{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "is_view": false, "human_description_en": "where chamber = \"Senate\", party = \"Republican\" and year = 2017 sorted by date descending", "rows": [["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-releases-special-festivus-edition-waste-report/", "Dr. Rand Paul Releases Special \u2018Festivus\u2019 Edition of \u2018The Waste Report\u2019", "2017-12-22", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 22, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released a special \u201cFestivus: Airing of Grievances for 2017\u201d edition of The Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nIn its third year, Dr. Paul\u2019s Festivus Waste Report again shines a spotlight on wasteful spending and misplaced priorities that put taxpayers on the hook for the federal government\u2019s bad management. Dr. Paul\u2019s series has, over three years, documented approximately $6 billion in wasteful spending.\n\nThis year\u2019s edition also includes excerpts from \u201cWorldwide Waste: How the Government is Using and Losing Your Money Abroad,\u201d a 2017 Waste Report series that documented more than $3 billion of wasteful, taxpayer-funded endeavors overseas.\n\nHighlights from the Festivus Waste Report include the IRS failing to recover over $76 million in \u201cunallowable expenses\u201d to government contractors, and the Department of Transportation spending $1.5 million on a park bathroom in Queens, NY.\n\nYou can find Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cFestivus: Airing of Grievances for 2017\u201d edition of The Waste Report, which totals up over $560 million in waste, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-wyden-lee-and-leahy-release-joint-statement-fisa-reform/", "Sens. Paul, Wyden, Lee, and Leahy Release Joint Statement on FISA Reform", "2017-12-21", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 21, 2017\n\nContact: Sergio Gor (Paul), 202-224-4343\n\nKeith Chu (Wyden), 202-224-3789\n\nConn Carroll (Lee), 202-224-5444\n\nDavid Carle (Leahy), 202-224-3693\n\nSens. Paul, Wyden, Lee, and Leahy Release Joint Statement on FISA Reform\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) released the following statement opposing any long-term extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) without the serious and public debate the American people deserve and should expect from their elected representatives:\n\n\u201cCongress should not vote on any long-term reauthorization of Section 702 until both the House and Senate have fully debated meaningful reforms in 2018.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-applauds-passage-tax-reform/", "Dr. Rand Paul Applauds Passage of Tax Reform", "2017-12-20", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 20, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Early Wednesday morning, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) released the following statement after voting for the Conference Report on tax reform:\n\n\u201cToday, the Senate delivered on its promise of allowing Americans to keep more of their hard-earned money, a commitment I worked to hold it to by fighting to make sure the bill became a bigger and better tax cut and included repeal of the Obamacare individual mandate.\n\n\u201cI applaud this reform, which will lead to economic growth, greater business investment, and new opportunities for the American people. As we approach a new year, I look forward to continuing the fight for limited government, lower taxes, and individual liberty for all.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-asdfa/", "Dr. Rand Paul Introduces FATCA Repeal Amendment to Tax Reform Bill", "2017-12-18", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nNovember 30, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Continuing his efforts to protect the privacy of Americans\u2019 financial records, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has introduced an amendment to H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, to repeal the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).\n\nAs we work to reduce the massive tax burden Washington has placed on the American people, we should also stand up for their Fourth Amendment right to privacy by rejecting the bulk collection of the financial information of Americans who live overseas,\u201d said Dr. Paul.\n\nEnacted by Congress in 2010, FATCA mandates that foreign financial institutions regularly report private financial information on American citizens living abroad under threat of a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source income. The law has impeded international financial transactions and investment by leading many foreign banks to simply deny services to Americans rather than navigate the burdens and costs of compliance.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-applauds-first-full-scale-defense-department-audit/", "Dr. Rand Paul Applauds First Full-Scale Defense Department Audit", "2017-12-14", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 14, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) issued the following statement regarding the Pentagon\u2019s recent announcement of the first full-scale financial audit of the Department of Defense (DoD), with audits to be conducted annually going forward:\n\n\u201cOur men and women on the frontlines deserve to know their funding is being used as intended and to the maximum possible effectiveness. Unfortunately, the department charged with carrying out our greatest constitutional responsibility has set the lowest possible standard for accountability. I applaud President Trump\u2019s administration for changing this course, and I will keep working to ensure this is only the start of reform,\u201d said Dr. Paul.\n\nAs part of a series on the DoD in 2013, Reuters stated that it had \u201cfound that the Pentagon is largely incapable of keeping track of its vast stores of weapons, ammunition and other supplies; thus it continues to spend money on new supplies it doesn\u2019t need and on storing others long out of date.\u201d\n\nSince his arrival in the U.S. Senate, Dr. Paul has been a leading voice for increasing fiscal responsibility at the DoD, including working with former Senator Tom Coburn to introduce the Audit the Pentagon Act, which he has continued to support in the 114th and 115th Congresses.\n\nDr. Paul has also called attention to waste and mismanagement of funds at the DoD through his Waste Report, which has covered stories including millions of dollars in equipment and parts failing to reach their destination or going unaccounted for and a $6 million renovation of a Fort Belvoir dining facility that closed less than a year later.\n\nYou can read these Waste Reports below:\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-icymi-dr-rand-paul-stands-fourth-amendment-demands-surveillance-reform-0/", "ICYMI: Dr. Rand Paul Stands Up for the Fourth Amendment, Demands Surveillance Reform", "2017-12-13", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 13, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Earlier this week, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) joined Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) at The George Washington University to call for protecting Americans\u2019 civil liberties and restraining government overreach by reforming the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).\n\nYou can watch Dr. Paul\u2019s opening remarks at the event HERE.\n\nIn October, Sens. Paul and Wyden introduced S. 1997, the USA Rights Act, which reforms Section 702 of FISA to end warrantless backdoor searches of Americans\u2019 calls, emails, texts, and other communications that are routinely swept up under a program designed to spy on foreign targets.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dancing-cars/", "Dancing with the Cars", "2017-12-12", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 7, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nDancing with the Cars\n\nDr. Rand Paul Releases Latest \u2018Waste Report\u2019\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today,U.S. Senator Rand Paul released his latest Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nFollowing up on a 2016 Waste Report highlighting the U.S. State Department helping to fund documentary promotion internationally, this week\u2019s Waste Report examines productions taxpayers are spending tens of thousands of dollars through the National Endowment for the Arts to help directly support.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-announces-opposition-budget-busting-cr/", "Dr. Rand Paul Announces Opposition to Budget-Busting CR", "2017-12-12", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 12, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\n\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) announced he will oppose an end-of-the-year Continuing Resolution (CR) that continues recklessly spending the American people\u2019s money.\n\n\u201cI cannot in good conscience vote to add more to the already massive $20 trillion debt,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI promised Kentucky to vote against reckless, deficit spending, and I will do just that. Tax cuts \u2014 people keeping more of their money \u2014 are never the problem. The problem is spending. We should obey our rules, stop the deficit spending, and shrink government.\u201d\n\nYou can watch Dr. Paul announce his opposition to the CR HERE.\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s stand for common-sense budgeting regarding the end-of-the-year CR is the latest in a series of efforts this year to stop Washington\u2019s runaway spending, including working to offset emergency funds by reducing waste in existing programs and forcing the Senate to vote on a budget that would balance by 2024.\n\nIn March, Dr. Paul, as chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee for the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee (HSGAC), held a hearing entitled, \u201cThe Effect of Borrowing on Federal Spending,\u201d which included testimony from former Comptroller General of the United States David Walker.\n\nIn September, Dr. Paul\u2019s subcommittee held a hearing on end-of-the-year spending binges in federal agencies, and he introduced legislation to pay bonuses to federal employees that identify unneeded or surplus funds, a bill that would also ensure that 90% of the savings are automatically directed toward deficit reduction.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-hhs-nominee-convince-me-you-have-plan-safely-reimport-drugs-or-i-cannot-support/", "Dr. Rand Paul to HHS Nominee: Convince Me You Have a Plan to Safely Reimport Drugs, or I Cannot Support Your Nomination", "2017-12-12", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nNovember 29, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nDr. Rand Paul to HHS Nominee: Convince Me You Have a Plan to Safely Reimport Drugs, or I Cannot Support Your Nomination\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 During today\u2019s U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) stated that he cannot support the nomination of Alex Azar to be the next Secretary of Health and Human Services unless he can convince Dr. Paul that he is open to the idea of reimporting prescription drugs and can lay out a plan to do so safely.\n\n\u201cIf you\u2019re open to it, and not just say it\u2019s unsafe, will say, \u2018This is how I would do it, and this is how I would reimport drugs and make it safe,\u2019 that\u2019s an honest reform. If you can\u2019t do that, I can\u2019t support you,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cSo I hope you will come back with an answer that says, \u2018This is how I would make reimportation safe.'\u201d\n\nEarlier in the exchange, Dr. Paul urged Azar to represent the American people over the interests of Big Pharma, saying, \u201cBig Pharma manipulates the system to keep prices high. It is not capitalism, and it\u2019s big government, and we\u2019ve got to fix it.\u201d He went on to add, \u201cYou need to convince those of us who are skeptical that you\u2019ll be part of fixing it and won\u2019t be beholden to Big Pharma.\u201d\n\nIn 2016, then-candidate Donald Trump called for eliminating \u201cbarriers to entry into free markets for drug providers that offer safe, reliable and cheaper products\u201d as part of his seven-point health care plan, also declaring, \u201cAllowing consumers access to imported, safe and dependable drugs from overseas will bring more options to consumers,\u201d a statement Dr. Paul highlighted during his remarks.\n\nYou can watch Dr. Paul\u2019s exchange with HHS Secretary nominee Alex Azar below:", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-applauds-senate-passage-tax-cuts-calls-further-action/", "Dr. Rand Paul Applauds Senate Passage of Tax Cuts, Calls for Further Action", "2017-12-02", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 2, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nDr. Rand Paul Applauds Senate Passage of Tax Cuts, Calls for Further Action\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Early Saturday morning, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) released the following statement after voting for H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act:\n\n\u201cAs we took on tax reform, I worked directly with President Donald Trump and spoke out in Congress to make sure we kept our promises to the American people, secured a tax cut for more families, and repealed the Obamacare individual mandate.\n\n\u201cWhile I still would have preferred larger cuts, this bill provides a foundation on which to continue building. Today marks a victory for giving the American people back more of their own money and reforming an archaic tax code.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-applauds-senate-passage-tax-cuts/", "Dr. Rand Paul Applauds Senate Passage of Tax Cuts", "2017-12-01", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nDecember 1, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nDr. Rand Paul Applauds Senate Passage of Tax Cuts\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Tonight, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) released the following statement after voting for H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act:\n\n\u201cAs we took on tax reform, I worked directly with President Donald Trump and spoke out in Congress to make sure we kept our promises to the American people, secured a tax cut for more families, and repealed the Obamacare individual mandate.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:19:19Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-introduces-fatca-repeal-amendment-tax-reform-bill/", "Dr. Rand Paul Introduces FATCA Repeal Amendment to Tax Reform Bill", "2017-11-30", "2017", "2017-11", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:\n\nNovember 30, 2017\n\nContact: Press@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Continuing his efforts to protect the privacy of Americans\u2019 financial records, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has introduced an amendment to H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, to repeal the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).\n\n\u201cAs we work to reduce the massive tax burden Washington has placed on the American people, we should also stand up for their Fourth Amendment right to privacy by rejecting the bulk collection of the financial information of Americans who live overseas,\u201d said Dr. Paul.\n\nEnacted by Congress in 2010, FATCA mandates that foreign financial institutions regularly report private financial information on American citizens living abroad under threat of a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source income. The law has impeded international financial transactions and investment by leading many foreign banks to simply deny services to Americans rather than navigate the burdens and costs of compliance.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T22:12:50Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-and-mcconnell-reintroduce-economic-freedom-zones-act/", "Sens. Paul and McConnell Reintroduce Economic Freedom Zones Act", "2017-07-14", "2017", "2017-07", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senators Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell reintroduced the Economic Freedom Zones Act. This legislation will establish free market enterprise zones and dramatically reduce taxes to help facilitate the creation of new jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities, enhance and renew educational opportunities, and increase community involvement in bankrupt or economically distressed areas.\n\n\u201cThe Economic Freedom Zones Act will bring hope to struggling communities by relieving the oppressive, big government burdens weighing them down,\u201d said Senator Paul. \u201cIt\u2019s time the federal government stop picking winners and losers and instead trust in the ingenuity of the American people.\u201d\n\n\u201cBy reintroducing this legislation, we are standing up for American families who are suffering under the strain of regulation and the consequences of failed economic policies,\u201d said Senator McConnell. \u201cInnovative ideas like this will help bring hope and prosperity to distressed communities across our nation, including those in Kentucky.\u201d\n\nThe Economic Freedom Zones Act will apply to any zip code with unemployment greater than one and a half times the national average and to other economically depressed areas. In 2016, the Senate voted on the bill as an amendment to H.R. 2028, the Energy Policy Modernization Act.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:54:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-us-senators-attorney-general-sessions-reassure-hemp-industry-you-will-uphold-law/", "U.S. Senators to Attorney General Sessions: Reassure Hemp Industry You Will Uphold the Law", "2017-07-07", "2017", "2017-07", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Recently, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Al Franken (D-MN), and Michael Bennet (D-CO) urged Attorney General Jeff Sessions to address their constituents\u2019 concerns regarding the hemp industry\u2019s access to financial services by confirming the Department of Justice will respect Congress\u2019 recent actions on industrial hemp pilot programs.\n\nWhile the 2014 Farm Bill allowed state agriculture departments and universities to conduct industrial hemp research pilot programs in states that have authorized the growing and production of industrial hemp, including Kentucky, Oregon, Colorado, and Minnesota, the senators noted that some program participants \u201chave either had their personal and business accounts closed at financial institutions or are facing the possibility of losing them.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis situation,\u201d they continued, \u201cis evidently due to the uncertainty of the continued legal status of the industrial hemp industry, and because the funds contained in the accounts are associated with industrial hemp.\u201d\n\nThe members asked Attorney General Sessions to make it clear the Department of Justice will uphold the 2017 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which prevents the federal government from interfering with the cultivation, transportation, processing, sale, or use of industrial hemp as authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill, and not act against financial institutions that handle related funds.\n\nAs the senators stated, \u201cIndustrial hemp research and farming have opened up doors for students, farmers, and small businesses in our states. In fact, American-grown hemp is already being used in a number of products, including fibers in automobile panels, fuels, food, animal bedding, and soaps, lotions and oils.\u201d\n\nAttorney General Sessions\u2019 assurance that the Justice Department will abide by Congress\u2019 actions will provide stability and help enable pilot programs to reach their full academic and economic potential.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:54:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-proposes-association-health-plans-solution-27-million-left-behind-obamacare/", "Dr. Rand Paul Proposes Association Health Plans as Solution to 27 Million Left Behind by Obamacare", "2017-07-06", "2017", "2017-07", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "LOUISVILLE, KY- Today, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul held a press conference in Louisville, where he proposed changing the laws governing group insurance and legalizing Association Health Plans. Joined by representatives from two dozen Kentucky organizations, whose nearly 2 million members, employees, and family members could benefit from these changes, Dr. Paul spoke about the importance of fixing our broken health care system.\n\nYou can read his op-ed on Association Health Plans in The Courier-Journal HERE or below.\n\nThe following organizations were represented with Dr. Paul today:\n\nSt. Matthews Chamber\n\nBullitt County Chamber\n\nKentucky Restaurant Association\n\nKentucky Cattleman\u2019s Association\n\nKentucky Homebuilders Association\n\nOKH Board of Realtors\n\nKentucky Realtors Association\n\nDurbin Plumbing\n\nEventualities\n\nSterling Thompson Insurance\n\nKentucky Farm Bureau\n\nKentucky Coal Association\n\nKentucky Dairy Development Council\n\nKentucky Credit Union Associations\n\nKentucky Society of Certified Public Accountants\n\nKentucky Retail Federation\n\nKentucky Insurance Commissioner\n\nKentucky Association of Independent KY Colleges\n\nRun Switch PR\n\nNFIB\n\nKentucky Baptist Convention & Kentucky Today\n\nAssociation of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities\n\nBenefic Admin Solutions\n\nThe Benefits Firm\n\nAdministrative Services Group division of UMR\n\n***\n\nObamacare left 27 million people without health insurance and created a situation where insurance premiums have risen over 100 percent. Of the 27 million people that Obamacare left behind, about half of them don\u2019t buy insurance because it is too expensive.\n\nSo any debate to repeal and replace Obamacare must acknowledge the failures of Obamacare and try to insure more people at a lower price.\n\nThere has been a lot of discussion of Obamacare, Medicaid and other aspects of our varied and largely broken healthcare system over recent months \u2013 and a lot of bad information. But mostly, there have just been a lot of ideas that don\u2019t address the core problem of access and price of insurance.\n\nAs most of you know, I am not a career politician, and I don\u2019t think like one, which makes it difficult sometimes in Washington.\n\nIn my over 20 years as a doctor, I\u2019ve seen both the good and the bad aspects of healthcare. One of the main reasons I ran for the Senate was to combat the Obamacare takeover of our healthcare system.\n\nNow, make no mistake, healthcare was broken before Obamacare, but Obamacare accelerated the decline and increased prices at alarming rates.\n\nI am in favor of repeal and I\u2019ve been fighting for it since I was elected. Obamacare cost too much, mandated too much, told the states what to do too much \u2013 and still left 27 million people uninsured.\n\nWe can and must do better.\n\nThere are many facets to healthcare reform, but today I want to address one that is not getting enough attention as part of a fix \u2013 Association Health Plans.\n\nCurrently, under the law, certain types of employer groups may band together to offer insurance to their members and employees, thus allowing them to have a larger group and more leverage to get protections against pre-existing conditions and high prices.\n\nBut the current association rules are strict and the hoops that people have to jump through to join them and comply with regulations are still too steep. Additionally, not enough groups and individuals are even eligible to form or join these plans.\n\nOn Thursday in Kentucky, I will have a discussion with members of many groups who could become leaders in offering group insurance to their members, and to individuals.\n\nFrom the chambers of commerce to credit unions, the farm bureaus to fast food franchisees, there are millions of Kentuckians who could be eligible to join such groups if we change the laws and regulations as part of the Obamacare repeal debate.\n\nMy goal is that no one has to go at it alone. A husband and wife\u2019s plumbing business should not have to buy insurance as a pool of two, dreading that one of them may get cancer. Association plans would let plumbers, carpenters, welders or any type of small business band together to get group health insurance.