Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) responded to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s criticism that he is an “isolationist” for voting against a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine as the United States continues to fund the nation’s efforts to combat the ongoing Russian invasion.
Opposing big government spending is not isolationism, it’s common sense. Our country faces an inflation crisis and adding more debt now is a mistake,” Paul said in a statement in which he referred to his opposing vote as “common sense.”
Earlier, McConnell had criticized Paul during an appearance on Fox News.
“My colleague Senator Paul has always been basically an isolationist. He’s proud of it and believes that’s where America ought to be. That is a tiny percentage of the Senate Republican Conference. We only had 11 votes against the package. I predict we will have even fewer votes opposed to the admission of Finland and Sweden into NATO,” McConnell told Fox News anchor Bret Baier.
“There’s always been a strand of isolationism in our party, but it’s not anywhere near the dominant view, which was expressed in the vote that we had today and will be expressed again when we vote on the admission of Finland and Sweden into NATO,” he added.
The aid package had bipartisan vote and passed anyway; President Joe Biden is expected to sign the legislation shortly. The war in Ukraine is currently in its fourth month after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his forces to invade the country.
Paul’s need to defend his vote came just days after he won the Republican primary over Arnold Blankenship of Ashland, Val Fredrick of Murray, Paul Hamilton of Nicholasville, Tami Steinfield of Marion and John Schiess, who previously ran in Wisconsin for a third term in the United States Senate.
Paul will be up against Charles Booker, a Democratic former state lawmaker, in the November general election.
Alan is a writer, editor, and news junkie based in New York.