Since theoretically this thread is targeted at Rand Paul's candidacy, let's look at his announcement speech. The entire transcript is linked. It had a lot of stuff introducing him as a person and some background on what has made him the man he is.
Here I pulled out the points that I think illustrate what his announced 'platform' will be. And if this is the real deal, there's not a lot here to dislike:
. . .Congress will never balance the budget unless you force them to do so. Congress has an abysmal record with balancing anything. Our only recourse is to force Congress to balance the budget with a Constitutional Amendment! . .
. . .We limit the President to two terms. It’s about time we limit the terms of Congress! . .
. . .I want to reform Washington. I want common sense rules that will break the log-jam in Congress. That’s why I introduced a Read the Bills Act. The bills are thousands of pages long. And no one reads them. They are often plopped on our desks only a few hours before a vote. I’ve proposed something truly extraordinary…Let’s Read the bills, every page! . .
. . .Our great nation was founded upon the extraordinary notion that government should be restrained and freedom should be expanded. . .
. . .In my vision for America, new highways and bridges will be built across the country — not by raising your taxes but by lowering the repatriation tax and putting that revenue into the highway fund. This tax cut has bipartisan support. Even in this polarized Congress, we have a chance of passing this. , ,
. . .I say, let’s bring $2 trillion dollars home…to America… now!!. . .
. . .I want all our children to have the same opportunities that I had. We need to stop limiting kids in poor neighborhoods to failing public schools and offer school choice, not just for the privileged, but for everyone!. . .
. . .It won’t happen, though, unless we realize that we can’t borrow our way to prosperity.
Currently some $3 trillion comes in to the U.S. Treasury in taxes. Couldn’t the country survive on just $3 trillion dollars? I propose we do something truly extraordinary — let’s just spend what comes in!. . .
. . .In my Vision for America, Freedom and prosperity at home can only be achieved if we defend against enemies who are dead-set on attacking America. Without question, we must defend ourselves and American interests from our enemies. The enemy is Radical Islam and not only will I name the enemy, I will do what ever it takes to defend America from these haters of mankind! . . .
. . .We need a National Defense robust enough to defend against all attack, modern enough to deter all enemies, and nimble enough to defend our vital interests. But we also need a foreign policy that protects American interests and encourages stability — not chaos! I will oppose any deal that does not end Iran’s nuclear ambitions and have strong verification measures. I will insist that any final version be brought before Congress. . .
. . .Conservatives should not succumb to the notion that a government inept at home will somehow succeed in building nations abroad. I envision an America with a National Defense unparalleled, undefeatable, and unencumbered by overseas nation building!
I envision a National Defense that promotes, as Reagan put it, ‘Peace through Strength.’
At home conservatives understand that government is the problem, not the solution. . .
. . .when the Intelligence Director is not punished for lying under oath, how are we to trust our government agencies? Warrantless searches of American’s phone and computer records are un-American and a threat to our civil liberties. I say, that your phone records are yours. I say the phone records of law-abiding citizens — are none…of their damn…business! The President created this vast dragnet by Executive Order. As President…on day one…I will immediately end this unconstitutional surveillance! . . .
. . .We must defend ourselves, but we must never give up who we are as a people, we must never diminish the Bill of Rights as we fight this long war against evil.
We must believe in our founding documents. We must protect economic and personal liberty again. America has much greatness left in her. We are still exceptional and we are still a beacon for the world. We will thrive when we believe in ourselves again. , ,
. . .I see an America with a restrained IRS that cannot target and harass American citizens for their political or religious beliefs. , ,
. . .I see a simplified flat tax that unburdens our citizens. . .
Rand Paul running for president: Transcript of announcement speech | Chicago
