The 10 Best Lines From Rand Paul's Incredible Filibuster On Civil Liberties
Paul's marathon remarks have been a scathing critique of President Barack Obama's civil liberties record, and particularly the administration's refusal to rule out drone strikes against Americans on U.S. soil.
Here are the 10 best lines from the speech:
Paul begins:
"I will speak until I can no longer speak."
On the ambiguous criteria for drone targets:
"Are you going to just drop a drone hellfire missile on Jane Fonda? Are you going to drop a missile on Kent State?"
On smoking:
"If we believe [Obama] to be a good man who would never kill noncombatants in a cafe in Houston, sitting out in a sidewalk cafe, smoking — oh, that's right you're not allowed to smoke cigarettes anymore."
On targeting Americans who oppose the government:
"Has anyone ever been on the internet? Have you ever seen the crackpots on the Internet?"
On Obama's shift on civil liberties:
"I think its also safe to say that Barack Obama of 2007 would be right down here with me arguing against this drone-strike program if he we're in the Senate."
On the White House "kill list":
"You don't think a President working off of PowerPoint slides and flash cards might not make a mistake?"
Invoking Hitler:
"I'm not saying that anyone is Hitler, don't misunderstand me. But what I am saying that is…when a democracy gets it wrong, you want the law to be in place.”
Giving Obama some credit:
“I frankly don't think he'll be killing people in their homes tonight."
Claiming that the filibuster was not partisan:
“I have allowed the president to pick his political appointees...But I will not sit quietly and let him shred the Constitution."
A dose of reality:
“Ultimately, I can’t win. There’s not enough votes.”