Rand Paul Begins Filibuster of Patriot Act Renewal

Wednesday afternoon at 1:18 p.m., Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) broke up discussion on the Senate floor about a large trade deal with Asia, and began filibustering against the renewal of the Patriot Act. For weeks, Paul had been hinting that he would filibuster the act, telling CNN’s Alisyn Camerota “I plan on doing everything humanly possible to try to stop the Patriot Act.”

The specific section of the Patriot Act which Paul is filibustering gives the National Security Agency the ability to collect Americans’ phone records and data en-masse, as NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed in 2013. A survey released by the ACLU on May 18 showed that there is overwhelming bipartisan support for NSA reform. Of the 1,001 likely voters polled, 60 percent said they want “to limit government surveillance.”

“There comes a time in the history of nations when fear and complacency allow power to accumulate and liberty and privacy to suffer,” Paul began. “That time is now, and I will not let the Patriot Act, the most unpatriotic of acts, go unchallenged.”

While members of the Senate GOP leadership want to pass a temporary extension of this specific section of the Patriot Act, a number of other Republican senators are pushing to pass the USA Freedom Act, which would reform section 215 and essentially end the NSA’s massive data-collection.

Paul rose to national political fame following his 13-hour filibuster against the nomination of CIA chief John Brennan in 2013, in which he focused on the government’s use of drones on U.S. citizens in America.

Shortly after his Patriot Act filibuster began, Paul’s team tweeted out an exclusive video of the senator earlier Wednesday morning explaining why he is fighting so hard against the bill’s reauthorization. “I’ve chosen to filibuster the Patriot Act because the Patriot Act is the most unpatriotic of acts,” the senator explained. “It’s unconstitutional. It contravenes the Fourth Amendment which which says you have a right to privacy.”

Paul’s filibuster could put his Senate GOP presidential rivals in a tight spot. If the filibuster goes on long enough, Cruz, Graham, and Rubio may be forced to remain in Washington, foregoing their plans to appear at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference in Oklahoma City, where Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Bobby Jindal, Rick Perry, and other top-tier 2016 contenders will speak. Graham is scheduled to take the stage there on Friday morning, followed by Rubio that afternoon and Cruz that night. Paul himself had not planned to attend.

— Julia Porterfield is an intern at National Review, editor-in-chief of Red Millennial, and a junior at Regent University.