\n\nThe biggest problem in health insurance is if you are on your own or part of a very small group, you have no leverage for prices, and if someone gets very sick, then you don\u2019t have the protection of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people sharing the risk.\n\nThat\u2019s what association health plans do. They let individuals join an association that then buys health insurance as a group. Not just those I mentioned above or those I\u2019m meeting with in Louisville. Literally any group \u2013 your church, the NRA, the ACLU. Any group of people who choose to do so could offer cheaper, better health insurance.\n\nRight now, the insurance companies don\u2019t treat people in the individual or small group market like valued customers whose business must be won. Why? They don\u2019t have to.\n\nI want to turn the tables on this out of control big business. I want the consumer to be king. I want the insurance companies to come on bended knee to these large groups, forced to negotiate.\n\nThis can happen. The credit unions in Kentucky have over 800,000 members. The groups who appeared with me have over a million. But really, this is not limited, at all. We should make it so that no Kentuckian, no American has to go it alone to get health insurance.\n\nSo what\u2019s stopping this? You won\u2019t be surprised to learn it\u2019s the federal government and crony capitalism.\n\nWho opposes this plan? Insurance companies. Who has been in the room writing the fake Obamacare Lite plans put out so far by Congress? Insurance company lobbyists.\n\nWe can do better. At my urging, and with the help of President Trump, a portion of my Association plan is in the Senate bill right now. But it is nowhere near enough and doesn\u2019t fix the problem. I\u2019ll be working with my colleagues to get it right, and I\u2019m hopeful we can.\n\nAs the bill reads now, the association plans would still be subject to Obamacare regulations and would not be allowed to organize innovative self-insured plans.\n\nWe need to repeal Obamacare, now. But we need solutions like a full Association plan included as part of what happens next, or we do a disservice to those we represent.\n\nI want every Kentuckian to have good, inexpensive insurance. I want them to have the protections of group coverage like guaranteed insurance and coverage for preexisting conditions. That\u2019s what my Association Health Plans provision helps ensure.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:54:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-outlines-proposals-revising-senate-health-care-bill/", "Dr. Rand Paul Outlines Proposals for Revising Senate Health Care Bill", "2017-06-28", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul sent a letter to President Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and other Senate leaders laying out four policy improvements he would like to see made to the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017.\n\nYou can read the entire letter HERE or below:\n\n***\n\nDear Leader McConnell,\n\nAs you work with the committees of jurisdiction and Republican Senators to improve and revise the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017, I would like to provide you with some policy priorities that I feel would improve the health care system and insurance markets.\n\n1. Association Health Plans \u2013 While I appreciate the inclusion of Small Business Health Plans in the BCRA, I believe improvements could be made to expand upon this provision to allow for greater freedom for individuals and small businesses to pool together for the purpose of obtaining health insurance coverage.\n\na. The bill currently allows for self-employed individuals to participate in small business health plans. However, I would suggest that the language be changed to allow any individual, including self-employed individuals, to form associations for the purpose of purchasing group health insurance.\n\nb. Furthermore, I would suggest that small business plans or association health plans be allowed to self-insure like other large employer groups are able to do under ERISA. Self-insurance provides significant flexibilities to create innovative plan designs free from many mandates.\n\nc. Finally, I believe we have an opportunity to completely free the group market from unnecessary ACA regulations, and restore HIPAA and ERISA regulation over the entire group market, including for association health plans.\n\n2. Insurance Company Bailouts \u2013 For years, conservatives have been concerned with Obamacare\u2019s bailout of the insurance companies through various programs designed to backfill losses the insurers take in the Obamacare exchanges, while they make huge profits in the group markets. In fact, insurance company profits were $8 billion per year in 2008, and have risen to $15 billion in 2015. The BCRA\u2019s payment of Obamacare\u2019s cost-sharing reductions, as well as its stability funds, would provide another $136 billion in funding to pay insurance companies to participate in these markets. I urge you to reconsider this insurance company bailout.\n\n3. Premium Tax Credits \u2013 In 2015, Senate Republicans voted to eliminate the Obamacare premium tax credits. Now, the BCRA simply proposes to modify and extend them to new populations. I urge you to reconsider the advanced, refundable nature of this entitlement.\n\n4. Continuous Coverage Requirement \u2013 The continuous coverage requirement of the BCRA, which imposes a mandatory 6 month waiting period for individuals with a lapse of 63 days or more in coverage, simply appears to be a Republican version of the individual mandate. This continues the top-down approach that has led to increased premiums and has not changed behavior of the young and healthy who are priced out of the market, and those who game the system to purchase insurance after they become sick. I urge you to remove the mandate and simply allow insurance companies to impose a waiting period.\n\nI hope that this outline aids your understanding of my current position on the Senate health reform bill, and changes that might be made to the language to make good on Republicans\u2019 promise to stop Obamacare and provide true health reform.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-comments-senate-republican-health-care-bill/", "Dr. Rand Paul Comments on Senate Republican Health Care Bill", "2017-06-22", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul issued the following statement after Senate Republican leadership released their health care legislation:\n\n\u201cThe current bill does not repeal Obamacare. It does not keep our promises to the American people. I will oppose it coming to the floor in its current form, but I remain open to negotiations.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-cruz-johnson-and-lee-issue-joint-statement-senate-health-bill/", "Sens. Paul, Cruz, Johnson, and Lee Issue Joint Statement on Senate Health Bill", "2017-06-22", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Ron Johnson (R-WI), and Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement Thursday responding to the release of the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017:\n\n\u201cCurrently, for a variety of reasons, we are not ready to vote for this bill, but we are open to negotiation and obtaining more information before it is brought to the floor. There are provisions in this draft that represent an improvement to our current health care system, but it does not appear this draft as written will accomplish the most important promise that we made to Americans: to repeal Obamacare and lower their health care costs.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-responds-rushed-health-care-process-reintroducing-read-bills-resolution/", "Dr. Rand Paul Responds to Rushed Health Care Process by Reintroducing \u2018Read the Bills\u2019 Resolution", "2017-06-21", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul reintroduced his \u201cRead the Bills\u201d resolution, which would provide sufficient time for legislation to be thoroughly reviewed. Dr. Paul\u2019s change to Senate rules would require bills, amendments, and conference reports to be filed for 1 day for every 20 pages before they can be considered, while leaving legislators room to act in emergencies.\n\n\u201cLegislation is too often shoved through Congress without proper hearings, amendments, or debate, as the secrecy surrounding the Senate\u2019s health care bill and the pressure to vote for it with little time to fully evaluate the proposal once again remind us,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cIf we are to answer to the American people, it is imperative we pay close attention to the legislation we pass.\n\n\u201cI stand by my pledge to increase transparency and accessibility in the U.S. Senate, and my resolution will give members ample time to read all legislation before they vote.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-us-senate-votes-blocking-portion-arms-sale-saudi-arabia/", "U.S. Senate Votes on Blocking Portion of Arms Sale to Saudi Arabia", "2017-06-13", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 By invoking the Arms Export Control Act of 1976, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Al Franken (D-MN) forced a vote today on blocking a portion of new weapons sales to Saudi Arabia that would support its military campaign in Yemen.\n\nThe sale is part of a broader arms agreement that permits the U.S. to make up to $350 billion in defense equipment sales and training commitments to Saudi Arabia over 10 years.\n\nForty-seven senators voted to halt a sale that could deepen the conflict in Yemen, while fifty-three senators voted to provide the arms to Saudi Arabia.\n\n\u201cToday, a bipartisan group of senators took a stand against the escalating war Saudi Arabia is waging with Yemen,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThis is just the beginning, and we will continue to take a stance against waging an undeclared war and fueling an arms race in the Middle East. I applaud those who voted with me to block this proposed arms sale, and I hope this sends a clear message to Saudi Arabia that the United States will not just stand by as they massacre their unarmed neighbors.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-reintroduces-sixth-amendment-preservation-act/", "Dr. Rand Paul Reintroduces the Sixth Amendment Preservation Act", "2017-06-09", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C.\u2013 This week, U.S. Senator Rand Paul reintroduced S. 1300, the Sixth Amendment Preservation Act, to reassert the constitutional guarantee of a speedy trial in all prosecutions.\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s legislation would prevent any future authorization of military force from being used to justify indefinitely detaining any person in America without trial.\n\n\u201cGiving the accused their day in court isn\u2019t a suggestion,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cIt\u2019s enshrined in our Constitution as a cornerstone of our judicial system. My bill reminds our government that the Founders did not put an expiration date on the Sixth Amendment.\u201d\n\nSection 1021 of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act unconstitutionally declares that the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force allows our Armed Forces to indefinitely detain citizens, legal residents, and foreign nationals who are alleged to have engaged in hostilities against the United States. This means U.S. citizens apprehended within the boundaries of the U.S. could be held indefinitely without trial.\n\nThe Sixth Amendment Preservation Act restores our nation\u2019s constitutional commitment to individual liberty by repealing Section 1021.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-reintroduces-bill-prioritize-smaller-harbors/", "Dr. Rand Paul Reintroduces Bill to Prioritize Smaller Harbors", "2017-06-07", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C.\u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul reintroduced the Harbor Equity Act, which modifies the existing criteria used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dredge smaller harbors. Currently, the Corps prioritizes dredging solely for larger harbors that see 1 million or more tons in traffic per year \u2013 often forcing small community harbors to fund their own dredging or be forced to shut down operations.\n\nThis legislation drops the minimum tonnage requirements to 500,000 tons, prioritizing smaller harbors for dredging.\n\nAs mentioned by President Trump today in his remarks on the Ohio Riverfront, which borders Kentucky, our inland waterways are crucial to the economic success of a wide variety of industries, including coal, steel, agriculture, and manufacturing. Dr. Paul\u2019s reintroduction of the Harbor Equity Act is a continuation of his commitment to ensuring our waterways remain a vital part of our country\u2019s infrastructure and a source of economic growth for Kentucky communities.\n\n\u201cMaintaining America\u2019s robust inland waterway system means properly caring for harbors of all sizes, as the system\u2019s interconnectedness requires dredging smaller connecting harbors to ensure goods are efficiently transported,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThe Corps\u2019 current system prioritizes dredging for larger harbors, hindering economic growth and threatening the future of smaller harbors. These smaller ports are the backbone of local commerce in communities along our waterways, which is why I\u2019m proud to reintroduce my bill to ensure they are considered for the Corps\u2019 dredging efforts and to help protect them from facing potentially devastating shutdowns.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-schatz-reintroduce-reset-act/", "Sens. Paul & Schatz Reintroduce RESET Act", "2017-06-02", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last week, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) reintroduced the Reclassification to Ensure Smarter and Equal Treatment (RESET) Act. This bipartisan legislation would reclassify s pecific low-level, non- violent drug possession felonies as misdemeanors, eliminate the distinction between crack and powder cocaine for sentencing, and ensure that food products containing drugs are weighed fairly.\n\n\u201cThe RESET Act more closely aligns punishment with the severity of the offense, making it possible for someone to get a second chance after a non-violent, youthful mistake, instead of a lifetime punishment,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cOur legislation will bring much-needed reform to our criminal justice system by ending the worst sentencing injustices for non-violent offenses.\u201d\n\n\u201cToday, our flawed criminal justice system imposes strict punishments for non-violent, low-level crimes, creating a destructive cycle of recidivism that impacts those in our most vulnerable communities,\u201d said Sen. Schatz. \u201cOur bill makes commonsense changes that will make sure punishments for low-level crimes are fair and our resources are directed toward violent criminals.\u201d\n\nYou can read S. 1252, the RESET Act, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:48:30Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-murphy-and-franken-demand-senate-vote-proposed-weapons-sale-saudi-arabia/", "Sens. Paul, Murphy, and Franken Demand Senate Vote on Proposed Weapons Sale to Saudi Arabia", "2017-05-25", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Al Franken (D-MN) introduced a joint resolution of disapproval to force the U.S. Senate to vote on a resolution blocking a portion of new weapons sales to Saudi Arabia in support of their military campaign in Yemen. The senators\u2019 resolution comes after the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee received official notice of pending sales of offensive weapons, including precision-guided munitions, last Friday.\n\nThe newly noticed sale is part of a broader arms agreement that commits the U.S. to nearly $110 billion in immediate defense equipment sales and training and up to $350 billion over 10 years.\n\n\u201cIt is time we pause and consider the repercussions before we continue to fuel arms races around the world,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cGiven Saudi Arabia\u2019s past support of terror, poor human rights record, and questionable tactics in its war in Yemen, Congress must carefully consider and thoroughly debate if selling them billions of dollars of arms is in our best national security interest at this time.\u201d\n\n\u201cThousands of civilians are being killed in the U.S.-backed Saudi war in Yemen while terrorist groups like al Qaeda and ISIS are getting stronger by the day. Selling the Saudis precision-guided munitions that are going to be used to target civilians makes us complicit in this humanitarian and national security disaster. Saudi Arabia needs to see that there will be consequences if they ignore U.S. demands and target civilian infrastructure,\u201d said Sen. Murphy.\n\n\u201cThousands of civilians have been unjustly killed or wounded by Saudi-led forces in the Yemeni civil war,\u201d said Sen. Franken. \u201cBut despite this tragedy, the U.S. continues to sell billions of dollars of weaponry to the Saudis while turning a blind eye to their indiscriminate killing of children, women, and men in Yemen. Our bipartisan resolution would block the latest weapon sale and help demonstrate that the U.S. won\u2019t stand for what the Saudis are doing to innocent people.\u201d\n\nThe Arms Export Control Act of 1976 provides the special procedures whereby a senator can force a vote on an arms sale. In 2016, Senators Paul, Murphy, and Franken introduced a bipartisan resolution to block the sale of $1.15 billion in Abrams tanks and associated major defense articles to Saudi Arabia.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-introduce-resolution-urging-withdrawal-paris-climate-agreement/", "Dr. Rand Paul to Introduce Resolution Urging Withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement", "2017-05-22", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul announced he is introducing a Senate resolution calling for America\u2019s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, which the Obama Administration formally entered into in September 2016.\n\nExperts predict that by the year 2040, the agreement could cost the American economy up to 6.5 million jobs and nearly $3 trillion in Gross Domestic Product,[1] with no guarantee of significantly reducing the global temperature by 2100.[2]\n\n\u201cWe are being asked to place more regulatory burdens on American businesses and our economy,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cDespite the high cost, the agreement will do little to solve environmental challenges. I support a path forward that protects both our jobs and our environment instead of sacrificing one for the other.\u201d\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s resolution is cosponsored by Senators Inhofe (R-OK), Wicker (R-MS), Risch (R-ID), Enzi (R-WY), and Hatch (R-UT). Rep. David McKinley (R-WV) has introduced companion legislation (H. Con. Res. 55) in the U.S. House of Representatives.\n\nYou can read the resolution HERE.\n\n###\n\n[1] http://assets.accf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/170316-NERA-ACCF-Full-Report.pdf\n\n[2] http://news.mit.edu/2015/paris-commitments-insufficient-to-stabilize-climate-by-2100-1022", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-pauls-reins-act-passed-senate-committee/", "Dr. Rand Paul\u2019s REINS Act Passed by Senate Committee", "2017-05-17", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) passed U.S. Senator Rand Paul\u2019s S. 21, the \u201cRegulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny\u201d (REINS) Act, sending the legislation to the Senate floor.\n\n\u201cFor too long, an ever-growing federal bureaucracy has piled regulations and red tape on the backs of the American people without any approval by Americans\u2019 elected representatives,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThe REINS Act reasserts Congress\u2019 legislative authority and would continue the historic progress we have made this year to curb the damaging effects of overreaching regulations.\u201d\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s REINS Act would rein in unelected federal bureaucrats by requiring that Congress affirmatively approve every new \u201cmajor rule\u201d proposed by the Executive Branch before it can be enforced on the American people.\n\nA \u201cmajor rule\u201d is defined as any federal rule or regulation that may result in 1.) an annual economic impact of $100 million or more, 2.) a major increase in costs or prices for American consumers, or 3.) significant adverse effects on the economy.\n\nIn January, the U.S. House passed Rep. Doug Collins\u2019 (GA) companion legislation, H.R. 26, by a vote of 237-187.\n\nS. 21 currently has 35 cosponsors. You can read the legislation HERE.\n\nSupport for the REINS Act includes:\n\nAmerican Chemistry Council\n\nNational Association of Home Builders\n\nAmerican Dental Association\n\nSmall Business & Entrepreneurship Council\n\nCredit Union National Association\n\nNational Association of Realtors\n\nAssociated Builders and Contractors\n\nAmerican Energy Alliance\n\nNational Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions\n\nWindow and Door Manufacturers Association\n\nAmericans for Prosperity\n\nHeritage Action for America\n\nFreedomWorks\n\nNational Taxpayers Union", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-paul-leahy-merkley-scott-massie-lead-bipartisan-bicameral-introduction-justice-safety-valve-act/", "Paul, Leahy, Merkley, Scott, & Massie Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Introduction of the Justice Safety Valve Act", "2017-05-16", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) reintroduced the Justice Safety Valve Act, S. 1127, in the U.S. Senate. Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY) are reintroducing companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.\n\nLast week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed federal prosecutors to pursue the most serious charges and maximum sentences in their cases, returning to stricter enforcement of mandatory minimum sentences. The Justice Safety Valve Act would give federal judges the ability to impose sentences below mandatory minimums in appropriate cases based on mitigating factors.\n\n\u201cMandatory minimum sentences disproportionally affect minorities and low-income communities, while doing little to keep us safe and turning mistakes into tragedies. As this legislation demonstrates, Congress can come together in a bipartisan fashion to change these laws,\u201d said Sen. Paul.\n\n\u201cWhen we require that judges sentence offenders to years, sometimes decades, longer than is needed to keep our communities safe, it comes at extraordinary costs. An outgrowth of the failed War on Drugs, mandatory sentencing strips critical public safety resources away from law enforcement strategies that actually make our communities safer. It also comes with a human cost, particularly for communities of color, and results in a criminal justice system that is anything but \u2018just.\u2019 Our bipartisan approach offers a simple solution: Let judges judge,\u201d said Sen. Leahy.\n\n\u201cAttorney General Sessions\u2019 directive to all federal prosecutors to charge the most serious offenses, including mandatory minimums, ignores the fact that mandatory minimum sentences have been studied extensively and have been found to distort rational sentencing systems, discriminate against minorities, waste money, and often require a judge to impose sentences that violate common sense,\u201d said Rep. Scott. \u201cTo add insult to injury, studies have shown that mandatory minimum sentences fail to reduce crime. Our bill will give discretion back to federal judges, so that they can consider all the facts, issues, and circumstances before sentencing.\u201d\n\nMandatory minimums force federal judges to issue indiscriminate punishments, regardless of involvement, criminal history, mental health, addiction, and other mitigating factors.\n\nThe Justice Safety Valve Act would apply the current \u201csafety valve\u201d provision to all federal crimes, restoring proportionality, fairness, and rationality to federal sentencing by allowing federal judges to tailor sentences on a case-by-case basis. Such judicial discretion would help reduce the bloated federal prison population and tackle dangerous overcrowding while ensuring sentences fit the circumstances of the crime.\n\nThis landmark bipartisan, bicameral legislation would also reduce correctional spending, which currently accounts for almost a third of the Department of Justice\u2019s annual budget. This would allow the Department to focus more on victim services, state and local law enforcement, staffing, investigation, and prosecution.