Rand Paul: “today I will offer an amendment to pay for the spending in this bill. This is not something unusual. I do this day in…”

“today I will offer an amendment to pay for the spending in this bill. This is not something unusual. I do this day in and day out. It has been part of the reason I ran for office--that we shouldn't add more debt to our country without trying to pay for it by maybe reducing spending from wasteful spending. In the last week or so, we have seen a manufactured crisis. Rarely has there been a manufactured crisis so intense--a fake furor instigated by partisans more concerned with scoring points than telling the truth. But, for some of us, the truth is still important. The mob and demagogues in this body accuse me of holding up this bill for political points. They obviously don't know much about politics, because there certainly hasn't been any political gain by my holding this bill for debate and amendment. But I think it is important we do this, rather than rush through and everybody says: No questions asked, please. It sounds a little more like an authoritarian atmosphere than it would be a democracy, to actually have debate, discussion, and amendments. That is all we have asked for. In fact, last week when we were granted the amendments, we said to the other side: Let's have the vote--last week. And all of those who were in such a furor, all those who were so hysterical that the world was ending said: Oh, we cannot vote on it--it was not convenient last week--because some of our Democrat Members have already gone home for the weekend.…”