Political Quotes

On the recordMay 25, 2011
When we look at this debate and we talk about exactly where we should go from here and why it is important, it is important to look at the PATRIOT Act and say to ourselves: How do we protect our Constitution if we are not willing to protect all parts of it? So many conservatives are avid for the second amendment. I am one of them. I want to protect the second amendment. But I tell those who want to protect the second amendment that they can't protect the second amendment if they don't believe in the first amendment. If they don't believe in the first amendment, they can't have that voice that it will take. If they want to place limitations on groups that advocate gun ownership under the second amendment, that will limit the second amendment. But, likewise, they cannot protect the second amendment if they don't believe in the fourth amendment. There is no reason we should allow a government to look at our gun records and to troll through all of them. If a government thinks someone is a terrorist, name that person, name the place, and show probable cause. Do we want to allow government to troll through our records? The government has looked at 28 million electronic records--28 million. They are just sifting through all of our records looking for what. I want them to catch terrorists, but I want them to look at the Constitution with some restraint to say this person is a terrorist or we suspect him to be so, for this reason.…
Said by
Rand Paul
Republican · Kentucky

Share & report

More from Rand Paul

Jun 15, 2025

I've never liked the idea of the parade. I grew up in the '70s and '80s, and the only parades I can remember are Soviet parades for the most part or North Korean parades. The parades I remember from our history were different…we never…

motherjones.com
Jun 25, 2025

Our NATO allies expect the U.S. to be the sugar daddy and the world’s policeman while they sit back and let us do the heavy lifting.

breitbart.com
Jun 28, 2025

Pandora’s box has been opened. Congress must now focus its effort on de-escalation and preventing the call for regime change – the consequences of which, if applied to Iran, risk the total destabilization of the Middle East.

cnn.com
Jul 1, 2025

I think the bill will add to the debt; I don’t think it’s fiscally responsible.

nypost.com

Other voices in this conversation