\n\nYou can read the Justice Safety Valve Act HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-cnn-op-ed-dr-rand-paul-sessions-sentencing-plan-would-ruin-lives/", "CNN Op-Ed: Dr. Rand Paul: Sessions\u2019 sentencing plan would ruin lives", "2017-05-15", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "The attorney general on Friday made an unfortunate announcement that will impact the lives of millions of Americans: he issued new instructions for prosecutors to charge suspects with the most serious provable offenses, \u201cthose that carry the most substantial guidelines sentence, including mandatory minimum sentences.\u201d\n\nMandatory minimum sentences have unfairly and disproportionately incarcerated a generation of minorities. Eric Holder, the attorney general under President Obama, issued guidelines to U.S. Attorneys that they should refrain from seeking long sentences for nonviolent drug offenders.\n\nI agreed with him then and still do. In fact, I\u2019m the author of a bipartisan bill with Senator Leahy to change the law on this matter. Until we pass that bill, though, the discretion on enforcement \u2013 and the lives of many young drug offenders \u2013 lies with the current attorney general.\n\nThe attorney general\u2019s new guidelines, a reversal of a policy that was working, will accentuate the injustice in our criminal justice system. We should be treating our nation\u2019s drug epidemic for what it is \u2013 a public health crisis, not an excuse to send people to prison and turn a mistake into a tragedy.\n\nAnd make no mistake, the lives of many drug offenders are ruined the day they receive that long sentence the attorney general wants them to have.\n\nIf I told you that one out of three African-American males is forbidden by law from voting, you might think I was talking about Jim Crow 50 years ago.\n\nYet today, a third of African-American males are still prevented from voting, primarily because of the War on Drugs.\n\nThe War on Drugs has disproportionately affected young black males.\n\nThe ACLU reports that blacks are four to five times likelier to be convicted for drug possession, although surveys indicate that blacks and whites use drugs at similar rates. The majority of illegal drug users and dealers nationwide are white, but three-fourths of all people in prison for drug offenses are African American or Latino.\n\nWhy are the arrest rates so lopsided? Because it is easier to go into urban areas and make arrests than suburban areas. Arrest statistics matter when cities apply for federal grants. It doesn\u2019t take much imagination to understand that it\u2019s easier to round up, arrest, and convict poor kids than it is to convict rich kids.\n\nThe San Jose Mercury News reviewed nearly 700,000 criminal cases that were matched by crime and criminal history of the defendant. Their analysis showed that whites of similar situation were far more successful in the plea bargaining process and \u201cvirtually every stage of pretrial negotiation\u201d than their African-American and Latino counterparts.\n\nI know a guy about my age in Kentucky who was arrested and convicted for growing marijuana plants in his apartment closet in college.\n\nThirty years later, he still can\u2019t vote, can\u2019t own a gun, and, when he looks for work, he must check the box \u2013 the box that basically says, \u201cI\u2019m a convicted felon, and I guess I\u2019ll always be one.\u201d\n\nHe hasn\u2019t been arrested or convicted for 30 years \u2013 but still can\u2019t vote or have his Second Amendment rights. Getting a job is nearly impossible for him.\n\nMandatory sentencing automatically imposes a minimum number of years in prison for specific crimes \u2013 usually related to drugs.\n\nBy design, mandatory sentencing laws take discretion away from judges so as to impose harsh sentences, regardless of circumstances. Our prison population, meanwhile, has increased by over 700% since the 1980s, and 90% of them are nonviolent offenders. The costs of our prison system now approach nearly $100 billion a year. It costs too much, in both the impact on people\u2019s lives and on our tax dollars.\n\nI want to go the opposite way from the attorney general. That\u2019s why I\u2019ve partnered with Senator Leahy and once again will be reintroducing the Justice Safety Valve Act.\n\nThis isn\u2019t about legalizing drugs. It is about making the punishment more fitting and not ruining more lives.\n\nThe legislation is short and simple. It amends current law to grant judges authority to impose a sentence below a statutory mandatory minimum.\n\nIn other words, we are not repealing mandatory minimums on the books \u2013 we are merely allowing a judge to issue a sentence below a mandatory minimum if certain requirements are met.\n\nWe need this legislation because while there is an existing safety valve in current law, it is very limited. It has a strict five-part test, and only about 23% of all drug offenders qualified for the safety valve.\n\nThe injustice of mandatory minimum sentences is impossible to ignore when you hear the stories of the victims.\n\nJohn Horner was a 46-year-old father of three when he sold some of his prescription painkillers to a friend.\n\nHis friend turned out to be a police informant, and he was charged with dealing drugs. Horner pleaded guilty and was later sentenced to the mandatory minimum of 25 years in jail.\n\nAs I testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Edward Clay was an 18-year-old and a first-time offender when he was caught with less than 2 ounces of cocaine. He received 10 years in jail from a mandatory minimum sentence.\n\nWeldon Angelos was a 24-year-old who was sentenced to 55 years in prison for selling marijuana three times.\n\nFormer federal judge Timothy Lewis recalls a case where he had to send a 19-year-old to prison for 10 years for conspiracy. What was the \u201cconspiracy\u201d?\n\nThis young man had been in a car where drugs were found. I don\u2019t know about you, but I\u2019m pretty sure one of us might have been in a car in our youth where someone might have had drugs. Before the arrest, according to news reports, this young man was going to be the first in his family to go to college.\n\nEach case should be judged on its own merits. Mandatory minimums prevent this from happening.\n\nMandatory minimum sentencing has done little to address the very real problem of drug abuse while also doing great damage by destroying so many lives, and most Americans now realize it.\n\nProposition 47 recently passed in California, and it has spurred a cultural change in the way nonviolent drug offenders are treated, resulting in more than 13,000 fewer prisoners and a savings of $150 million, according to a Stanford Law School study.\n\nPew Research found that 67% of Americans want drug offenders to get treatment, not prison, and over 60% want an end to mandatory minimum sentences.\n\nI urge the attorney general to reconsider his recent action. But even more importantly, I urge my colleagues to consider bipartisan legislation to fix this problem in the law where it should be handled. Congress can end this injustice, and I look forward to leading this fight for justice.\n\nhttp://www.cnn.com/2017/05/15/opinions/sessions-is-wrong-rand-paul-opinion/index.html", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-releases-statement-attorney-generals-action-mandatory-minimums-0/", "Dr. Rand Paul Releases Statement on Attorney General\u2019s Action on Mandatory Minimums", "2017-05-12", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the following statement in response to reports that Attorney General Jeff Sessions has directed prosecutors nationwide to pursue stricter mandatory minimum sentences.\n\n\u201cMandatory minimum sentences have unfairly and disproportionately incarcerated too many minorities for too long,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cAttorney General Sessions\u2019 new policy will accentuate that injustice. Instead, we should treat our nation\u2019s drug epidemic as a health crisis and less as a \u2018lock \u2019em up and throw away the key\u2019 problem.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-releases-statement-attorney-generals-action-mandatory-minimums/", "Dr. Rand Paul Releases Statement on Attorney General\u2019s Action on Mandatory Minimums", "2017-05-10", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the following statement in response to reports that Attorney General Jeff Sessions has directed prosecutors nationwide to pursue stricter mandatory minimum sentences.\n\n\u201cMandatory minimum sentences have unfairly and disproportionately incarcerated too many minorities for too long,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cAttorney General Sessions\u2019 new policy will accentuate that injustice. Instead, we should treat our nation\u2019s drug epidemic as a health crisis and less as a \u2018lock \u2019em up and throw away the key\u2019 problem.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-welcomes-honor-flight-bluegrass-washington-dc/", "Dr. Rand Paul Welcomes Honor Flight Bluegrass to Washington, DC", "2017-05-10", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This morning, U.S. Senator Rand Paul welcomed veterans from Kentucky and Indiana traveling on their Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. Kentucky veterans traveled from cities including Bowling Green, Louisville, Glasgow, Radcliff, Owensboro, and Frankfort.\n\n\u201cToday, I had the privilege of greeting our nation\u2019s heroes as they visited their memorials,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cWhile we can never fully repay them for the sacrifices they and their families and fellow soldiers made, special days like these give us a chance to show them we will never forget.\u201d\n\nHonor Flight Bluegrass provided a free trip to our nation\u2019s capital for 85 veterans. In addition to the World War II Memorial, the veterans also toured the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Marine Corps War Memorial, and Arlington National Cemetery.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-paul-follows-intelligence-committees-seeks-more-information-obama-administration/", "Dr. Paul Follows Up with Intelligence Committees, Seeks More Information on Obama Administration Surveillance", "2017-05-08", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last Friday, May 5, U.S. Senator Rand Paul sent follow-up letters to members of the U.S. House and Senate intelligence committees seeking more information on whether he and other members of Congress were surveilled by the Obama administration or the intelligence community.\n\n\u201cI am requesting a clear answer on whether your committee received a Gates notice related to me or to members of my staff,\u201d Dr. Paul stated in his letter.\n\nDr. Paul also enclosed a copy of the recent Circa article reporting that government officials allegedly sought a significantly higher amount of National Security Agency (NSA) data on Americans in 2016 and eventually unmasked congressional members and staffers, as well as associates of President Trump.[1]\n\nIn April, Dr. Paul wrote to President Trump and congressional intelligence committee members to request further investigation based on an anonymous source\u2019s tip that Dr. Paul may have been included in NSA information gathering.\n\nDr. Paul reiterated this request in his May 5 letter, which you can read HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-requests-more-information-obama-administration-surveillance/", "Dr. Rand Paul Requests More Information on Obama Administration Surveillance", "2017-05-06", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul announced he is seeking more information on whether he and other members of Congress were surveilled by the Obama administration or the intelligence community.\n\nThe announcement follows a Circa News report that government officials allegedly sought a significantly higher amount of National Security Agency (NSA) data on Americans in 2016 and eventually unmasked congressional members and staffers, as well as associates of President Trump.[1]\n\nDr. Paul originally wrote to President Trump and congressional intelligence committee members in April, requesting further investigation based on an anonymous source\u2019s tip that Dr. Paul may have been included in NSA information gathering.\n\n\u201cIn light of the revelations that the names of persons associated with the Trump campaign were unmasked, I believe the allegations that myself and other elected members of the legislative branch may have also been unmasked or caught in intelligence gathering warrants investigation,\u201d Dr. Paul stated in the letter.\n\n\u201cThis inquiry goes beyond just myself and my office,\u201d Dr. Paul added today. \u201cThe American people need to know if their elected representatives in the Legislative branch have been swept up in Executive branch surveillance.\u201d\n\nYou can read Dr. Paul\u2019s entire letter to President Trump HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-uncle-sam-4th-and-long-fiscal-responsibility/", "Uncle Sam: 4th and Long on Fiscal Responsibility", "2017-05-03", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of The Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nThis week\u2019s Waste Report looks at taxpayers providing nearly $130,000 from the Economic Development Administration to help develop digital down marker (the type used on football sidelines) prototypes for a private company to sell.\n\nYou can get the full story HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nWhen football season kicks off, you might notice something new stalking up and down the sidelines. No, not a boisterous head coach, or a menacing linebacker itching to get in the game. It\u2019ll be a digital down marker\u2026 one your tax dollars paid to help develop.\n\nYou heard that right. Auburn University used nearly $130k in federal funds[1] from the Economic Development Administration (EDA) to help develop the Down, a battery powered down marker that displays numbers from 1 to 4 in LED lights.[2]\n\nIt all started when a scoreboard manufacturer from Roanoke, AL, (about 45 miles from Auburn) contacted the university with the idea for a digital down marker. The problem, it seems, is the old mechanical down markers were less visible in lower light,[3] required operators to reach above their head, and could jam (we never noticed that).[4]\n\nAuburn agreed it was time for something new and, armed with EDA funding, used a semester-long industrial design course to help develop the down marker. Sixteen students (all presumably paying tuition) developed eight prototypes, one of which was selected by the private scoreboard company that now SELLS the marker as the Down.[5]\n\nIf You Build It\u2026 Others Will Profit\n\n\u201cThe group [at Auburn] worked so well as a team, and everyone contributed something to the final design. As a result, our company now has a product that is already setting a new standard in professional, collegiate and high school football.\u201d[6] [emphasis added]\n\nThe scoreboard company \u201cnow has a product,\u201d the Down, they can sell and profit from. However, at nearly 15 times the price of a traditional, mechanical down marker,[7] one has to wonder if a market exists for this Cadillac of its industry. If not, it is only the taxpayer who bore development risk; in other words, the upside is to the company and the downside to the taxpayers.\n\nConsider this: a scoreboard manufacturer already deals with digital displays used at sporting events. This particular manufacturer specializes in scoreboard and game clocks that are mobile[8] \u2013 requiring a battery.\n\nIt appears this company was already well positioned to develop the Down on their own. One might argue they needed some technical assistance similar to how a farmer might use a university extension program. But Auburn made the prototype. That is not like an extension program testing your soil; it is like them planting your fields for you.\n\nDoing Fine Without Uncle Sam\n\nCertainly college and athletic innovation are intertwined and have led to major economic development \u2013 Gatorade from the University of Florida and Nike from the University of Oregon come to mind.\n\nBut the first waffle-soled Nikes that graced the feet of Steve Prefontaine in the early \u201970s were not developed by an EDA-funded program. No, Bill Bowerman built his prototypes in his garage with his wife\u2019s waffle iron. Uncle Sam did not make the shoe for him (or fund someone else to), let alone buy the waffle iron.[9] Somehow still, Nike seems to have done just fine.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-testifies-fatca-calls-repeal/", "Dr. Rand Paul Testifies on FATCA, Calls for Repeal", "2017-05-01", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul testified before the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee\u2019s Government Operations Subcommittee regarding the damage done by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).\n\n\u201cMy hope is that this hearing will shed some light on this abusive law and lead to a demand for action,\u201d Sen. Paul said during his testimony. \u201cChairman Meadows and I have sponsored a bill to correct this injustice and repeal FATCA. Congress should pass our bill this year and put an end to this madness.\u201d\n\nToday\u2019s hearing was entitled, \u201cReviewing the Unintended Consequences of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act,\u201d and you can watch Dr. Paul\u2019s testimony HERE.\n\nEnacted by Congress in 2010, FATCA mandates that foreign financial institutions regularly report private financial information on American citizens under threat of a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source income. The law has impeded international financial transactions and investment by leading many foreign banks to simply deny services to Americans rather than navigate the burdens and costs of compliance.\n\nYou can find the text of S. 869, Dr. Paul\u2019s repeal bill, HERE. U.S. Representative Mark Meadows (R-NC) has joined with Dr. Paul by introducing the House companion, H.R. 2054.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-rare-op-ed-us-should-not-fund-saudi-arabias-war-yemen/", "Rare Op-Ed: The U.S. should not fund Saudi Arabia\u2019s war on Yemen", "2017-05-01", "2017", "2017-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "American-built planes with American bombs were used by the Saudis to bomb a funeral procession in Yemen. Over 100 people were killed, and 500 mourners were wounded. Active duty American pilots have been refueling the planes dropping bombs across Yemen.\n\nSounds like war to me.\n\nBut when did we declare war on Yemen? When did Congress vote to authorize military force in Yemen? Who is the enemy, and why are we fighting them?\n\nLet\u2019s be clear: war was NOT declared by Congress, as the Constitution requires. Congress never authorized American participation in a war in Yemen. And yet, here we are, involved in yet another Middle East war.\n\nWe have an unfortunate habit of arming foreign nations, only to discover that these supposed allies may be creating more enemies for America than they are killing.\n\nNot only are we selling the bombs to Saudi Arabia that they are dropping on Yemen, the president\u2019s first military act was to send a manned raid of Navy Seals into Yemen.\n\nTragically, one of our Navy SEALs was killed, along with several women and children. I don\u2019t blame our soldiers \u2014 they take orders. They do the best that they can under the circumstances. I do, however, blame the politicians who send our soldiers into impossible situations.\n\nConfronted by civilians, sometimes women and children, firing weapons at them, our soldiers must return fire. But before putting our soldiers in that unenviable position, shouldn\u2019t Congress debate whether involving our nation in a war in Yemen is in our national security interest?\n\nThe raid killed al-Qaeda operatives who, while likely enemies of ours, were actually fighting the same people the Saudis are fighting: the Houthi rebels.\n\nTo emphasize, the Saudis and al-Qaeda are fighting a common enemy in the Houthi rebels. In essence, we sent Navy Seals into Yemen to kill people who actually were fighting a common enemy.\n\nIn a country where so many factions are fighting, it is nearly impossible to distinguish friend from foe.\n\nThousands of civilians have been killed by Saudi bombings in Yemen. The blowback from these civilian deaths will be generations of hatred and likely more terrorism.\n\nIt is also possible our involvement in the Yemeni Civil war could allow a situation where the Saudis and the Houthis decimate each other, leaving a vacuum that al-Qaeda fills. Think it can\u2019t happen? Well it\u2019s exactly what happened when America and Saudi-supported rebels pushed back Assad in Syria, leaving a power gap that ISIS filled.\n\nIn recent years, there hasn\u2019t been a military action taken in Yemen by Saudi Arabia that doesn\u2019t have America\u2019s fingerprints all over it.\n\nAs my colleague Senator Chris Murphy said last year, \u201cIf you talk to Yemenis, they will tell you that this is perceived inside Yemen as not a Saudi-led bombing campaign [\u2026] but as a U.S. bombing campaign or at best a U.S.-Saudi bombing campaign.\u201d\n\nObviously, none of this enhances U.S. national security. But how many Americans are even aware that we are actively involved in a war in Yemen?\n\nLast year I introduced a bipartisan bill with Sen. Murphy to stop a U.S. transfer of arms and dollars \u2014 costing $1.15 billion in all \u2014 to the Saudis. The Senate voted to allow the sale. The debate, however, prompted President Obama to reconsider and ultimately to cancel the sale of more bombs to Saudi Arabia.\n\nNow, the Trump administration is considering going ahead with more missile sales to Saudi Arabia. This would be a serious mistake. If the sale is debated in Congress, I will reintroduce legislation to stop it.\n\nOther reasons not to sell offensive arms to Saudi Arabia include their abysmal human rights record and lingering questions about that nation\u2019s possible role in 9/11.\n\nThe families of 9/11 victims have an active legal case alleging Saudi culpability for 9/11. These are complaints that bear review, considering that 16 of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.\n\nOne of the memos discovered during the Hillary Clinton email leak stated, \u201cWe need to use our diplomatic and more traditional intelligence assets to bring pressure on the governments of Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which are providing clandestine financial and logistic support to ISIS and other radical groups in the region.\u201d\n\nA State Department cable released by Wikileaks in 2009 revealed, \u201cSaudi Arabia remains a critical financial support base for al-Qaeda [and] the Taliban [\u2026]\u201d\n\nWhy don\u2019t we hear more about this?\n\nPresident Trump promised to put America first again, precisely because so much of what we have done in our foreign policy in recent years has been to other countries\u2019 benefit but to the detriment of the U.S.\n\nIn the upcoming debate, I hope the president will seriously consider the unintended consequences of getting us mired in yet another Middle East war.\n\nThat would be a mistake. I think it\u2019s high time we start learning from our mistakes.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:41:49Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-today-dr-rand-paul-testify-fatca-call-repeal-0/", "TODAY: Dr. Rand Paul to Testify on FATCA, Call for Repeal", "2017-04-26", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul will testify before the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee\u2019s Government Operations Subcommittee regarding the damage done by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), and he will call on Congress to pass repeal legislation he introduced earlier this month.\n\nU.S. Representative Mark Meadows (R-NC) has joined with Dr. Paul by introducing the House companion.\n\nEnacted by Congress in 2010, FATCA mandates that foreign financial institutions regularly report private financial information on American citizens under threat of a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source income. The law has impeded international financial transactions and investment by leading many foreign banks to simply deny services to Americans rather than navigate the burdens and costs of compliance.\n\nYou can learn more about the hearing on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee\u2019s website HERE.