Rand Paul presidential campaign, 2016/filibuster (2015)
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 Rand Paul |
U.S. Senator (Assumed office: 2011) |
 Republican candidate: |
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Senator Rand Paul (Ky.), a 2016 Republican presidential candidate, took to the Senate floor on May 20, 2015, at 1:18 p.m. to begin what he called a filibuster of the renewal of provisions in the USA PATRIOT ACT. Paul specifically argued against the mass collection of metadata by the National Security Agency and warrantless wiretapping. During the nearly 11 hour speech, Paul asked Senate leadership to allow members of Congress to debate reauthorizing the USA PATRIOT ACT and propose amendments to HR 2048 - the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015, rather than simply casting an up or down vote on the legislation. Seven Democrats and three Republicans joined Paul.
While there was some debate about whether Paul's speech counted as a filibuster, his long debate on the Senate floor caused Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to move the vote on the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 to Saturday, May 23.[2] According to Senate.gov, a filibuster is an "informal term for any attempt to block or delay Senate action on a bill or other matter by debating it at length, by offering numerous procedural motions, or by any other delaying or obstructive actions."[3] Using this definition, Paul effectively delayed a Senate vote, and thus his speech counts as a filibuster.
Highlights from the Senate floor
- Timeline is in Eastern Standard Time.
11:49 p.m.: Paul relinquishes the Senate floor.
11:46 p.m.: Paul argues that the Senate should debate the reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT ACT.
11:44 p.m.: Paul begins to summarize his argument and says that the Bill of Rights needs to be protected.
11:42 p.m.: Cruz discusses tips for a successful filibuster, including wearing comfortable shoes and not drinking too much water, before turning the floor back to Paul.
11:37 p.m.: Cruz argues that members of the Senate should debate the renewal of provisions in the USA PATRIOT ACT.
11:28 p.m.: Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) takes the Senate floor.
11:18 p.m.: Paul responds by further discussing recent congressional actions on the issue.
10:43 p.m.: Sen. Mike Lee (Utah) returns to the floor to discuss the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. He also discusses recent efforts in Congress to curb data collection.
10:24 p.m.: Wyden and Paul discuss the methods and amount of bulk data retention and whether or not citizens have a right to question the practices. The pair then returns to previous court precedent.
10:20 p.m.: Paul responds by reiterating challenges in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
10:14 p.m.: Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.) returns to question Paul as to why bulk data retention has bad implications.
10:05 p.m.: Paul continues to discuss the relationship between private enterprise and surveillance.
10:05 p.m.: Paul discusses how bulk surveillance data is used by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
9:53 p.m.: Paul responds that Blumenthal's points about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court are correct, that Americans need to be able to trust the court and that bulk surveillance of data should end.
9:52 p.m.: Blumenthal asks Paul, "are not open, adversarial courts essential to the trust and confidence of the American people?"
9:47 p.m.: Blumenthal argues that the U.S. needs a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that can be trusted.
9:39 p.m.: Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) takes the Senate floor. He is the seventh Democrat to ask Paul a question.
9:28 p.m.: Paul argues that because two-thirds of Americans think the bulk collection of data has gone too far, Congress owes the people a robust discussion about whether the USA PATRIOT ACT should be extended, rather than a simple up or down vote.
9:21 p.m.: Paul discusses the amount of information that can be gathered about an individual with the collection of metadata.
9:15 p.m.: Paul again argues that the Constitution should be used to issue warrants and notes that the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court rarely turns down a request for a warrant.
9:12 p.m.: Paul, once again, expresses his concern that the USA FREEDOM Act will not improve upon the problems of the USA PATRIOT ACT because it does not eliminate the bulk collection of data.
9:00 p.m.: Paul cites multiple studies arguing that the NSA's mass data collection program is harming U.S. businesses.
8:55 p.m.: Wyden joins Cantwell and Paul's discussion about a proposed data collection amendment.
8:51 p.m.: Paul and Cantwell discuss the encryption of data.
8:49 p.m.: Sen. Maria Cantwell (Wash.) takes the Senate floor.
8:30 p.m.: Paul argues that bulk data collection should end altogether. He also argues that the courts may do a better job of deciding how bulk collection should be handled, rather than passing the USA FREEDOM Act to address the issue.
8:21 p.m.: Citing an ACLU report, Paul argues that the USA FREEDOM Act would not fix the problems in the USA PATRIOT ACT and that the bulk collection of data would continue.
8:16 p.m.: Paul cites studies arguing that the bulk collection of data does not keep Americans safer and that the practice is expensive.
8:06 p.m.: Paul discusses the weaknesses of the USA FREEDOM Act.
7:57 p.m.: Paul argues that the senators who have spoken today all agree that The Bill of Rights should be protected.
7:57 p.m.: Paul asks how a country can have warrantless wiretapping and still call itself a constitutional republic.
7:48 p.m.: Paul discusses the president's power to order warrantless wiretapping without the approval of Congress.
7:40 p.m.: Paul warns that the collapse of the separation of powers is diminishing Americans' freedoms and that government should be kept small.
7:30 p.m.: Paul discusses warrants, probable cause and executive overreach.
7:24 p.m.: Paul asks leadership to allow for amendments to the USA PATRIOT ACT.
7:10 p.m.: Paul discusses executive orders and executive branch overreach.
