Rand Paul and Jack Conway got into it at their debate tonight at the University of Louisville — things got so bad that Paul refused to shake Conway’s hand when all was said and done.
Paul’s anger stemmed from Conway’s repeated references to vague allegations that Paul had participated in an anti-Christian secret society while attending Baylor University decades ago, and that he — well, I’ll let Conway say it himself.
“When is it ever a good idea to tie up a woman and ask to kneel before a false idol, your god that you call “‘Aqua Buddha?’” Conway asked Paul during the debate, repeating a charge made in an attack ad run by his campaign.
Paul later responded:
“You know how we tell your lying. It’s when your lips are moving. You’re accusing me of crimes. Do you nothing about the process? You are going to stand over there and accuse me of a crime from 30 years ago from some anonymous source. How ridiculous are you? You embarass this race.”
The Conway line of attack is pathetically thin gruel. Far from implicating Paul in some pagan secret society, it at worst captures a teenager engaged in an inappropriate prank. Indeed, the classmate of Paul’s who revealed the “aqua buddha” story in an interview with GQ has since said it has been blown wildly out of proportion. You can read about it here, should you find it worth your time.
As for Conway’s allegation that Paul is or was anti-Christian, Paul — a congregant at a Presbyterian church in Bowling Green, where his wife is a deacon — responded by quoting Mark 8:36.
Paul also said Conway should be “ashamed” of rehashing the charges and urged him to “run a race like a man. . . instead of calling me names.”