\n\nWednesday, April 26, 2017\n\nWHO: U.S. Senator Rand Paul\n\nWHAT: U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee\u2019s Subcommittee on Government\n\nOperations Hearing\n\n\u201cReviewing the Unintended Consequences of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act\u201d\n\nWHERE: 2154 Rayburn House Office Building\n\nWHEN: 2:00 pm ET\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-heller-reintroduce-endangered-species-management-self-determination-act/", "Sens. Paul, Heller Reintroduce the Endangered Species Management Self-Determination Act", "2017-04-25", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Dean Heller (R-NV) reintroduced the Endangered Species Management Self-Determination Act to restore power to states to manage endangered and threatened species found only within their borders. Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) has introduced a companion bill in the U.S. House.\n\nThe bill would also require congressional approval before a species could be listed as endangered or threatened, better protect individual private property rights, and enable states such as Kentucky to address the threats black vultures pose to livestock and Nevada to address the threats ravens pose to sage grouse populations.\n\n\u201cWe can better protect endangered species by empowering state leaders to implement a strategy more tailored to their specific circumstances,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cInstead of continuing Washington\u2019s \u2018one-size-fits-all\u2019 approach to regulation, this bill puts local needs first and guards against bureaucratic overreach.\u201d\n\n\u201cLike all Nevadans, I know how important it is that we be good stewards of wildlife and their habitats,\u201d said Sen. Heller. \u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019ve been working with Governor Sandoval and the Nevada delegation to prevent the listing of the sage grouse in order to protect both the bird and Nevada\u2019s economy. Nevadans \u2013 not Washington bureaucrats \u2013 know how to best protect the sage grouse, and the Endangered Species Management Self-Determination Act affirms that.\u201d\n\nYou can read it in its entirety HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-usda-rural-development-money-goes-course/", "USDA Rural Development Money Goes Off Course", "2017-04-24", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of The Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nThe USDA\u2019s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) is intended to help agricultural producers and rural small businesses, so it might surprise taxpayers to learn that the program gave nearly $125,000 of their money to a luxury golf course in the U.S. Virgin Islands to help cover the cost of solar panels.\n\nYou can learn more in this week\u2019s Waste Report HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nWhen you think about rural businesses, one of the last things that would come to mind is a luxury golf course on a Caribbean island, but that is exactly where the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) sent nearly $125k in rural development grant money last year.\n\nThat\u2019s right!!! Your tax dollars went to support the purchase of solar panels for the Carambola Golf Club on St. Croix, USVI.[1]\n\nRURAL?\n\nThe Carambola solar project was partially financed under the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).[2] To qualify under this program (you know, as rural), a business must meet one of two standards:\n\nMinimum 50% of gross income comes from agricultural operations, or\n\nIt is located in a non-urbanized area of a city or town with fewer than 50k residents.[3]\n\nWe\u2019ll assume Carambola (or any golf course) did not qualify based on agricultural operations, but even by the population/urbanization standard, this is still a stretch.\n\nThe Carambola golf course itself is the center of a larger luxuries development, which includes a hotel and \u201csome one hundred homes\u2026 all within an exclusive gated community.\u201d[4] Not exactly life on the farm.\n\nIn fact, by this same standard, any number of ski resorts, amusement parks, and many more golf courses all across America could qualify as rural for the purpose of getting REAP grants \u2013 not really the kind of businesses the program is intended to help.\n\nGRANTS, YES, BUT NOT LOANS\n\nIn addition to issuing grants, the REAP program also makes loan guarantees.[5] According to Solar Delivered, the company that designed Carambola\u2019s \u201cmicrogrid\u201d solar system, they also prepared the applications to USDA for both a grant and a government loan guarantee.[6]\n\nIt does not appear that Carambola received a loan guarantee. This may be because USDA general \u201cGuaranteed Loanmaking\u201d regulations expressly prohibit guarantees for \u201c[g]olf courses and golf course infrastructure\u2026,\u201d along with race tracks and casinos.[7] Such prohibition is not restated in USDA\u2019s REAP regulations.\n\nSo\u2026 why is it too risky or unwise to guarantee a loan (which may never cost the taxpayer) for a golf course, but it is perfectly fine to give the same golf course grant money?\n\n\u201cWHY DOES USDA RURAL DEVELOPMENT\n\nDO THIS?\u201d\n\nUSDA rhetorically asks this question of the REAP program in its promotional one-page flyer. The answer provided is not particularly convincing, especially with regard to why this is in the interest of agricultural producers: \u201cThis program helps increase American energy independence\u2026 Over time, these investments can also help lower the cost of energy\u2026.\u201d[8]\n\nSure, everyone would like to save on their electric bill, but that is not unique to rural business. And are solar panels really an agricultural priority for taxpayers? Probably not. Even if they were, solar powered golf courses in the Caribbean certainly do not fit the bill.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-taxpayers-pay-twice/", "Taxpayers Pay Twice", "2017-04-20", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of The Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nAmericans collectively spend countless hours pouring over paperwork to make sure their taxes are correct, and they can keep as much of their own money as possible.\n\nWhile one would hope the agency that collects those taxpayer funds would show the same diligence, today\u2019s Waste Report tells the story of an IRS that failed to recover over $76 million in \u201cunallowable expenses\u201d to government contractors. Though the IRS spent nearly $6 million more of taxpayers\u2019 money for audits to identify those costs, the agency often failed to take basic steps in response and lacked vital details needed to thoroughly track and evaluate the recovery efforts.\n\nYou can learn more in this week\u2019s Waste Report HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nGovernment service contracts are large, complex, and can span years. Because of this, sometimes \u201cunallowable expenses\u201d \u2013 things not covered in the contract \u2013 mistakenly get paid by Uncle Sam. For this reason, the government employs auditors, such as the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), to review payments and identify ones that should not have been made. If a payment turns out to be improper, the government agency that made it is supposed to recover the money.\n\nUnfortunately, according to a recent report from the Inspector General (IG) that oversees the IRS, when DCAA notified the IRS of unallowable payments over 10 years, only a miniscule amount was recovered out of over $77 million, and the agency scrutinizing your records was revealed to have less-than-stellar bookkeeping itself.[1]\n\nIGNORED AUDITS\n\nTreasury\u2019s internal guidance[2] dictates that once a final audit of a contract is issued, unallowable expenses should typically be reconciled within six months. However, DCAA reports are only advisory, and, \u201c[t]he authority and duty to act on these findings rests with the responsible CO [Contracting Officer].\u201d[3]\n\nThe first step when an audit report is issued is for the CO to issue a \u201cdisposition memorandum\u201d stating their agreement or disagreement with the audit findings. But in eight percent of cases, it seems even this basic step was not taken. Still, most COs did file a memo, and only in one instance the IG reviewed did the CO actually disagree with the finding of an unallowable payment.\n\nUnfortunately, agreeing with the audit is as far as much of the recovery effort went. In only one case did the IRS take action within six months of receiving a DCAA report, and in 45 percent of the IG\u2019s sampling, no further action was taken, or the majority of identified costs were not recovered.[4]\n\nMISSING INFORMATION\n\nThe IG noted that the IRS was unable to locate ANY of the 48 contract files associated with its review. For 96 percent of cases in the IRS database used to track recoveries, critical information was missing. This includes such basic info as: contract numbers, correct recovery status, accurate contractor names, and contact info.[5]\n\nEven when the IRS claims to have recovered lost taxpayer money, they have difficulty documenting the claim. The IRS says it recovered $1.4 million identified by DCAA, but the IG could only find documentation of $545,000 (38%) actually being recovered.[6]\n\nTAXPAYERS PAID TWICE\n\nNot only did the IRS not recover misspent taxpayer money, but they also paid for the audits. DCAA is part of the Department of Defense (DOD) but has been allowed to make their services available to other agencies, which are then charged for the audits. The IRS paid DCAA almost $5.7 million for the audits that in turn identified close to $77.6 million in recoverable, unallowable payments.[7] As noted earlier, the IRS only claims to have recovered $1.4 million, 3/5th of which they could not substantiate. In other words, where the IRS potentially could have recovered $13.61 of every dollar they invested in audits, they actually lost 75\u00a2.\n\nTAX AND SPEND\n\nAs part of their review, the IG interviewed IRS COs and found that \u201cthe organizational focus for the COs at the IRS is to expeditiously make awards and obligate funding, not to recover unallowable costs paid to contractors.\u201d[8]\n\nIS THIS THE SAME IRS WE ALL DEAL WITH ON TAX DAY?\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-american-holiday-british-bloggers/", "An American Holiday for British Bloggers", "2017-04-11", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of The Waste Report, an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nIt\u2019s unlikely the United Kingdom would top anyone\u2019s list of regions of the world that need a better understanding of the United States. Yet, once again, Dr. Paul\u2019s Waste Report covers American taxpayers footing the bill for such a learning program.\n\nYou can find out more in this week\u2019s Waste Report HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nWaste Report readers will recall last year\u2019s \u201cA Better, More Peaceful Understanding of Waste,\u201d where we discussed the U.S. Embassy in London spending $90,000 to foster better understanding with the United Kingdom.[1]\n\nWell, it turns out they are at it again. Late last year, our Embassy in London offered a grant worth as much as $75,000 to help bring as many as 10 \u201csocial media journalists and bloggers\u201d to the U.S. to explore \u201cAmerican values and cultural issues that shape the American identity and deepen U.K. youth audiences understanding of the United States in the 21st century.\u201d[2]\n\nThe grant opportunity mentioned sending the bloggers to visit \u201ccities such as Charleston, Orlando, Dallas, San Francisco, and Chicago\u201d[3] to learn about American issues and themes \u2013 in other words, a real American experience, funded by the U.S. taxpayer. With firsthand experiences in these cities, the bloggers presumably would be better able to convey Americanism to their audience across the pond.\n\nAll that would make sense if this were 1890 or even 1990, but, as The Waste Report has noted before, thanks to the Internet, 24-hour news, and affordable air transportation, our understanding of the U.K., and theirs of the U.S., is not lacking.\n\nIn fact, nearly 4 million Brits visit the U.S. each year, and 1.2 million visit more than one state.[4] These people probably do not need their bloggers\u2019 input to have an American experience, as they have their own or at the least have a high probability of knowing someone who does.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-congratulates-justice-gorsuch/", "Dr. Rand Paul Congratulates Justice Gorsuch", "2017-04-07", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States:\n\n\u201cJustice Gorsuch has handled a contentious nomination process with the utmost professionalism and poise, while consistently demonstrating his loyalty to the Constitution. I look forward to seeing him bring these traits to his duties on the Supreme Court, and I congratulate him on his confirmation.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-introduces-bill-repeal-fatca/", "Sen. Rand Paul Introduces Bill to Repeal FATCA", "2017-04-06", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced legislation to repeal the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), with U.S. Representative Mark Meadows (R-NC) introducing a companion bill in the U.S. House. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) joined Dr. Paul as an original cosponsor.\n\nEnacted by Congress in 2010, FATCA mandates that foreign financial institutions regularly report private financial information on American citizens under threat of a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source income. The law has impeded international financial transactions and investment by leading many foreign banks to simply deny services to Americans rather than navigate the burdens and costs of compliance.\n\n\u201cFATCA disregards the Fourth Amendment and privacy rights by requiring the bulk collection of innocent Americans\u2019 financial records,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cIt discourages foreign investment and prevents Americans from accessing the financial system overseas. It is time to repeal this job- and privacy-killing law.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor all of FATCA\u2019s aims to improve tax compliance, this law is not worth the burdens it imposes,\u201d said Sen. Wicker. \u201cWe have seen the negative implications on foreign investment and regulatory compliance costs. We should address these repercussions and repeal FATCA.\u201d\n\n\u201cAny time we deal with tax laws and the disclosure of information that\u2019s required, it is critical to remember that the Fourth Amendment right to privacy is non-negotiable,\u201d said Rep. Meadows. \u201cOver time, it\u2019s become clear that FATCA goes well beyond what is permissible under Fourth Amendment protections and places a serious burden on taxpayers. I\u2019m proud to join my friend Senator Paul to support a repeal of FATCA and to demonstrate a serious commitment to upholding our Constitution as the law of the land.\u201d\n\nThis week, Senator Paul and Representative Meadows sent a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney urging the administration to publicly support repealing FATCA and to take steps within its power to limit the law\u2019s damaging effects.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-releases-statement-us-cruise-missile-strike/", "Sen. Rand Paul Releases Statement on U.S. Cruise Missile Strike", "2017-04-06", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Tonight, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the following statement regarding the United States\u2019 strike on a Syrian military airfield:\n\n\u201cWhile we all condemn the atrocities in Syria, the United States was not attacked. The President needs congressional authorization for military action as required by the Constitution, and I call on him to come to Congress for a proper debate. Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer, and Syria will be no different.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-paul-booker-cummings-introduce-bipartisan-bicameral-bill-fix-broken-criminal-justice-system/", "Paul, Booker, Cummings Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill to Fix Broken Criminal Justice System", "2017-04-05", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), and U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) today re-introduced the REDEEM Act (Record Expungement Designed to Enhance Employment Act), a bipartisan, bicameral bill to help fix our broken criminal justice system. While the U.S. is home to less than five percent of the world\u2019s population, it is responsible for almost 25 percent of the world\u2019s prison population. Our crippled system wastes massive sums of taxpayer dollars to make our streets less, not more, safe.\n\nThe REDEEM Act seeks to fix this broken system with seven major reforms that will help people convicted of nonviolent crimes successfully re-enter society. It would:\n\n1) Allow adults convicted of nonviolent crimes to petition a court to have their records sealed one year after the completion of their sentence;\n\n2) Automatically seal and, in some cases, expunge juvenile records;\n\n3) Incentivize states to raise the age of adult criminal responsibility to 18 years old;\n\n4) Significantly restrict room confinement of juveniles;\n\n5) Lift the lifetime SNAP and TANF bans on people convicted of nonviolent drug crimes;\n\n6) Combat gender disparities in the federal juvenile system; and\n\n7) Improve the accuracy of the FBI background check system.\n\n\u201cWe cannot continue with our current system, as the War on Drugs has disproportionately affected minorities and our inner cities, and tens of thousands of young men and women have become trapped in a cycle of poverty and incarceration,\u201d Sen. Paul said. \u201cWe can help many of these young people finally break that cycle and get a fresh start by passing the REDEEM Act to reform our criminal justice system, expunge records after time served, and prevent non-violent crimes from becoming a permanent blot on one\u2019s record.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur criminal justice system is broken and we need to take steps to fix it,\u201d Sen. Booker said. \u201cNot only does our country have the highest incarceration rate in the world, but our prison population is disproportionately comprised of Americans of color. As the Mayor of Newark, I saw the effects of this broken system firsthand. The REDEEM Act is an important step in righting this injustice. Our bipartisan bill will help Americans who have been convicted of nonviolent crimes get back on their feet, reduce rates of recidivism, and cut costs to taxpayers.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs a nation, our goal for those leaving incarceration should be to help their successful and productive reintegration into society,\u201d Rep. Cummings said. \u201cThe REDEEM Act helps ease barriers that too often hold people back as they attempt to re-establish their lives outside prison. These reforms will help to provide a second chance for jobs and housing for those working to move beyond their criminal record.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sens-paul-coons-call-pakistan-release-asia-bibi-reform-laws/", "Sens. Paul, Coons Call on Pakistan to Release Asia Bibi, Reform Laws", "2017-04-04", "2017", "2017-04", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Chris Coons (D-DE) introduced S. Res. 109, a resolution calling on Pakistan to end the unjust imprisonment of Pakistani Christian Aasiya Noreen, commonly referred to as Asia Bibi, and to reform laws that have led to the targeting of religious minorities.\n\nMs. Bibi was charged with blaspheming after a disagreement with neighbors, ultimately resulting in Ms. Bibi\u2019s imprisonment, conviction, and subsequent sentencing to death row. After an international outcry, the Pakistani Supreme Court stayed her execution.\n\nIf her sentencing were upheld, she would have been the first woman to be executed in Pakistan as a result of blasphemy laws. This resolution highlights her case and that of other religious minorities who have been indiscriminate victims of Pakistan\u2019s blasphemy laws.\n\n\u201cMy heart goes out to Asia Bibi as she continues to endure her unjust imprisonment in Pakistan,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cIt\u2019s time for Pakistan to immediately release Asia Bibi and put a stop to the persecution of Christians and other religious minorities.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo one, in any part of the world, should be victimized for freely and peacefully practicing his or her beliefs,\u201d said Sen. Coons. \u201cAs a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and co-chair of the Senate Human Rights Caucus, I am committed to working to protect religious freedom and human rights internationally. I urge the government of Pakistan to release Asia Bibi and work to promote an inclusive and pluralistic society, starting with reforming its blasphemy laws.\u201d\n\nMs. Bibi\u2019s case has sparked international outrage and has drawn strong condemnation from human rights groups. Sens. Paul and Coons\u2019 resolution is supported by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and International Christian Concern.\n\nYou can read the resolution HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:37:32Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-you-say-tomato-i-say-waste/", "You Say Tomato, I Say Waste", "2017-03-30", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of \u201cThe Waste Report,\u201d an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nTomatoes not quite tasting like they used to? Don\u2019t worry. Your tax dollars are on the case, with the National Science Foundation (NSF) spending over $1.5 million to research how to improve a tomato\u2019s flavor.\n\nOne would expect private companies to invest to make their products better, but Dr. Paul\u2019s Report asks if it is in the taxpayers\u2019 best interest to spend their hard-earned funds on what is already a highly popular, massive industry.\n\nYou can learn more in this week\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nTomatoes: they put the \u201cT\u201d in BLT, are found on burgers, and make salsa what it is. They are in ketchup, pizza sauce, soups, and more. In short, tomatoes are all over the place.\n\nIn fact, the average American consumes approximately 31.4 pounds of tomatoes each year, making it the second most consumed vegetable[1] in the United States after potatoes.[2]\n\nSo, given its versatility and popularity, one has to wonder why the National Science Foundation spent over $1.5 million trying to improve the taste of tomatoes.[3]\n\nMake no mistake, the research is about taste. In NSF\u2019s January press release, \u201cScientists develop genetic path to tastier tomatoes,\u201d the director of the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (where the funding came from) said, \u201cThis state-of-the-art analysis sets the stage to return it to the taste of decades ago by breeding informed by molecular genetics.\u201d[4]\n\nApparently the research found that modern tomatoes are less tasty because they have less sugar and other flavorful chemicals. Wait \u2026 sugar will make something taste better?\n\nIS THIS IN THE TAXPAYER\u2019S INTEREST?\n\nAccording to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), three fourths of American tomato consumption is in \u201cprocessed form\u201d: sauces, ketchup, juice, etc. Further, over a quarter of all tomato consumption occurs \u201caway from home.\u201d[5]\n\nThese facts seem to indicate there is a significant commercial interest in the tomato. So, one might ask why Uncle Sam is funding better tasting tomatoes and not Heinz, Papa John\u2019s, or Campbell\u2019s.\n\nThe answer may be that their raw taste really does not matter that much if the bulk of tomatoes are enjoyed as part of more complex foods.\n\nMAYBE IT\u2019S ECONOMICS\n\nCertainly one could argue that making a vegetable taste better will improve its economic viability. NSF even said that \u201c[b]reeding a more flavorful tomato could benefit consumers as well as the tomato industry.\u201d[6] One researcher on the project said, \u201cWe can make the supermarket tomato taste noticeably better.\u201d[7]\n\nSo, is the tomato industry hurting? As we have already noted, tomatoes are the second most consumed vegetable in the U.S. The U.S. is the second largest producer of raw tomatoes in the world, making it a $2 billion annual industry.[8]If only they tasted better.