest and most vulnerable of its
citizens? Can a country founded on God-given rights continue to thrive
without understanding that life is a precious, a gift from our Creator?
It is the duty of government to protect life as a right guaranteed
under the Constitution. I believe there will come a time when we are
all judged on whether or not we took a stand in defense of life from
the moment of conception until our last natural breath. I promise you I
will always take a stand for life, because liberty cannot be protected
if life is not
The Second
Amendment (0:40) +
There are too many in Washington who give lip service to the Second
Amendment, but vote to restrict gun ownership. I do not support any
proposed gun control which would limit the right to gun ownership.
Washington needs leaders that not only understand the 2nd Amendment but
the entire Bill of Rights. And, gun rights advocates need to know that
the 2nd Amendment is only as good as the 4th Amendment. If we are not
free from unreasonable and warrantless searches, no one’s guns are
safe. I will always remain vigilant and fight against infringements on
our 2nd Amendment rights.
Social Security
(0:47) +
Years of wasteful spending by career politicians in Washington have
left the Social Security trust fund six trillion dollars in the hole.
The trust fund will be fully exhausted in the next few decades, and by
that point all beneficiaries receiving Social Security will experience
an immediate 25 percent cut in benefits. Millions of Americans depend
on Social Security and if we are to keep our promises to them, we can
no longer ignore the fiscal state of this critical program. I support
proposals that would fully fund the shortfall in Social Security while
preserving the system for seniors and implementing reforms to save the
program for younger generations.
Taxes (1:05)
+
I propose we cut taxes for everyone -- rich and poor. I want to shrink
the Federal government and expand the private sector. Our Founder’s
never intended for the tax code to be used as a weapon against US
citizens. Burdensome tax regulations hurt small businesses and slow
down our economy. Politicians and lobbyists tinker with the tax code so
they can pick winners and losers. It’s time to simplify the tax code
and downsize the IRS so we can unleash an economic boom that creates
millions of jobs, boosts wages, and expands opportunity for all. My tax
plan will get the IRS out of your life, and out of the way of every job
creator in America. My plan will also cut spending and balance the
budget in just five years. It will be the largest tax cut in American
history…a tax cut that will leave more money in the paychecks of every
worker in America.
Notes: It is nice to see
issue-focused videos. These could serve as starting points for further
discussion.