Rand Paul and Bipartisanship

To talk about the libertarian movement requires a reference to Ron Paul. Ron Paul has changed what it means to be libertarian (specifically, making it reasonable for the word “liberal” be thrown into the mix) and has been remarkably consistent throughout his political career. Though his ideas seem to make sense to more and more Americans, there are some problems with Ron Paul as a political figure. The biggest issue simply is that he’s 75 years old.

It may seem strange to begin an article on Rand Paul with a reference to his father, but the political connection is there. Rand and Ron Paul are both outspoken and consistent libertarian Congressmen, a senator from Kentucky and a member of the House from Texas, respectively. If the question is: “Should the government be in charge of ____?” the Pauls will answer “No” every time. I reference Ron because the United States has never had (and quite possibly never will have) a 75 year-old president; however, Rand, the natural successor to his father’s libertarian throne, is a more plausible option.

Full disclosure: I am not an ardent Rand Paul or Ron Paul supporter. The motivations for this article are not feelings of agreement but rather of respect. Rand Paul, like his father and only a few other members of Congress, is consistent in both his words and voting record. What’s more is that Rand Paul’s political views make him one of the most extreme, far-right senators, and yet also one of the most bipartisan.

Rand Paul’s bipartisanship comes across easily enough in his speeches. He broadly accused the GOP for “taking the easy way out” when it came to cutting taxes but refusing to limit spending. Like his father, he has argued that the military uses a disproportionate amount of federal funds and disagrees with recent uses of military power in Libya. Paul even chose Democratic Senator Al Franken as his mentor for his first years in the Senate, and the two are supposedly becoming friends.

In regards to this friendship with Franken, Paul has said that he plans to collaborate with Franken in the future. This is the true nature of bipartisan agreement, when opposite ends of the political spectrum find common ground. Both Paul and Franken believe in shrinking the military budget, albeit for different reasons, demonstrating how even a libertarian and a liberal can reach the same conclusion. It is heartening to see politicians from opposing sides of the aisle working towards the goal of bettering the country. While Paul and Franken may not be the perfect model for bipartisan cooperation due to how truly disparate their political views are (Paul joked that he and Franken are trying to set a record “by seeing how many times we can vote on opposite sides of an issue.”) they are a start.

To those who deify Ron Paul, however, Rand Paul is a cheap substitute. And it is true, he does not follow his father on every issue, and fails to receive the same kind of support that his father enjoys from broad segments of the political spectrum. Rand is much newer to politics, and it shows on occasion, particularly with some notable mistakes on the campaign trail. He is not, as some people would imagine him, a liberal hope for social issues. While he may oppose the conservative GOP on many issues, that does not make him a liberal; Paul still opposes gay marriage, gun control, and medical marijuana usage, although he generally believes these are issues for the states to decide.

Slowly, libertarian sites and commentators are drawing more and more attention to Rand Paul as a hope for the limited government movement. He is intellectual in his approach to economics, and represents the views of Tea Partiers and more moderate Republicans and Democrats who share his goals for the government. Rand is well versed in laissez-faire economics, and puts it to use when making his decisions. A good deal of talk has gone on over Paul’s possible run for the presidency in 2012, a sort of follow-up to his father’s 2008 run.  As “Ron Paul supporters” evolve into “Paul supporters,” it seems likely that Rand will take over his father’s attempts at the Republican nomination, however futile those attempts may be. Even as a senator, though, Rand Paul stirs up bipartisanship and independent voting in the conservative camp, perhaps where it is most needed.