\n\nSTILL NO WORD ON MAKING\n\nBRUSSELS SPROUTS TASTE BETTER\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-holds-senate-hearing-national-debts-impact-spending/", "Dr. Rand Paul Holds Senate Hearing on the National Debt\u2019s Impact on Spending", "2017-03-29", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee for the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC), held a hearing entitled, \u201cThe Effect of Borrowing on Federal Spending.\u201d\n\nThe hearing looked at the extent to which debt is already affecting the federal budget, as well as how its current trajectory will impact what we can do in the future. Additionally, the hearing examined the effectiveness of the debt limit as an action-forcing mechanism for fiscal and budgetary reform, along with the consequences and strategies (such as prioritization) involved with not further raising the limit.\n\n\u201cCongress rarely makes simple, unpleasant choices, which means we end up facing difficult and unavoidable, catastrophic problems,\u201d Dr. Paul said in his opening statement. \u201cWe only act when circumstances force us to. This is why the debt limit is important. It\u2019s our internal credit limit, not that of our creditors. It\u2019s an opportunity to reassess our spending and ask, \u2018How did we get here, and how do we get out of this mess?'\u201d\n\nDavid Walker, former Comptroller General of the United States, noted in his testimony that, \u201cExcessive levels of debt as a percentage of the economy can serve to reduce economic growth and job opportunities. It can also cause a \u2018crisis of confidence\u2019 in the U.S. dollar and much higher interest rates if the market ever decides that the federal government has lost control of its finances and is not willing to regain control over them.\u201d\n\nYou can watch the full hearing HERE.\n\nYou can click HERE or below to watch Dr. Paul\u2019s opening statement.\n\nCLICK HERE TO WATCH DR. PAUL\u2019S OPENING STATEMENT\n\nWITNESSES:\n\nDavid Walker\n\nSenior Strategic Advisor with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Former Comptroller General of the United States, featured in the movie I.O.U.S.A.\n\nVeronique de Rugy\n\nSenior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and nationally syndicated columnist\n\nMark Zandi\n\nChief Economist for Moody\u2019s Analytics\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-votes-against-further-expanding-nato/", "Dr. Rand Paul Votes Against Further Expanding NATO", "2017-03-27", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul voted against a cloture motion on ratifying the Accession Protocol for Montenegro to become the 29th member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).\n\n\u201cThere is no national security interest that an alliance with Montenegro will advance. If we invite Montenegro into NATO, it will be a one-way street, with the U.S. committing to defend yet another country, and you, the taxpayer, being stuck with the bill. Even the advocates of Montenegro joining NATO admit as much,\u201d stated Dr. Paul on the Senate floor.\n\nCLICK HERE TO WATCH DR. PAUL\u2019S SPEECH\n\nBefore the cloture vote, Dr. Paul attempted to uphold the Constitution by introducing an amendment to prevent U.S. troops from being committed to defend Montenegro in an Article 5 situation without Congress first passing a declaration of war. You can read the amendment, which the Senate refused to consider, HERE.\n\nMontenegro would fail to meet the standard repeatedly set by President Trump that NATO members should pay their fair share, as the country would not be able to meet the guideline to spend a minimum of two percent of its GDP on defense by 2024.\n\nWhile the Senate is being urged to quickly act, the matter is far from settled within Montenegro\u2019s own borders, with a 2016 opinion poll in Montenegro revealing that only 46.5 percent of the public supports NATO membership.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-comments-us-house-rejecting-obamacare-lite/", "Dr. Rand Paul Comments on the U.S. House Rejecting \u2018Obamacare Lite\u2019", "2017-03-24", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul released the following statement after U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan pulled the American Health Care Act from a floor vote for the second day in a row:\n\n\u201cI applaud House conservatives for keeping their word to the American people and standing up against Obamacare Lite,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI look forward to passing full repeal of Obamacare in the very near future.\u201d\n\nEarlier this month, Dr. Paul introduced the Obamacare Repeal Act (S. 554), which is the same legislation, with an updated timeline, to repeal major components of Obamacare that an overwhelming Republican majority sent to President Obama\u2019s desk in January 2016.\n\nYou can read more about Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Repeal Act HERE.\n\nIn January, Dr. Paul introduced the free-market based Obamacare Replacement Act (S. 222), which empowers Americans to: 1.) Choose inexpensive insurance free of government dictates; 2.) Save unlimited amounts in a health savings account (HSA) and have wider options for using those funds; 3.) Buy insurance across state lines; and 4.) Join together in voluntary associations to gain the leverage of being part of a large insurance pool.\n\nYou can find a one-page summary of Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act, which the House Freedom Caucus endorsed in February, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-interesting-times/", "Interesting Times", "2017-03-21", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the latest edition of \u201cThe Waste Report,\u201d an ongoing project cataloguing egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government.\n\nNo one can borrow unlimited amounts of money forever, but that hasn\u2019t stopped our federal government from trying. This week\u2019s Report examines the results, which include nearly $2,000 of your taxes going solely toward interest payments on the national debt rather than defense, education, or infrastructure. Our government could fund the budgets of a staggering list of departments and agencies \u2013 combined \u2013 with what it instead devotes to interest.\n\nYou can learn more in this week\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d HERE or below.\n\n****\n\nLast week, the federal government hit what is known as the \u201cdebt ceiling.\u201d Not sure what the debt ceiling is? Well, just like a credit card limits people on the amount they can charge, the law limits how much the federal government can borrow (the so-called \u201cdebt limit\u201d).\n\nBe it the credit card in your wallet or federal borrowing, the reasoning for the limit is the same: no person or even government can borrow unlimited amounts of money forever. Without a limit, the minimum payments will just keep growing until they are unmanageable.\n\nWhen we hit the limit, Uncle Sam will try to delay but will eventually call on Congress for a credit limit increase (like anyone with a spending problem).\n\nThe Federal Credit Card\n\nSo what exactly does Uncle Sam\u2019s credit card statement look like? Well, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated in January that our federal gross debt will be $20.36 trillion[1] by the end of this year, with net interest of $295 billion.[2] Both of these numbers are up from our report last year, Interested in Waste, by approximately $1 trillion and $40 billion respectively \u2013 the direct result of failing to balance the federal budget.\n\nThese are all big numbers. So to put it in perspective, let\u2019s imagine Uncle Sam is an average American and makes an annual wage of $48,320.[3] Sam would already have $288,954 in debt. His minimum payment on that debt would be nearly $4,000 this year, but that is just because he did a balance transfer a while ago and is still on a low teaser rate of about 2%. Someday soon, that rate is going to expire, and his payment will at least double. Even still, right now Sam seems to be able to manage his debt, except that Sam plans to spend $56,255 this year \u2013 increasing his debt load by almost $8,000 to nearly $297,000. Worse still, Sam isn\u2019t bashful about his plan to keep spending more than he makes each year for the rest of his life.\n\nIt doesn\u2019t take a financial whiz to see that Sam cannot keep this up too much longer.\n\nWhy Should You Care?\n\nAs we know, Uncle Sam is not a real person with a job. Instead, he is an enormous government that gets almost all his money from your taxes. Even if he is only paying interest (the minimum payment), he has to pay that in cash. That means the first $1,966 YOU PAY in taxes will go just to interest payments.[4] Not defense, not education, not roads \u2013 interest. Worse, it is all wasted. The government and you, the taxpayer, do not actually get anything for this \u2013 not one hour of work and not even one sticky note.\n\nInterest Roll Call\n\nIf you are like most people, at some point you have sat down to pay your credit card bill(s) and thought, \u201cInterest is killing me. I could pay for a lot of other stuff (or pay this card down faster) if it weren\u2019t for this interest.\u201d We\u2019ve thought the same thing about the federal interest payment. So, what could we pay for? The $295 billion in interest payments we will pay this year COULD have covered the budgets of the Departments of: Commerce, Energy, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Justice, and State, as well as the EPA, NASA, the National Science Foundation, the Small Business Administration, the U.S. Congress, the Federal Courts, all international assistance programs, the Executive Office of the President, and the Army Corps of Engineers \u2013 COMBINED.[5]\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-hold-senate-hearing-reducing-federal-debt-and-spending/", "Dr. Rand Paul to Hold Senate Hearing on Reducing Federal Debt and Spending", "2017-03-17", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This week, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee for the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee (HSGAC), announced he will hold a hearing on Wednesday, March 29, concerning the growing federal debt and its impact on spending.\n\n\u201cAs the federal debt ceiling is reinstated this week, our national debt stands at nearly $20 trillion, with a $295 billion interest payment just this year,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cOur present, unsustainable course directly threatens our national security and long-term stability. I look forward to hearing from experts who will make the case for reform.\u201d\n\nWEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2017\n\nWHAT: Subcommittee on Federal Spending Oversight and Emergency Management hearing entitled, \u201cThe Effect of Borrowing on Federal Spending\u201d\n\nWHEN: 2:30 p.m. ET\n\nWHERE: SD-342, Dirksen Senate Office Building\n\nWITNESSES:\n\nMajority Witnesses:\n\nDavid Walker\n\nFormer United States Comptroller General, featured in the movie I.O.U.S.A.\n\nVeronique de Rugy\n\nSenior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and nationally syndicated columnist\n\nMinority Witness:\n\nMark Zandi\n\nChief Economist for Moody\u2019s Analytics\n\nAccording to the Congressional Budget Office, interest on our debt today is roughly 7 percent of federal spending. By 2026, it will be nearly 11 percent. By the time a child born today graduates from high school, it will be 15 percent, and it will be more than 18 percent by the time that child is legally allowed to consume alcohol. By comparison, roughly 14 percent of our budget is spent on national defense.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-pauls-fair-act-restores-respect-5th-amendment/", "Dr. Rand Paul\u2019s FAIR Act Restores Respect for 5th Amendment", "2017-03-16", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul reintroduced S. 642, the FAIR (Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration) Act to protect property owners\u2019 rights and restore the Fifth Amendment\u2019s role in civil forfeiture proceedings. Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) has introduced companion legislation (H.R. 1555) in the U.S. House of Representatives.\n\n\u201cThe federal government has made it far too easy for government agencies to take and profit from the property of those who have not been convicted of a crime,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThe FAIR Act will protect Americans\u2019 Fifth Amendment rights from being infringed upon by ensuring that government agencies no longer profit from taking the property of U.S. citizens without due process. It guards against abuse while maintaining the ability of courts to order the surrender of proceeds of crime.\u201d\n\n\u201cOver the past few years, we\u2019ve seen a wave of stories where the government unjustly seized property from innocent Americans without charging them with a crime,\u201d said Rep. Walberg. \u201cThese types of abuses of civil asset forfeiture laws should be a clarion call to reform the system and uphold the constitutional rights of the American people. That\u2019s why I\u2019m committed to championing the FAIR Act, which includes comprehensive and bipartisan reforms to limit the scope of the government\u2019s forfeiture powers and protect individual rights.\u201d\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s FAIR Act is supported by Heritage Action, the American Civil Liberties Union, Institute for Justice, FreedomWorks, National Federation of Independent Business, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Drug Policy Alliance, Americans for Tax Reform, and Campaign for Liberty.\n\nYou can read the entire legislation HERE, and you can find a section-by-section breakdown HERE. Background information is available below.\n\nDr. Rand Paul\u2019s S. 642, the Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration (FAIR) Act:\n\nEliminates \u201cEquitable\u201d Sharing: The federal \u201cequitable\u201d sharing program allows state law enforcement officers to turn seized property over to federal officials for forfeiture\u2014and get up to 80% of the proceeds of the forfeited property. The FAIR Act ends \u201cequitable\u201d sharing and ensures that law enforcement cannot ignore state law.\n\nRestores Principle of \u201cInnocent Until Proven Guilty\u201d: Under current law, federal law enforcement agencies may take property suspected of involvement in crime without charging the property owner with a crime. The FAIR Act places on the government the burden to show that a property owner consented to his property being used in a crime by a third party (or that the property owner was willfully blind to the criminal activity).\n\nRequires Clear and Convincing Evidence: Under current law, the government need only prove by a preponderance of the evidence that a defendant\u2019s property was used for an illegal purpose to forfeit the property. The FAIR Act would require that the government prove its case by the higher standard of clear and convincing evidence.\n\nProtects the Right to Counsel: Under current law, property owners can receive appointed counsel due to indigency only if (1) they request it, and (2) their home has been seized. The FAIR Act would ensure that owners have the opportunity to receive representation in all civil forfeiture proceedings.\n\nRemoves the Profit Incentive: Law enforcement should be motivated by public safety, not financial rewards. The FAIR Act would restore the rule in which the proceeds of forfeiture go to the Treasury\u2019s General Fund, where Congress can appropriate the money for any purpose.\n\nReforms IRS Seizures: The FAIR Act requires that the IRS prove that the defendant knowingly deposited funds with criminal intent before they can seize the property. It also requires that a probable cause hearing be held no later than 14 days after the IRS seizes funds under the pretense of a structuring violation.\n\nEnacts Strong Reporting Requirements: The Department of Justice will be required to compile and publish the percentage of its seizures that were subjected to civil and criminal asset forfeiture.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-introduces-stop-arming-terrorists-act/", "Dr. Rand Paul Introduces the Stop Arming Terrorists Act", "2017-03-10", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This week, U.S. Senator Rand Paul introduced the Stop Arming Terrorists Act (S. 532) to prevent American taxpayers\u2019 money from being used to directly or indirectly support armed militants who are allied with or often working under the command of al-Qaeda, ISIS, or other terrorist groups. The legislation serves as a companion bill to H.R. 608, which Representative Tulsi Gabbard (HI-2) reintroduced in January.\n\n\u201cOne of the unintended consequences of nation-building and open-ended intervention is American funds and weapons benefiting those who hate us,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThis legislation will strengthen our foreign policy, enhance our national security, and safeguard our resources.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor years, the U.S. government has been supporting armed militant groups working directly with and often under the command of terrorist groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda in their fight to overthrow the Syrian government. Rather than spending trillions of dollars on regime change wars in the Middle East, we should be focused on defeating terrorist groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda, and using our resources to invest in rebuilding our communities here at home,\u201d said Rep. Gabbard. \u201cThe fact that American taxpayer dollars are being used to strengthen the very terrorist groups we should be focused on defeating should alarm every Member of Congress and every American. We call on our colleagues and the Administration to join us in passing this legislation.\u201d\n\nYou can read S. 532, the Stop Arming Terrorists Act, HERE, and you can find more information below:\n\nS. 532, the Stop Arming Terrorists Act:\n\nMakes it illegal for any U.S. federal government funds to be used to provide assistance covered in the bill, including weapons, munitions, weapons platforms, intelligence, logistics, training, and cash, to terrorists.\n\nProhibits the U.S. government from providing such assistance covered in the bill to any nation that has given or continues to give such support to terrorists.\n\nInstructs the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to determine the individuals and groups that should be considered terrorists, for the purposes of this bill, by determining: (a) the individuals and groups that are associated with, affiliated with, adherents to, or cooperating with al-Qaeda, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, or ISIS; (b) the countries that are providing assistance covered in this bill to those individuals or groups.\n\nAnticipates changing conditions by requiring the DNI to work with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Armed Services Committee, and Select Committee on Intelligence to review and update the list of prohibited countries and groups every six months.\n\nProvides for accountability and transparency by requiring the DNI to brief Congress on its determinations.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-reintroduces-obamacare-repeal-passed-republicans-last-congress/", "Dr. Rand Paul Reintroduces Obamacare Repeal Passed by Republicans in Last Congress", "2017-03-09", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This week, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul reintroduced the same legislation, with an updated timeline, to repeal major components of Obamacare that an overwhelming Republican majority sent to President Obama\u2019s desk in January 2016. Congressman Jim Jordan (OH) has introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.\n\nLast week, Dr. Paul was joined by U.S. Senators Mike Lee and Ted Cruz in calling for the 2015 reconciliation bill to be the minimum standard for repeal moving forward.\n\n\u201cThe Republican Party is unified on Obamacare repeal,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cWe can honor our promise right away by passing the same language we acted on in the last Congress. Then, we can have a separate vote on replacement legislation that will deliver lower costs, better care, and greater access to the American people.\u201d\n\nIn January, Dr. Paul introduced the free-market based Obamacare Replacement Act (S. 222), which empowers Americans to: 1.) Choose inexpensive insurance free of government dictates; 2.) Save unlimited amounts in a health savings account (HSA) and have wider options for using those funds; 3.) Buy insurance across state lines; and 4.) Join together in voluntary associations to gain the leverage of being part of a large insurance pool.\n\nYou can find a one-page summary of Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act HERE.\n\nYou can read S. 554, the Obamacare Repeal Act, HERE, and you can find more details below.\n\nS. 554, the Obamacare Repeal Act:\n\nRepeals the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF), which gives $2 billion a year to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to spend however they like. The PPHF has also been called the \u201cObamacare Slush Fund.\u201d\n\nEliminates the penalties associated with Obamacare\u2019s individual and employer mandates to purchase health coverage, effectively ending the mandates.\n\nRepeals the Medical Device Tax beginning in 2018.\n\nRepeals the Cadillac Tax in 2020, stopping it from going into effect.\n\nPrevents the HHS Secretary from making payments under Obamacare\u2019s reinsurance program, which is one of the ways the law has provided a bailout to insurance companies.\n\nRepeals Obamacare\u2019s Premium Tax Credits and Cost-Sharing Subsidies, effective after 2019.\n\nRepeals Obamacare\u2019s Penalties on Health Savings Accounts \u2013 Obamacare placed new limits and restrictions on contributions to HSAs, MSAs, HRAs, and FSAs. It also restricted the allowable expenses for which a consumer can use these accounts.\n\nRepeals Other Obamacare Taxes \u2013 Includes repeals of the health insurance tax (HIT), the annual fee on manufacture and import of pharmaceuticals, the Medicare surtax, excise tax on indoor tanning, net investment tax, remuneration, and economic substance doctrine. It would also restore the medical expenses deduction.\n\nEliminates eligibility for the Medicaid expansion as of 2020 and the associated enhanced federal matching rate. The bill would also repeal the Medicaid disproportionate share hospital reductions.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-icymi-dr-paul-rep-meadows-lets-fully-repeal-obamacare-and-then-have-open-debate-how-replace-it/", "ICYMI: Dr. Paul, Rep. Meadows: Let\u2019s fully repeal ObamaCare, and then have an open debate on how to replace it.", "2017-03-06", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, in a joint op-ed at FoxNews.com, U.S. Senator Rand Paul and U.S. House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows called on congressional leadership to pass a clean repeal of Obamacare right away and ensure a fair, open replacement process so all voices are heard.\n\n\u201cIf anyone tells you there isn\u2019t a plan that can both keep our promises to repeal, and work in a bipartisan, open way for replace, tell them conservatives have a plan to do just that,\u201d Dr. Paul and Rep. Meadows stated. \u201cNow let\u2019s hope our leadership will listen, because it is the only way they\u2019re going to get our votes.\u201d\n\nYou can read the entire op-ed HERE or below. You can find a one-page summary of Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act, which has been endorsed by the House Freedom Caucus, HERE.\n\n****\n\nRepublicans across America ran on repealing the Big Government takeover of our health care system that is ObamaCare. Opposition to ObamaCare helped the GOP win the House in 2010, the Senate in 2014, and the White House in 2016. Repealing ObamaCare has been a key facet of all our recent victories.\n\nNo Democrat will vote for a stand-alone, real repeal. But nearly every Republican will \u2013 in fact, nearly all of them already did in 2015.\n\nWe call on Congressional leaders to keep their word to the American people, to push a real repeal of ObamaCare, and to do it now. The only way to really do that in a way that ensures passage is to move forward with a \u201cclean\u201d repeal, such as the 2015 repeal bill.\n\nMany conservatives have called for Replace bills at the same time as a repeal bill. A free market replacement bill has been introduced in the Senate and a companion bill endorsed by the House Freedom Caucus. Others have their own plans and ideas. The White House will no doubt have some ideas, as well.