Sen Rand Paul Takes On ‘Eye Roll’ Caucus to Oppose Data Gathering in Patriot Act

With his presidential campaign flagging, Sen Rand Paul (R-KY), known for a strong libertarian bent and a penchant for dramatics, understood on May 31 that he had to make good on his “Stand With Rand” sloganeering. He needed to block a vote on the Senate floor to extend the vast surveillance authority the government has used since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. It was a task he performed with relish, and he succeeded, at least temporarily.

The Republican establishment seemingly rose as one in umbrage after he faulted Republican hawks for the birth of the radical Islamic State, or ISIS. C-Span cameras caught one of those hawks, Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC), rolling his eyes mockingly on the Senate floor as Sen Paul denounced the post-9/11 national security state. Rand’s stand was a lonely one. His tactics were publicly shunned by some of his Republican colleagues, and he did not attend a Republican strategy session before a critical vote to move forward on a replacement surveillance bill passed by the House.