7:01 p.m.: Paul discusses polls showing that Americans believe the USA PATRIOT ACT goes too far and violates their right to privacy.
6:58 p.m.: Paul argues that President Barack Obama could end the bulk collection of data by executive order immediately.
6:55 p.m.: Paul argues that the bulk collection of data is about the executive branch doing what they want, rather than protecting Americans.
6:51 p.m.: Paul thanks Tester and notes the bipartisan support for protecting the privacy of Americans.
6:48 p.m.: Sen. Jon Tester (Mont.) takes the Senate floor to express his opposition to the USA PATRIOT ACT. Both senators from Montana have now spoken.
6:44 p.m.: Paul, once again, expresses his concern with the language of the USA FREEDOM Act. He would like the act to differentiate between a general warrant and a specific warrant. He asks for leadership to agree to debating amendments to the act.
6:40 p.m.: Sen. Christopher Coons (Del.) takes the Senate floor and urges Paul to support the USA FREEDOM Act.
6:23 p.m.: Paul discusses a report about the ineffectiveness of the USA PATRIOT ACT.
6:22 p.m.: Manchin thanks Paul and leaves the Senate floor.
6:12 p.m. - 6:22 p.m.: Paul and Manchin engage in a discussion about the language of the USA FREEDOM Act. They also discuss the granting of warrants by the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, with a focus on bulk collection warrants versus targeted warrants.
6:11 p.m.: Paul responds to Manchin's question, explaining that he does not like the wording in the bill. Specifically, Paul does not like that the bill uses the word "person" instead of "individual." Paul is concerned that the government could simply replace "person" with "Verizon" and continue bulk data collection and surveillance.
6:04 p.m.: Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) takes the Senate floor, advocates for passing the USA FREEDOM Act and asks Paul what he does not like about the bill.
6:02 p.m.: Paul responds to Daines' question, stating that the government's collection of data is not constitutional.
5:49 p.m.: Sen. Steve Daines (Mont.) takes the Senate floor to speak against the NSA's bulk collection of metadata and argues that Congress should pass HR 2048 - the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015.
5:45 p.m.: Paul discusses Edward Snowden and proposes an amendment to protect whistleblowers.
5:37 p.m.: Paul argues that the government should rely on the Constitution and use warrants to combat terrorism, rather than the bulk collection of data.
5:32 p.m.: Paul discusses the failures of the "war on drugs," including racial bias, and how the USA PATRIOT ACT has been used to put drug dealers in prison, the majority of whom are minorities.
5:24 p.m.: Paul begins discussing amendments he and Wyden have proposed to end government surveillance of innocent citizens.
5:13 p.m.: Paul discusses the Fourth Amendment and argues that Americans can have privacy and security. He also warns that those who give up liberty in exchange for security may have neither.
5:10 p.m.: Heinrich reads the Fourth Amendment.
5:08 p.m.: Paul responds to Heinrich's question regarding the Fourth Amendment and collection of data.
4:59 p.m.: Sen. Martin Heinrich (Nev.) takes the Senate floor to speak about ending the bulk collection of metadata.
4:54 p.m.: Paul responds to Lee's questions.
4:25 p.m.: Sen. Mike Lee (Utah) takes the Senate floor to support Paul's position on government surveillance.
3:45 p.m.: Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.) asks questions in support of Paul's position on the USA PATRIOT ACT.
1:18 p.m.: Paul begins speaking on the Senate floor.
Paul's intent to filibuster
Before taking the Senate floor, Paul sent the following tweet announcing his intent to filibuster:
Paul said, "I will not let the Patriot Act, the most unpatriotic of acts, go unchallenged. The bulk collection of all Americans phone records all of the time is a direct violation of the fourth amendment."[4]
According to Time, "Shortly after the speech began, the Paul campaign emailed supporters to say that he would 'not yield one inch in this fight so long as my legs can stand.'"[5] At 11:49 p.m., Paul relinquished control of the Senate floor. The filibuster fell short of his previous one of 12 hours and 52 minutes, which was the ninth-longest in Senate history.[6]
On March 6, 2013, Paul led a filibuster of President Barack Obama's former CIA director nominee, John Brennan, in order to highlight his concerns about the administration's drone policies. In particular, Paul said he was concerned about whether a drone could be used to kill an American citizen on U.S. soil without due process.[7][8]
See also
- Presidential election, 2016
- Rand Paul
- Rand Paul presidential campaign, 2016
- Rand Paul filibuster of John Brennan's CIA Nomination in March 2013
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Politico, "Rand Paul dropping out of White House race," February 3, 2016
- ↑ The Hill, "McConnell sets up Saturday Senate votes on NSA," accessed May 21, 2015
- ↑ Senate.gov, "Filibuster," accessed May 21, 2015
- ↑ The Hill, "Paul begins Patriot Act filibuster," accessed May 20, 2015
- ↑ Time, "Rand Paul Filibusters Patriot Act Renewal," accessed May 20, 2015
- ↑ USA Today, "Rand Paul filibuster ranks among Senate's longest," March 7, 2013
- ↑ CNN, "Rand Paul says he's heard from White House after filibuster," March 7, 2013
- ↑ ABC News, "Rand Paul Wins Applause From GOP and Liberals," March 7, 2013