\n\nWe should debate all of these replacement ideas on the same day we pass Repeal, but we will have to separate the debate into at least two different bills because there is no consensus with leadership on replacement. While the vast majority of Republicans have come out in favor of the principles of our replacement bill, some in leadership have offered starkly different ideas.\n\nRepublican leadership wants to keep several variations of ObamaCare:\n\n1. Leadership wants to keep ObamaCare-like subsidies to buy insurance but rename them refundable tax credits (families will be given up to $14,000 dollars of other people\u2019s money).\n\n2. Leadership wants to keep the ObamaCare Cadillac tax but rename it a tax on the top 10% of people who have the best insurance.\n\n3. Leadership wants to keep the individual mandate, but instead of mandating a tax penalty to the government, they mandate a penalty to the insurance company (can it possibly be Constitutional to mandate a penalty to a private insurance company?).\n\n4. Leadership wants to keep $100 billion of the insurance company subsidies from ObamaCare but call them \u201creinsurance.\u201d (Why? Because insurance companies love guaranteed issue as long as the taxpayer finances it!)\n\nConservatives don\u2019t want new taxes, new entitlements, and an \u201cObamaCare-lite\u201d bill. If leadership insists on replacing ObamaCare with ObamaCare-lite, no repeal will pass.\n\nNobody wants ObamaCare repealed more than we do. We think the only way to repeal ObamaCare is to separate repeal from replace.\n\nObamaCare provisions dressed up in shiny new GOP-branded clothes would mean the loss of too many conservative votes for passage.\n\nBut we can do the work we were sent to do. We can repeal now using the 2015 bill that united all Republicans.\n\nWe can immediately turn to the replace bills, with a fair, open process much like our budget. Let everyone with a plan or an amendment come forward and speak. Let\u2019s debate, vote, and put forward a transparent, fair process so that everyone on both sides of the aisle and all sides of the debate is heard.\n\nWe own repeal. We ran on it. It is our idea. We have to pass it cleanly, now.\n\nThen we owe the American people a real, old-fashioned period of allowing all ideas to be debated and voted on to produce the best product possible.\n\nWe\u2019ve got ours ready. We\u2019ve already sponsored the replacement. We\u2019ll advocate for a free market plan that would lower cost and increase access for millions of Americans. The repeal we support has a timeframe to allow the market to work and ensure Americans don\u2019t lose coverage. We would love to debate it and hear our colleagues\u2019 amendments.\n\nJust as soon as we pass the real, clean repeal that we promised we would.\n\nWe will introduce that this week, too. If anyone tells you there isn\u2019t a plan that can both keep our promises to repeal, and work in a bipartisan, open way for replace, tell them conservatives have a plan to do just that. Now let\u2019s hope our leadership will listen, because it is the only way they\u2019re going to get our votes.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-denied-copy-us-houses-obamacare-repeal-draft/", "Dr. Rand Paul Denied a Copy of U.S. House\u2019s Obamacare Repeal Draft", "2017-03-02", "2017", "2017-03", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul learned that the U.S. House\u2019s Obamacare repeal-and-replace draft legislation is being hidden away in a \u201csecure location\u201d and was denied in the U.S. Capitol building from making a copy of the legislation for the American people and all of their representatives to read.\n\n\u201cI promised Kentuckians I would fight to ensure Congress has enough time to read legislation before voting, and that I would not back down from repealing and replacing Obamacare with a plan that lowers prices, expands choices, and strengthens health care,\u201d said Dr. Paul.\n\n\u201cIt is already bad enough that it appears House leadership wants us to settle for \u2018Obamacare Lite,\u2019 but now we can\u2019t even expect full transparency during the process.\n\n\u201cI will not settle,\u201d Dr. Paul continued, \u201cand I will not stand idly by while the American people are kept in the dark. I will continue to speak out for full repeal.\u201d\n\nIn January, Dr. Paul introduced the free-market based Obamacare Replacement Act (S. 222), which empowers Americans to: 1.) Choose inexpensive insurance free of government dictates; 2.) Save unlimited amounts in a health savings account (HSA) and have wider options for using those funds; 3.) Buy insurance across state lines; and 4.) Join together in voluntary associations to gain the leverage of being part of a large insurance pool.\n\nYou can find a one-page summary of Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act HERE.\n\nDr. Paul has also previously introduced the \u201cRead the Bills Act\u201d to give members of Congress enough time to fully evaluate legislation before voting.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:30:05Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-icymi-sens-paul-lee-and-cruz-will-oppose-obamacare-lite/", "ICYMI: Sens. Paul, Lee, and Cruz Will Oppose \u2018Obamacare Lite\u2019", "2017-02-28", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last night, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul was joined by Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) in taking a firm, public stand to declare they would accept nothing less than full repeal of Obamacare.\n\nIn the following, coordinated tweets, the senators put those who would push \u201cObamacare Lite\u201d on notice that they will not vote for any such plans.\n\n\u201cCongress must keep its word. We were elected to fully repeal and replace Obamacare, and that\u2019s the only thing I will vote for,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cThe legislation brought to the Senate floor must at least match the standard set by the 2015 repeal bill that both chambers of Congress passed.\u201d\n\nThe senators\u2019 stand, coupled with that of members of the U.S. House Freedom Caucus and Republican Study Committee, demonstrates that conservatives will not lie down and just accept anything under the banner of repealing Obamacare.\n\nIn addition, Senator Paul and the U.S. House Freedom Caucus have united to put forward a substantive, free-market based Obamacare Replacement Act, which they are urging Congress to vote on at the same time as repeal.\n\nYou can find a one-page summary of S. 222, Dr. Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-applauds-executive-order-supporting-kentucky-farmers-and-coal-miners/", "Sen. Rand Paul Applauds Executive Order Supporting Kentucky Farmers and Coal Miners", "2017-02-28", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C.- U.S. Senator Rand Paul today released the following statement applauding President Trump\u2019s executive order calling for a review and reconsideration of the Waters of the U.S. Rule and re-defining \u201cNavigable Waters\u201d in a manner consistent with the Scalia opinion in Rapanos v. United States and his own Defense of Environment and Property Act.\n\nThe Obama administration EPA and Army Corps of Engineers\u2019 WOTUS rule significantly expands the definition of waters in the U.S. to include non-navigable waters, certain dry land, drains, ditches, small ponds, and even depressions in fields that are only wet after heavy rains. Sen. Paul\u2019s Defense of Environment and Property Act, like President Trump\u2019s executive order, defines navigable waters as navigable-in-fact and relatively permanent bodies of water.\n\n\u201cRepealing the Waters of the U.S. rule, one of the most egregious examples of government overreach on Kentucky farmers and miners, has always been a top priority of mine,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI applaud the President for continuing his efforts to provide regulatory relief to all Americans.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-7/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 7", "2017-02-23", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the seventh installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nUnmoored from significant strategic priorities, foreign institutional development projects tend to least benefit the American taxpayers who fund them. While the endeavors may have laudable intentions, and some measure of benefit somewhere, programs that do not meet a policy priority and do not benefit American taxpayers are simply bad policy that Congress should do more to reform or eliminate.\n\nThis edition of \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d covers examples such as our government devoting nearly $3 million to producing foreign television dramas, granting $400,000 to cut business-stifling regulations in Armenia with a \u201cregulatory guillotine,\u201d while America\u2019s own businesses remain buried under a mountain of regulations, and spending over $550,000 for the Department of the Treasury to, in part, advise Moldova\u2019s central bank on how to manipulate interest rates.\n\nYou can learn about all these and more in \u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 7 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories and the amounts involved HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-joins-president-trump-signing-legislation-protecting-kentucky-coal-industry/", "Dr. Rand Paul Joins President Trump for Signing of Legislation Protecting Kentucky Coal Industry", "2017-02-16", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul joined President Donald Trump for the official signing of legislation benefiting Kentucky\u2019s coal industry. H.J. Res. 38 exercises Congress\u2019 power under the Congressional Review Act to overturn the newly implemented Stream Buffer Rule. Last month, Sen. Paul joined fellow Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell and 28 other Senators in introducing the Senate version, S.J. Res. 10, which was followed by the House\u2019s companion measure.\n\n\u201cI am excited to join the President today as he signs and enacts our initiative to finally provide relief to our coal industry,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI am proud to be keeping my word to Kentucky\u2019s hardworking coal miners and their families as I continue to work to roll back the disastrous effects of the Obama administration\u2019s War on Coal.\u201d\n\nYou can find video of the event, where Dr. Paul also spoke, HERE.\n\nThe Stream Buffer Rule\u2019s provisions included prohibiting coal mining within 100 feet of streams (with limited exceptions) and shutting down surface mining if an animal species that is merely being proposed for listing as endangered or threatened is present in or near the mine. It also allowed federal bureaucrats to preempt and overrule state permitting standards. The National Mining Association had estimated that the Rule endangered one third of coal-related jobs and could have cost billions in lost federal and state tax revenue.\n\nIn addition to cosponsoring S.J. Res. 10, Dr. Paul previously worked to protect coal miners from the Stream Buffer Rule through direct intervention with the Department of Interior and OSM, as well as cosponsoring the STREAM Act in the 114th Congress to delay its implementation.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-6/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 6", "2017-02-15", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the sixth installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nIf too many countries have American taxpayers funding some form of tourism promotion, then would-be tourists are being told, effectively, to visit everywhere. But because they can\u2019t visit everywhere, it means that taxpayers are likely not getting a very good return on the considerable global expense they have paid to promote foreign tourism. It also means the United States is basically competing for tourists against itself, harming the countless American businesses that are sensitive to the loss or gain of tourism-based revenue.\n\n\u201cWorldwide Waste, Part 6\u201d reports on stories such as our government sending $98 million in tourism support to Jordan, more than $16 million over many years to Macedonia, including on projects to make it a hot spot for adventure tourists, and nearly $2 million to Belarus, including to a bed and breakfast featured by USAID that led tourists in an ancient rite to a pagan harvest god.\n\nYou can learn about all these and more in \u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 6 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories and the amounts involved HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-continues-work-stop-multi-million-dollar-tax-lake-cumberland-community/", "Dr. Rand Paul Continues Work to Stop Multi-Million Dollar Tax on Lake Cumberland Community", "2017-02-14", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C.- On Friday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to voice his opposition to their plan to require municipal and industrial users of Lake Cumberland to pay for water supply from Lake Cumberland and yearly operation and maintenance costs of the dam and lake. In the letter, he also requested USACE not consider these water supply users to be trespassers for continuing to withdraw water from the lake in the absence of water supply storage agreements.\n\nAdditionally, he asked that the Corps delay any action furthering this plan until the administration has nominated and the Senate has confirmed a new Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), so that he or she may have a chance to consider, revise, or suspend any such plan.\n\nDr. Paul has previously introduced legislation to address this issue, and has met with local leaders many times to discuss potential solutions.\n\n\u201cI refuse to believe that a multi-million dollar tax increase on the backs of hard-working Kentuckians for continuing to access a natural resource they have long been using is the only solution, and strongly disagree with the Corps\u2019 onerous plan,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI will continue working on behalf of the Lake Cumberland community on this issue, and I encourage Kentuckians to join me in filing comments to the Corps during the comment period, as we all work to prevent these outrageous fees.\u201d\n\nThe comment period is open now through March 1st, 2017. Comments should be addressed to Mr. Chip Hall, and may be either emailed to CorpsLRNPlanningPublicCom@usace.army.mil or mailed to:\n\nDepartment of the Army, Nashville District, Corps of Engineers\n\n110 9th Avenue South, Room A-405\n\nNashville, TN 37203\n\nYou can view the letter HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-rep-mark-sanford-members-freedom-caucus-holding-joint-press-conference-obamacare/", "Sen. Rand Paul, Rep. Mark Sanford, & members of the Freedom Caucus Holding Joint Press Conference on Obamacare Replacement", "2017-02-14", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This Wednesday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) and U.S. Representative Mark Sanford (R-SC) will hold a joint press conference concerning their Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) replacement legislation. They will be joined by members of the House Freedom Caucus who have endorsed the plan and will help usher it through the House of Representatives.\n\n\u201cThis legislation is the conservative solution to replacing Obamacare, and it will enable millions more to acquire affordable insurance through the free market,\u201d said Sen. Paul.\n\nDate: Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017\n\nTime: 1 p.m. ET\n\nLocation: Capitol Visitor Center, HVC Studio A, HVC 117\n\nWho: Credentialed members of the media\n\nPress Contact\n\nFor questions regarding location or directions to the studio, please contact House Radio-TV Gallery staff at 202-225-5214.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-5/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 5", "2017-02-08", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the fifth installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nFlush with taxpayer money and unencumbered by significant congressional oversight, the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), created by the Foreign Assistance Act of 1969, has had the leeway to place funds where and how it wants, with seemingly little worry of having to justify or account for its actions to either elected policymakers or the American people.\n\n\u201cWorldwide Waste, Part 5\u201d takes a detailed look at this spending spree, including $1.7 million to assist fair-trade coffee cultivation in Nicaragua, over $328,000 to support a Haitian dance troupe, and over $217,000 to help a Mayan radio station in Belize.\n\nYou can learn more in \u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 5 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories and the amounts involved HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-icymi-dr-rand-paul-president-trump-should-reject-failed-foreign-policy-advisers/", "ICYMI: Dr. Rand Paul: President Trump Should Reject Failed Foreign Policy Advisers", "2017-02-07", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 In an op-ed published today at Rare, U.S. Senator Rand Paul urged President Trump to reject the neoconservatives\u2019 nation-building, perpetual war philosophy by selecting a Deputy Secretary of State that can be trusted to implement the administration\u2019s agenda.\n\n\u201cOne of the things I like most about President Trump is his acknowledgement that nation-building does not work and actually works against the nation-building we need to do here at home,\u201d said Dr. Paul in the piece. \u201cWith a $20 trillion debt, we don\u2019t have the money to do both.\n\n\u201cI urge him to keep that in mind this week when he meets with Elliott Abrams, the rumored pick for second in command to the Secretary of State.\n\n\u201cAbrams would be a terrible appointment for countless reasons. He doesn\u2019t agree with the president in so many areas of foreign policy, and he has said so repeatedly.\u201d\n\nYou can read Dr. Paul\u2019s entire op-ed HERE or below.\n\n***\n\nI hope against hope that the rumors are wrong, and that President Donald Trump will not open the State Department door to the neocons. Crack the door to admit Elliott Abrams, and the neocons will scurry in by the hundreds.\n\nNeoconservative interventionists have had us at perpetual war for 25 years. While President Trump has repeatedly stated his belief that the Iraq War was a mistake, the neocons (all of them Never-Trumpers) continue to maintain that the Iraq and Libyan Wars were brilliant ideas. These are the same people who think we must blow up half the Middle East, then rebuild it and police it for decades.\n\nThey\u2019re wrong, and they should not be given a voice in this administration.\n\nOne of the things I like most about President Trump is his acknowledgement that nation-building does not work and actually works against the nation-building we need to do here at home. With a $20 trillion debt, we don\u2019t have the money to do both.\n\nI urge him to keep that in mind this week when he meets with Elliott Abrams, the rumored pick for second in command to the Secretary of State.\n\nAbrams would be a terrible appointment for countless reasons. He doesn\u2019t agree with the president in so many areas of foreign policy, and he has said so repeatedly; he is a loud voice for nation-building and when asked about the president\u2019s opposition to nation-building, Abrams said that Trump was absolutely wrong; and during the election he was unequivocal in his opposition to Donald Trump, going so far as to say, \u201cthe chair in which Washington and Lincoln sat, he is not fit to sit.\u201d\n\nWhy then would the president trust him with the second most powerful position in the State Department?\n\nAbrams was equally dismissive throughout Trump\u2019s entire candidacy. As a Never-Trumper, he repeatedly said he would neither vote for Clinton nor Trump. He likened the choice to the one the nation faced of McGovern vs. Nixon.\n\nI voted for Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State because I believe him to have a balanced approach to foreign policy. My hope is that he will put forward a realist approach. I don\u2019t see Abrams as part of any type of foreign policy realism.\n\nElliott Abrams is a neoconservative too long in the tooth to change his spots, and the president should have no reason to trust that he would carry out a Trump agenda rather than a neocon agenda.\n\nBut just as importantly, Congress has good reason not to trust him \u2014 he was convicted of lying to Congress in his previous job.\n\nHis conviction for deceiving Congress over secret arms deals, better known as the Iran-Contra scandal, show that his neocon agenda trumps his fidelity to the rule of law. The Constitution directs Congress to approve or disapprove of war. It would be a mistake to appoint anyone to the State Department who was previously convicted for defying Congressional authority.\n\nNation-building in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen has not and will not work. Mr. President please, please do not open the door to the people who sip lattes while sneering behind your back. They are bold enough to come begging for work while continuing to laugh and deride your every remark concerning foreign policy. Don\u2019t let them in!\n\nThe neocon trademark is to conduct war in secret to avoid congressional scrutiny. This is exactly what happened during Iran-Contra. Despite legislation that prohibited sending arms to Nicaragua, Abrams and other neocons surreptitiously funneled money from sultans in Brunei to sheiks in Iran, converting the cash into weapons that were then sent to authoritarians in Nicaragua.\n\nAbrams also supervised, covered up and defended a policy of arming a Guatemalan government undeniably waging war against an indigenous native population. Thousands of the indigenous people of the Ixil region of Guatemala were exterminated. The Guatemalan President was eventually convicted of war crimes. Abrams was an unabashed supporter and organizer of sending arms into this tragic situation.\n\nIn a country of 300 million people, surely there are reasonable foreign policy experts who have not been convicted of deceiving Congress and actually share the president\u2019s foreign policy views. I hope Secretary Rex Tillerson will continue the search for expert assistance from experienced, non-convicted diplomats who understand the mistakes of the past and the challenges ahead.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-big-victory-kentucky-coal-miners-dr-rand-pauls-effort-protect-kentucky-coal-industry-passes/", "Big Victory for Kentucky Coal Miners: Dr. Rand Paul\u2019s Effort to Protect Kentucky Coal Industry Passes Senate", "2017-02-02", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul applauded the U.S. Senate for passing legislation to protect Kentucky\u2019s coal industry by overturning regulation aimed at putting them out of business. Earlier this week, Dr. Paul joined fellow Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell and 27 of his Senate colleagues in introducing S.J. Res. 10, a resolution of disapproval that would exercise Congress\u2019 power under the Congressional Review Act to overturn the newly implemented Stream Protection Rule. Last night, the U.S. House passed a companion measure, and the full legislation is now headed to the President\u2019s desk.\n\n\u201cThis is a huge victory for Kentucky\u2019s hardworking coal miners and their families, and I am excited for the President to sign this important legislation to finally provide relief to our coal industry,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI promised to always defend Kentucky from the federal government\u2019s War on Coal, and I look forward to continuing that fight as we build on this victory to finally defeat the bureaucratic overreach that has plagued our Commonwealth for far too long.\u201d\n\nOn December 19, the Department of Interior\u2019s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) finalized the Rule, which went into effect on January 19 without the federal government following Congress\u2019 mandates to fully cooperate with the states.\n\nThe Stream Protection Rule\u2019s provisions include prohibiting coal mining within 100 feet of streams (with limited exceptions) and shutting down surface mining if an animal species that is merely being proposed for listing as endangered or threatened is present in or near the mine. It also allows federal bureaucrats to preempt and overrule state permitting standards. The National Mining Association estimates that the Rule endangers one third of coal-related jobs and could cost billions in lost federal and state tax revenue.\n\nIn addition to cosponsoring S.J. Res. 10, Dr. Paul previously worked to protect coal miners from the Stream Protection Rule through direct intervention with the Department of Interior and OSM, as well as cosponsoring the STREAM Act in the 114th Congress to delay its implementation.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-4/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 4", "2017-02-01", "2017", "2017-02", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the fourth installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nDespite recent passage of a five-year highway bill, Congress has still not addressed many of the long-term questions of how to fund America\u2019s infrastructure needs. Meanwhile, it has shown little concern about devoting significant amounts of money to similar infrastructure and related projects overseas.\n\n\u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 4 examines the outcome of many of these taxpayer-funded projects, including $233 million to construct an Afghanistan highway (which started with a $69 million budget), nearly $2 million to promote motorcycle helmet laws in Cambodia, and $43 million to build a natural gas filling station in Afghanistan that nobody could use.\n\nYou can learn more in \u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 4 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories and the amounts involved HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:24:24Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-congratulates-judge-gorsuch/", "Dr. Rand Paul Congratulates Judge Gorsuch", "2017-01-31", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Tonight, U.S. Senator Rand Paul issued the following statement regarding President Trump\u2019s nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the United States Supreme Court:\n\n\u201cI congratulate President Trump for nominating a conservative jurist with outstanding credentials and experience to the Supreme Court. Judge Gorsuch is a worthy successor to Justice Scalia, a committed originalist, a strong defender of religious liberty and states\u2019 rights, and a bulwark against the administrative state. I look forward to working with my colleagues for a speedy confirmation and to having another Justice who will defend the Constitution.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-stands-coal-miners-opposing-stream-protection-rule/", "Dr. Rand Paul Stands up for Coal Miners by Opposing Stream Protection Rule", "2017-01-31", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul joined fellow Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell and 27 of his Senate colleagues in introducing S.J. Res. 10, a resolution of disapproval that would exercise Congress\u2019 power under the Congressional Review Act to overturn the newly implemented Stream Protection Rule. The Senate will consider the legislation after the House votes on a companion measure, which is expected soon.\n\nOn December 19, the Department of Interior\u2019s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) finalized the Rule, which went into effect on January 19 without the federal government following Congress\u2019 mandates to fully cooperate with the states.\n\n\u201cIt seems the Obama administration couldn\u2019t resist firing one last shot in its War on Coal before leaving town,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI\u2019m excited about our chance to repeal regulations that deny Kentucky\u2019s hardworking men and women their chance to fully flourish in their professions. Getting rid of this overzealous attempt to destroy Kentucky\u2019s coal industry will send a message that \u2018business as usual\u2019 will no longer be tolerated from federal regulatory agencies.\u201d\n\nThe Stream Protection Rule\u2019s provisions include prohibiting coal mining within 100 feet of streams (with limited exceptions) and shutting down surface mining if an animal species that is merely being proposed for listing as endangered or threatened is present in or near the mine. It also allows federal bureaucrats to preempt and overrule state permitting standards. The National Mining Association estimates that the Rule endangers one third of coal-related jobs and could cost billions in lost federal and state tax revenue.\n\nIn addition to cosponsoring S.J. Res. 10, Dr. Paul previously worked to protect coal miners from the Stream Protection Rule through direct intervention with the Department of Interior and OSM, as well as cosponsoring the STREAM Act in the 114th Congress to delay its implementation.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-applauds-president-trumps-executive-action-regulations/", "Dr. Rand Paul Applauds President Trump\u2019s Executive Action on Regulations", "2017-01-30", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul applauded President Trump\u2019s Executive Order requiring federal agencies to eliminate two existing regulations for each new one they introduce. The Order would also establish a regulatory budget that offsets new costs with the savings gained from repealing two current regulations.\n\n\u201cToday\u2019s action is a refreshing and long-overdue change from the big government status quo in Washington,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cOverzealous regulators have crushed Kentucky\u2019s industries and job creators under their decrees, and this is a promising start to unshackling Kentuckians from unnecessary interference.\n\n\u201cI also believe Congressman Mick Mulvaney is exactly the person the country needs to helm this effort as OMB Director, and I urge his swift approval by the Senate,\u201d Dr. Paul added.\n\nSince his election to Congress, Dr. Paul has led the way to restore the American people\u2019s voice in the regulatory process.\n\nEarlier this month, Dr. Paul reintroduced the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act to rein in unelected federal bureaucrats by requiring that Congress affirmatively approve every new \u201cmajor rule\u201d proposed by the Executive Branch before it can be enforced on the American people.\n\nA \u201cmajor rule\u201d is defined as any federal rule or regulation that may result in: 1.) an annual economic impact of $100 million or more; 2.) a major increase in costs or prices for American consumers; or 3.) significant adverse effects on the economy.\n\nYou can read S. 21, the REINS Act, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-honors-2017-march-life/", "Dr. Rand Paul Honors the 2017 March for Life", "2017-01-27", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul issued the following statement honoring the annual March for Life:\n\n\u201cOur nation enshrined the fundamental concept of the right to life the moment we announced our independence to the world. Today, thousands will stand in the heart of our capital to give voice to those who cannot speak and call on our leaders to honor that commitment. This week, I reintroduced the Life at Conception Act, which guarantees equal protection for each unborn life under the 14th Amendment. Our dedication to advancing liberty must start by preserving that of the most innocent among us. I hope the message heard today loudly echoes throughout our country as we seek to restore a respect for life at all its stages.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-unveils-obamacare-replacement-act/", "Dr. Rand Paul Unveils Obamacare Replacement Act", "2017-01-25", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul introduced S. 222, the Obamacare Replacement Act, to provide Congress with a health care plan grounded in broadly supported conservative reforms that is ready for an immediate vote after Obamacare is repealed. Dr. Paul\u2019s proposal would expand access to higher-quality, lower-cost health care for more Americans, regardless of medical history.\n\n\u201cGetting government out of the American people\u2019s way and putting them back in charge of their own health care decisions will deliver a strong, efficient system that doesn\u2019t force them to empty out their pockets to cover their medical bills,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThere is no excuse for waiting to craft an alternative until after we repeal Obamacare, and the Obamacare Replacement Act charts a new path forward that will insure the most people possible at the lowest price.\u201d\n\nThe Obamacare Replacement Act empowers the American people to: 1.) Choose inexpensive insurance free of government dictates; 2.) Save unlimited amounts in a health savings account (HSA) and have wider options for using those funds; 3.) Buy insurance across state lines; and 4.) Join together in voluntary associations to gain the leverage of being part of a large insurance pool.\n\nDr. Paul has led the charge to replace Obamacare at the same time it is repealed, and he has been joined in calling for simultaneous action by fellow Republicans including President Trump and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.\n\nYou can see Dr. Paul\u2019s entire plan laid out section by section HERE, and you can find summary information below.\n\nDr. Rand Paul\u2019s Obamacare Replacement Act, S. 222:\n\nLegalizes Inexpensive Insurance Plans:\n\nEnsures that Americans can purchase the health insurance coverage that best fits their needs.\n\nEliminates Obamacare\u2019s essential health benefits requirement, along with other restrictive coverage and plan requirements, to once again make low-cost insurance options available to American consumers.\n\nProtects Individuals with Pre-Existing Conditions:\n\nProvides a two-year open-enrollment period under which individuals with pre-existing conditions can obtain coverage.\n\nRestores HIPAA pre-existing conditions protections. Prior to Obamacare, HIPAA guaranteed that those in the group market could obtain continuous health coverage regardless of preexisting conditions.\n\nHelps More People Save To Buy Health Insurance and Cover Medical Costs:\n\nIncentivizes savings by authorizing a tax credit (up to $5,000 per taxpayer) for individuals and families that contribute to HSAs.\n\nRemoves the annual cap on HSAs so individuals can make unlimited contributions.\n\nAllows HSA funds to be used to purchase insurance, cover premiums, and more easily afford a broader range of health-related expenses, including prescription and OTC drugs, dietary supplements, nutrition and physical exercise expenses, and direct primary care, among others.\n\nGuarantees Fair Tax Treatment of Health Insurance:\n\nEqualizes the tax treatment of the purchase of health insurance for individuals and employers by allowing individuals to deduct the cost of their health insurance from their income and payroll taxes.\n\nFrees more Americans to purchase and maintain insurance apart from their work status.\n\nDoes not interfere with employer-provided coverage for Americans who prefer those plans.\n\nHelps Individuals Join Together to Purchase Insurance:\n\nExpands Association Health Plans (AHPs) to allow small business owners and individuals to band together across state lines through their membership in a trade or professional association to purchase health coverage for their families and employees at a lower cost.\n\nAlso allows individuals to pool together through any organization to purchase insurance.\n\nWidens access to the group market and spreads out the risk, enhancing the ability of individuals and small businesses to decrease costs, increase administrative efficiencies, and further protect those with pre-existing conditions.\n\nAllows the Purchase of Insurance Across State Lines:\n\nCreates an interstate market that allows insurers who are licensed to sell policies in one state to offer them to residents of any other state.\n\nIncreases State Medicaid Flexibility:\n\nEnables states to fully exercise current flexibilities afforded to them through Medicaid waivers for creating innovative state plan designs.\n\nEmpowers Physicians:\n\nAllows non-economically aligned physicians to negotiate for higher quality health care for their patients.\n\nAmends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a physician a tax deduction equal to the amount such physician would otherwise charge for charity medical care or uncompensated care due to bad debt, limited to 10% of a physician\u2019s gross income for the taxable year.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-2/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 2", "2017-01-18", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the second installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nAs \u201cWorldwide Waste, Part 2\u201d examines, millions of our tax dollars are advancing the exports of other countries, while we increasingly find many of our own exports at a global competitive disadvantage. Young Americans are finding it difficult to break into the job market after college, yet their taxes help find jobs for foreign college graduates.\n\nAmerican farmers are vulnerable to economic pressure and rising costs, while, at the same time, their taxes support foreign farmers and foreign goods.\n\nYou can find these examples and more in \u201cWorldwide Waste,\u201d Part 2 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories and the amounts involved HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-votes-against-unbalanced-budget/", "Dr. Rand Paul Votes Against Unbalanced Budget", "2017-01-12", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Rand Paul released the following statement after voting \u201cNo\u201d on the budget resolution, Senate Con. Res. 3, early Thursday morning:\n\n\u201cAs a physician, I cannot wait to repeal Obamacare and replace it with a health care system that relies on freedom to provide quality, comprehensive, and affordable care.\n\n\u201cBut putting nearly $10 trillion more in debt on the American people\u2019s backs through a budget that never balances is not the way to get there. It is the exact opposite of the change Republicans promised, and I cannot support it, even as a placeholder.\n\n\u201cKentucky sent me to the Senate to put an end to the out-of-control spending. Unfortunately, this new Congress has chosen to continue the status quo. Not only are we not cutting spending, but we are also proposing an increase at an exponential pace. There is no reason we cannot repeal Obamacare and pass a balanced budget at the same time.\u201d\n\nEarlier this week, Dr. Paul introduced an amendment laying out how Congress could balance the budget by 2024 and still repeal Obamacare.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-icymi-dr-rand-paul-introduces-transportation-sec-nominee-elaine-chao/", "ICYMI: Dr. Rand Paul Introduces Transportation Sec. Nominee Elaine Chao", "2017-01-11", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 This morning, U.S. Senator Rand Paul joined Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to introduce former Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao at her nomination hearing to be Secretary of Transportation.\n\nYou can find video and a transcript of Dr. Paul\u2019s remarks to the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation below.\n\nCLICK HERE TO WATCH DR. PAUL\u2019S INTRODUCTION\n\nTRANSCRIPT:\n\nMr. Chairman, it is my privilege this morning to introduce a dear friend and a fellow Kentuckian, Secretary Elaine Chao, for her nomination hearing to serve as Secretary of Transportation. I would also like to welcome her family, including Dr. James Chao, who is renowned in his own right.\n\nMy wife, Kelley, and I have come to know Elaine well since our first election to the Senate six years ago, and we are both grateful for her many kindnesses and friendship as we transitioned to public service. We both admire Elaine for her thoughtfulness, integrity, intellect, and dedicated service to the country.\n\nElaine\u2019s record of accomplishment and leadership make her a truly exceptional candidate. Prior to her nomination, Secretary Chao had served this nation under three Presidential Administrations, most notably as the longest-serving Secretary of Labor since World War II under President George W. Bush.\n\nAs an immigrant to this country, Secretary Chao\u2019s successes are not only a testament to the American Dream, but also the unbridled spirit of Kentucky. Having emigrated from Taiwan at the age of 8 with no background in the English language, Secretary Chao would copy all the words of her teachers on the blackboard so her parents could go over them daily when she arrived at home to improve her English skills. Her father worked three jobs to support their six children, but they always expressed optimism for the future. The family was truly grateful to be in America, and despite the challenges, they seized the opportunity that this nation had to offer. Secretary Chao\u2019s parents\u2019 belief in education, service, and hard work set the foundation for her success, which includes a degree from Harvard Business School and 36 honorary doctorate degrees from institutions around the world. But for the Chao family, education is never the end. It is just the beginning.\n\nSecretary Chao\u2019s extensive background in both public and private sectors includes not only her previous stint as Secretary of Labor, but also Deputy Secretary of Transportation, Chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission, Deputy Maritime Administrator at the U.S. Department of Transportation, and Director of the Peace Corps. It\u2019s a long r\u00e9sum\u00e9. We would all wish to have such a r\u00e9sum\u00e9. She was also President of the United Way, as well. I have no doubt that she will do an excellent job, and that her integrity will lead her to great heights as the Secretary of Transportation.\n\nI look forward to working with Secretary Chao and the officials at the Department of Transportation to address our infrastructure issues facing our country. I urge the Committee\u2019s favorable consideration of my friend, Elaine Chao.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-presents-worldwide-waste-part-1/", "Dr. Rand Paul Presents: \u2018Worldwide Waste,\u2019 Part 1", "2017-01-10", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul, chairman of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the first installment of his \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d series, a special project of \u201cThe Waste Report.\u201d Dr. Paul\u2019s \u201cWaste Report\u201d alerts taxpayers to egregious examples of waste within the U.S. government to help reform spending and keep legislators accountable to the people.\n\nIn 2015 alone, the U.S. government\u2019s foreign assistance programs, which have largely escaped close scrutiny, absorbed $48 billion of taxpayers\u2019 money. This amount represents the average tax liability of 6.6 million Americans \u2013 about one-and-a-half times the population of Dr. Paul\u2019s state of Kentucky.\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s series will equip Americans with specific examples of how their money is being misused, offer possible solutions, and narrow the accountability gap between the American taxpayer and their representatives, who have searched frantically for excuses to protect the overseas-spending status quo.\n\nBy its end, \u201cWorldwide Waste\u201d will identify over $3 billion of waste in our government\u2019s foreign assistance programs.\n\nYou can read Part 1 HERE, and you can find a summary of its featured stories HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-senators-reintroduce-reins-act/", "Senators Reintroduce REINS Act", "2017-01-05", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Yesterday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), along with Senators Todd Young (R-IN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and 23 other cosponsors, reintroduced the \u201cRegulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny\u201d (REINS) Act as one of the first bills filed in the 115th Congress (S. 21).\n\nThe REINS Act would rein in unelected federal bureaucrats by requiring that Congress affirmatively approve every new \u201cmajor rule\u201d proposed by the Executive Branch before it can be enforced on the American people. A \u201cmajor rule\u201d is defined as any federal rule or regulation that may result in 1.) an annual economic impact of $100 million or more, 2.) a major increase in costs or prices for American consumers, or 3.) significant adverse effects on the economy.\n\n\u201cIncreasingly, regulatory agencies are wreaking havoc on freedom and our economy by imposing rules that carry the force of law but lack approval by the people\u2019s representatives,\u201d said Sen. Paul. \u201cJust ask Kentuckians about what the EPA\u2019s war on coal has cost our state. REINS is an important first step toward increasing accountability, oversight, and transparency in Washington, and it\u2019s one of the best ways President-elect Trump and the new Republican Congress can show we\u2019re responding to the American people\u2019s demand for change.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis is a fix to Executive overreach as well as a troubling trend of Congress, as an institution, giving up its legislative prerogative and delegating much of its power to the Executive Branch, which, as of late, has resulted in costly and burdensome regulations,\u201d said Sen. Young. \u201cAs the son of a small business owner, I know how regulatory overreach can stifle our local economies and cost American jobs. By making Congress ultimately responsible for the rules Americans must live by, the REINS Act will give Hoosiers, and all Americans, a louder voice in the regulatory process through their elected representatives.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe legislative branch is the people\u2019s branch of government. Members of Congress rightly hear from the people who chose us to represent them about regulations that are too heavy-handed, that don\u2019t work as intended, or that hurt job creation,\u201d said Sen. Grassley. \u201cBecause of this, it\u2019s appropriate for Congress to restore democratic accountability by reclaiming the legislative authority it was granted in the Constitution when it comes to regulations holding the force of law that have big costs for the economy, consumers, and taxpayers.\u201d\n\n\u201cOver the last eight years, we have seen unelected bureaucrats morph the congressional intent of our nation\u2019s laws to impose economically harmful regulations that ignored the concerns of communities most impacted by the rule,\u201d said Sen. Ernst. \u201cWe must work to increase transparency and hold regulatory agencies accountable by allowing Congress to review sweeping rules and regulations that will impact folks across Iowa and the country. This legislation gives folks across the country a voice in the process and is a step in the right direction to rein in burdensome, out-of-control government regulations that interfere in Iowans\u2019 everyday lives.\u201d\n\nYou can read S. 21, the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act, HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-puts-forward-conservative-vision-balanced-budget/", "Sen. Rand Paul Puts Forward Conservative Vision for a Balanced Budget", "2017-01-04", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul urged his colleagues to put a stop to Washington\u2019s runaway spending and pass a balanced budget. In a speech delivered on the Senate floor, Dr. Paul explained his opposition to Senate Con. Res 3, legislation he pointed out will add $9.7 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years without ever balancing. To present a conservative path forward, Dr. Paul will introduce an amendment to the bill that would balance the budget while still repealing Obamacare.\n\n\u201cTen trillion worth of new debt. I\u2019m not for it. That\u2019s not why I ran for office,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cIt\u2019s not why I\u2019m here. It\u2019s not why I spend time away from my family and from my medical practice. It\u2019s because debt is consuming our country.\u201d\n\n\u201cAt the appropriate time, I will introduce an amendment that will strike and replace this budget, and in its place, I will put forward a conservative vision for the country.\u201d\n\nDr. Paul\u2019s balanced budget amendment will:\n\nBalance the budget by 2024 while still repealing Obamacare\n\nFreeze all on-budget spending without making changes to Social Security.\n\nStart in 2018, giving agencies time to prepare for new spending levels.\n\nContain zero specific cuts to any function of government \u2013 allowing the new administration and Congress to work together to prioritize spending.\n\nYou can find a transcript of Dr. Paul\u2019s remarks and a video of his speech below.\n\nCLICK HERE TO WATCH DR. PAUL\u2019S FLOOR SPEECH\n\nTRANSCRIPT:\n\nThe more things change, the more they seem to stay the same. Republicans won the White House. Republicans control the Senate. Republicans control the House. And what will the first order of business be for the new Republican majority?\n\nTo pass a budget that never balances. To pass a budget that will add $9.7 trillion of new debt over ten years. Is that really what we campaigned on? Is that really what the Republican Party represents? Our first order of business will be a budget that never balances. A budget that adds $9.7 trillion to the debt, and they tell us, \u201cOh, but it\u2019s not a budget.\u201d If you listen, they will say, \u201cNo, no. It is a \u2018vehicle to repeal Obamacare.'\u201d And yet I have the title in front of me. It says a \u201cConcurrent Resolution for the budget of 2017.\u201d\n\nWe have special rules when you pass the budget that we may be able to repeal Obamacare, and I\u2019m all for that. But why should we vote on a budget that doesn\u2019t represent our conservative view? Why would we vote on a budget that adds $9.7 trillion to the debt?\n\nBecause we\u2019re in a hurry. We can\u2019t be bothered. It\u2019s just numbers. I was told again and again, \u201cSwallow it. Take it. They\u2019re just numbers. Don\u2019t worry; it\u2019s not really a budget.\u201d And yet the legislation says it is a budget. The numbers say it will add $9.7 trillion of new debt. And so I say, if they\u2019re only numbers, and if the numbers don\u2019t matter what\u2019s in the budget, why don\u2019t we put numbers in that balance? Why don\u2019t we put a vision into the budget that represents what Republicans say they are for? Republicans say they are the conservative party. Are we? When George W. Bush was president for eight years, the national debt went from $5 trillion to $10 trillion. The debt doubled under a Republican president and a partially Republican Congress. And yet the words were, \u201cWell, he had Democrats to deal with, and if we could ever take all three branches of government, things would be different.\u201d\n\nThe Republicans took over the House in 2010. They still didn\u2019t control the Senate, but they said, \u201cIf we only controlled the Senate, we can be the conservative party again.\u201d We\u2019ve had an election. The conservative party, the supposedly conservative party, won. Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the presidency, and the first item of business for the Republicans will be to pass a budget that never balances, a budget that will add $9.7 trillion to the debt over ten years. This sign could have been put up for Obama\u2019s first budget. Every Republican railed and said, \u201c$10 trillion! President Obama will add $10 trillion.\u201d And he did.\n\nPresident Obama doubled the debt again. It went from $5 (trillion) to $10 (trillion). The national debt went from $5 trillion to $10 trillion under George W. Bush, and then it doubled again under President Obama. It went from $10 (trillion) to nearly $20 (trillion), and what are we looking at here? More debt, under a solidly unified Republican Congress and a Republican president. So you might scratch your head and say, \u201cThe more things change, the more they stay the same.\u201d\n\nIs it all smoke and mirrors? Is there really a difference? Are Republicans different than Democrats? Pretty important question. We are in such a hurry to repeal Obamacare. I\u2019m all for it. As a physician, nobody thinks that Obamacare has been worse for the country. Nobody other than me thinks it is a terrible piece of legislation that has not helped the country and has inflated our costs and not helped. And yet, do we have to add nearly $10 trillion of debt in order to get at it?\n\nSo as this moves forward, I will offer a replacement. I will offer my own budget. I will offer to strike and remove $10 trillion worth of debt, and I will offer my own budget that balances within five years. How do we do it? We give the authority to make the cuts, where they should be, where they\u2019re most wasteful in government, and we offer this budget by simply freezing expenditures. You don\u2019t have to cut any expenditures. Every department of government could get what they got the last year. If you think some departments of government need more money, cut other departments of government. Frankly, there are some departments of government you could eliminate, and you would never know they were gone. If the Department of Commerce were gone, a few corporate executives would not be able to fly around on government jets. They could fly around on their own jets. You would never know the whole, entire Department of Commerce were gone.\n\nYou can cut spending. You could actually get to balance by not cutting anything. So here\u2019s what happens. If you freeze the on-budget spending, within a little over five years your budget balances. I remember a time when there were the moderates who were for freezing spending, and the real conservatives were cutting spending. Now nobody is for cutting spending. When I bring it up that you cannot balance a budget, you can absolutely not balance a budget, if you\u2019re not willing to look at entitlements, you know what I\u2019m told by many well-meaning Republicans? \u201cDon\u2019t write it down. Don\u2019t put it on paper because people will be upset with you if you explain that to save Social Security, to save Medicare, you will have to reform these entitlement programs.\u201d They say, \u201cLet\u2019s just talk about waste. Let\u2019s just talk about fraud and abuse.\u201d And I do, and we should eliminate all of those. But guess what?\n\nIf you eliminate all of the budgetary spending that we vote on \u2013 this is called the discretionary spending \u2013 this would be the military and all the rest of the nonmilitary. It is about $1 trillion not including the entitlements: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. If you did just the military and the nonmilitary, and you reduced it 10% a year for ten years, and you virtually wiped out all of discretionary spending, you still don\u2019t balance the budget.\n\nSo really you\u2019re not a conservative if you\u2019re not willing to look at all government spending. The budget cannot be balanced, and the budget will never balance, unless you look at entitlements. What does that mean? It means that because of demographics \u2013 this means that we had big families 60 years ago: three, four, five kids a family. And now we have less than three kids a family, probably two kids a family. So you had all the baby boomers born right after World War II. And they\u2019re all retiring, 60 million of them. So this huge population boom, and you don\u2019t have as many workers. So the demographics aren\u2019t working. You add to that the fact that we\u2019re living longer. So when Social Security was started, the average life expectancy was 65. So it worked pretty well as a pension plan because you died. But now it\u2019s great, we\u2019re living on average to 80. And if you make 80, you may well make 90. What a great thing, longevity. But it is not working. Social Security is not working. We spend more on recipients than we bring in in the tax. Medicare is even worse. The average taxpayer pays about $100,000 over their lifetime in Medicare taxes. The average recipient takes out $350,000. How big a problem is this?\n\nMedicare is $35 to $40 trillion in the hole. It is inexcusable that we\u2019re not talking about how we fix Medicare. It is inexcusable that we\u2019re not talking about how to fix Social Security. If you don\u2019t fix them, there\u2019s going to be a cliff. Within about a decade, the cliff is so severe, that everyone on Social Security will suffer a 20% decline in their monthly check. It\u2019ll happen all at once if you don\u2019t fix it. Can you fix it? Yeah, you got to talk about it. But what we\u2019re doing today is kicking the can down. We got our focus on Obamacare, but we\u2019re taking our focus off the debt. As bad a problem as Obamacare is, as much as it\u2019s destroyed and distorted the health care market, it may well be that the debt is a bigger problem.\n\nSo it\u2019s not a popular stand that I take today. I will be the only Republican to vote against the Republican budget. That won\u2019t be popular, but I ran for office \u2013 I left my medical practice; I am away from my family; I spend long hours traveling up here because I am concerned about the debt. We borrow $1 million a minute. The debt threatens the very foundation of our country. And yet here we are. The Republican Party controls the House, the Senate, and the White House, and in their haste, they put forward a budget that\u2019s going to add this much debt. This is what the debt has been doing.\n\nHere\u2019s 1980. You see the growth. It\u2019s become exponential, the growth of the debt. This should worry every American. But here\u2019s the Republican ten-year budget that we\u2019re getting ready to pass. It\u2019s virtually a vertical line of accumulation of debt. People will say, \u201cBut how could we ever cut any spending?\u201d I\u2019ll give you a couple of examples of where your government spends money, and you tell me whether or not we ought to look long and hard about cutting spending.\n\nThere was a grant given for autism. I have a great deal of sympathy. I know children with autism. For $700,000. But you know what they spent it on? They spent it studying Neil Armstrong\u2019s statement. Remember Neil Armstrong? Landed on the moon, and he said, \u201cOne small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.\u201d Well, your government in their infinite wisdom wanted to know, did he say, \u201cone small step for man\u201d or \u201cone small step for a man\u201d? Your government spent $700,000 studying the preposition \u201ca.\u201d Did he say \u201ca man\u201d or just \u201cman?\u201d $700,000. Money that should have been spent on autism was spent on something frivolous.\n\nIs anybody going to fix it? No! Every year, all of the spending bills are glommed together in a 2,000-page bill and not one iota of reform. Do you remember \u2013 Senator Proxmire from the 70s used to have something called the \u201cGolden Fleece Award.\u201d Every one of those things he complained about in the 1970s happens now, but tenfold greater. Nobody fixes it. We don\u2019t pass individual spending bills. We do continuing resolutions, which means we continue doing the same thing we\u2019ve done over and over again. $700,000 spent studying Neil Armstrong\u2019s statement, and you know what their conclusion was? We\u2019re not sure. They spent $700,000, and they\u2019re still not sure. Did he say \u201ca man\u201d or \u201cone small step for man\u201d?\n\nWe spent $500,000 studying whether or not, when you take a selfie, if you\u2019re smiling in the selfie, does it ultimately make you feel better? $500,000. And so what do we do? Do we give these people less money? Teach them a lesson. Give them less money, and maybe they\u2019ll conserve the money. Maybe they\u2019ll eliminate waste if they have less money next year than they had this year. Or, what I\u2019m proposing. Freeze the spending. Is anybody proposing that? No. We say, \u201cThey spent a half a million dollars on selfies? Give them more next year.\u201d So the Republican budget will increase spending every year. It increases spending at about 5% a year. So spending goes up, and they say, \u201cIt\u2019s the baseline.\u201d And they say, \u201cWe\u2019re cutting off the baseline.\u201d No, no, the baseline goes up 5% a year. Spending will increase over the ten-year period. The red line is spending. Part of that is what the Republicans are proposing. They are going to stay on the spending curve.\n\nIf we stay on the spending curve, they will continue to spend $700,000 studying Neil Armstrong\u2019s statement. They will continue to spend a half a million dollars on selfies. They spent another half a million dollars on a climate change game. They spent $45 million to build a natural gas gas station in Afghanistan. $45 million. First problem? Nobody in Afghanistan has a car that runs on natural gas. They discovered this after they built the gas station. The gas station was 86 times cost overrun. The original estimate was about a half a million for the gas station, but lo and behold, somehow it costs $45 million.\n\nIf your government had 86 times cost overrun, would you give them more money or give them less money? I frankly think we should give them less money. If you give them more money, they will not waste it less. They will waste it the same or worse. They should be given less money. Mazar-e Sharif is a city in northern Afghanistan. We built an $85 million embassy there. We signed a ten-year lease. And then somebody looked at the place and decided that since there were tall buildings surrounding the entire entity, that people would shoot down into the courtyard and kill our diplomat, and they said this building can never be occupied, after they spent $85 million, after they spent a ten-year lease. How will they get better? The people who made this decision, were they fired? No. They\u2019re federal employees, and you never fire federal employees. Will they make wiser decisions because we give them less money? No. We give them more money. You would be excused for being upset if you went and voted and said, \u201cI\u2019m going to vote for the conservative party.\u201d If you went and voted and said, \u201cI\u2019m going to vote for the party that\u2019s going to balance the budget. \u201cWouldn\u2019t you be upset? Wouldn\u2019t you wonder which party that is?\n\nThis is the spending curve. We\u2019re going to add $9.7 trillion in ten years. And yet they say, \u201cOh, no, no. This isn\u2019t really a budget.\u201d I\u2019ve got it in front of me, though. It is a budget. There is no reason why Republicans couldn\u2019t have put forward a budget that doesn\u2019t add all the red ink. We\u2019re at $20 trillion. We\u2019re going to go to nearly $30 trillion under the Republican plan.\n\nMy goodness. What happened? Where is the conservative party? Where are the conservatives in Congress that would say, \u201cEnough\u2019s enough\u201d? Now they say, \u201cWe just have to be done with this. Don\u2019t distract the little people. Don\u2019t let the people of the country know that we\u2019re voting on a budget. We\u2019re going to call this the \u2018vehicle to repeal Obamacare.'\u201d Well, that\u2019s not what it is. It\u2019s a budget. And we have special rules for dealing with the budget that allow us to repeal Obamacare, which I\u2019m all for, but this is a budget. And they say, \u201cWell, how could we get the votes?\u201d No Democrats will vote for this budget. This is a Republican blueprint. Not one Democrat will vote for this.\n\nSo this is what Republicans are for. This is the blueprint that the Republican Party says they\u2019re for. $10 trillion worth of new debt. I\u2019m not for it. That\u2019s not why I ran for office. It\u2019s not why I\u2019m here. It\u2019s not why I spend time away from my family and from my medical practice. It\u2019s because debt is consuming our country. There is a time and a place to debate Obamacare, and I\u2019m more than willing to debate that, but this is a budget. This is a vote on a budget. They say, \u201cOh, it\u2019s just a gimmick; it\u2019s just a game. The numbers don\u2019t mean anything.\u201d Well, if the numbers don\u2019t mean anything, put honest numbers in there or put conservative numbers in there.\n\nI for one will put forward a conservative opposition to the Republican majority\u2019s budget. I will put forward a budget that freezes spending and balances the budget over a five-year period. Would there be some agencies that would get less money? Yes. But it would force us to go through the government and pick and choose what is good spending and what is not good spending. If you go through, we have a Waste Report that we put out. If you will look on our Facebook, you can find our Waste Report. Hundreds. I listed four or five of the most egregious. There are hundreds and hundreds if not thousands of things we shouldn\u2019t be spending money on.\n\nI\u2019ll give you another example. We have spent $100 billion, or we have sold $100 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia. They were wanting to spend money giving F-16s to Pakistan. You pay for them and give them to them. Riddled throughout the Pentagon. Look, the Pentagon has never been audited. You\u2019re surprised? Government that\u2019s never been audited. The Federal Reserve\u2019s not audited. The Pentagon\u2019s not audited. And so what is the Pentagon\u2019s response to being audited? The Pentagon says to us, \u201cWe\u2019re too big to be audited.\u201d I don\u2019t know about you, but that makes me kind of angry, that a part of your government, even a necessary part such as national defense, says they\u2019re too big to be audited. Meanwhile, we have $85 million embassies built that would never be occupied, $45 million gas stations that will never be used. I think it\u2019s time that we look at and say, \u201cEnough\u2019s enough.\u201d Don\u2019t give government more money, give them less. Government, they haven\u2019t been a good steward of your money.\n\nIt\u2019s often asked, the question is asked, are the people who spend your money, are the people involved in government inherently stupid? It\u2019s kind of a debatable question. I think they\u2019re mostly well intentioned. I don\u2019t think they\u2019re inherently stupid, but I do think that they don\u2019t get the right incentives, because there is no profit motive in government, because there is no rationale or modus to conserve, money is spent. And because of sheer laziness and ineptitude, we continue to pass the spending bills, glommed together, thousands of pages without reform. But I won\u2019t be party to that. I won\u2019t vote for the spending bills that are not individualized and don\u2019t have reforms in them. I won\u2019t vote for budgets that never balance. So while I may be a lonely voice on this issue, I will continue to bring up to the American people that it is important not to add more debt; it is important to slow down the accumulation of debt. It is important that we have a $20 trillion debt, and I\u2019m not willing to add $10 trillion more in debt.\n\nSo, Mr. President, at the appropriate time, I will introduce an amendment that will strike and replace this budget, and in its place, I will put forward a conservative vision for the country, a vision of a balanced budget that balances within five years. Every Republican in the Congress that has been here for a while has voted for a balanced budget amendment. Interestingly, the balanced budget amendment has \u2013 which would be an amendment to the Constitution \u2013 has within the balanced budget amendment, it has the provisions that the budget would balance in five years. And even when Republicans get around to saying, \u201cOh, we\u2019ll have some gimmicks to balance in ten,\u201d ten is not what the amendment says. Why bother voting on an amendment if you\u2019re not serious about it? Republicans are completely in charge. It\u2019s a Republican document. It\u2019s a document I disagree with, and at the appropriate time, Mr. President, I will be introducing a replacement that will balance within five years and provides a conservative view for the country. Thank you.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-sen-rand-paul-reintroduces-audit-fed-2/", "Sen. Rand Paul Reintroduces \u2018Audit the Fed\u2019", "2017-01-04", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Rand Paul reintroduced his Federal Reserve Transparency Act, widely known as the \u201cAudit the Fed\u201d bill, to prevent the Federal Reserve from concealing vital information on its operations from Congress. Eight cosponsors joined Senator Paul on the legislation.\n\nRepresentative Thomas Massie (KY-4) has introduced companion legislation, H.R. 24, in the U.S. House.\n\n\u201cNo institution holds more power over the future of the American economy and the value of our savings than the Federal Reserve,\u201d said Sen. Paul, \u201cyet Fed Chair Yellen refuses to be fully accountable to the people\u2019s representatives.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe U.S. House has responded to the American people by passing Audit the Fed multiple times, and President-elect Trump has stated his support for an audit. Let\u2019s send him the bill this Congress.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe American public deserves more insight into the practices of the Federal Reserve,\u201d said Rep. Massie. \u201cBehind closed doors, the Fed crafts monetary policy that will continue to devalue our currency, slow economic growth, and make life harder for the poor and middle class. It is time to force the Federal Reserve to operate by the same standards of transparency and accountability to the taxpayers that we should demand of all government agencies.\u201d\n\nOn January 12, 2016, a bipartisan Senate majority voted 53-44 in support of Audit the Fed.\n\nS. 16 would require the nonpartisan, independent Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a thorough audit of the Federal Reserve\u2019s Board of Governors and reserve banks within one year of the bill\u2019s passage and to report back to Congress within 90 days of completing the audit.\n\nAudit the Fed would amend section 714b of Title 31 of the U.S. Code to allow the GAO to fully audit:\n\ntransactions for or with a foreign central bank, government of a foreign country, or nonprivate international financing organization;\n\ndeliberations, decisions, or actions on monetary policy matters, including discount window operations, reserves of member banks, securities credit, interest on deposits, and open market operations;\n\ntransactions made under the direction of the Federal Open Market Committee; or\n\na part of a discussion or communication among or between members of the Board and officers and employees of the Federal Reserve System related to clauses (1)-(3) of this subsection.\n\nYou can read S. 16, the Federal Reserve Transparency Act, HERE.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"], ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/news-dr-rand-paul-returns-congress/", "Dr. Rand Paul Returns to Congress", "2017-01-03", "2017", "2017-01", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul once again pledged to defend the Constitution as the 115th Congress convened. This marked the start of Dr. Paul\u2019s second consecutive Senate term.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s an honor and a privilege to serve the people of Kentucky in the U.S. Senate,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cI\u2019m humbled to have their trust to represent them during this pivotal time, and I\u2019m excited about our upcoming opportunity to reduce unnecessary government interference in their lives.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T21:17:04Z"]], "truncated": false, "filtered_table_rows_count": 81, "expanded_columns": [], "expandable_columns": [], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "units": {}, "query": {"sql": "select url, title, date, year, month, party, chamber, state, member_name, bioguide_id, domain, scraper, source, date_source, text, has_text, collected_at, updated_at from releases where \"chamber\" = :p0 and \"party\" = :p1 and \"year\" = :p2 order by date desc limit 101", "params": {"p0": "Senate", "p1": "Republican", "p2": "2017"}}, "facet_results": {"party": {"name": "party", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "Republican", "label": "Republican", "count": 81, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&year=2017", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "chamber": {"name": "chamber", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "Senate", "label": "Senate", "count": 81, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?party=Republican&year=2017", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "state": {"name": "state", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "KY", "label": "KY", "count": 81, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican&year=2017&state=KY", "selected": false}], "truncated": false}, "year": {"name": "year", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "2017", "label": "2017", "count": 81, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?chamber=Senate&party=Republican", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}}, "suggested_facets": [], "next": null, "next_url": null, "private": false, "allow_execute_sql": true, "query_ms": 720.4670561477542, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}