|
 It is an early sign that the unorthodox Republican - who
criticized both Republicans and Democrats in his campaign
announcement - may find himself an outlier within his own party when
he argues that its limited-government ideals should apply to foreign
policy as well as within the United States.
Paul's launch on Tuesday of his 2016 presidential campaign in
Louisville, his home state's biggest city, came days after a
framework agreement struck between Iran and six major powers that
aims to curb Iran's nuclear program, while offering sanctions relief
to Tehran. Paul has been skeptical about the deal, but has not
rejected it outright.
Even before Paul announced his bid, a political group called the
Foundation for a Secure and Prosperous America said it would buy
television ads that criticized Paul for his views on Iran.
The group is headed by Rick Reed, a veteran Republican media
strategist who has worked for South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham
- a hawk who is considering a presidential bid of his own. Reed is
known for his role in the "Swift Boat" ads attacking Democratic
presidential hopeful John Kerry in 2004 on his security record.
In the ad, a voice intones that Paul supports Democratic President
Barack Obama's negotiations with Iran. "He doesn't understand the
threat," the ad says, before playing a clip of Paul saying, "You
know, it's ridiculous to think that they're a threat to our national
security."
"Rand Paul is wrong and dangerous. Tell him to stop siding with
Obama, because even one Iranian bomb would be a disaster," the
narrator says while a photo shows a classic mushroom cloud.
PAUL SAYS HAWKS SEE HIM AS THREAT
In Louisville and in comments on Wednesday, Paul expressed some
doubts about the nuclear deal and insisted that Congress should have
to sign off on it, as legislation proposed by Bob Corker, the
Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, would
require. Obama has touted the framework agreement as the best hope
for preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
"I am somewhat skeptical of the president's agreement," Paul told
NBC's "Today" program on Wednesday. "However, I am in favor of
negotiations over war and I think I've been one of the reasonable
people in our party who has not been beating the drums for war."
Paul and his aides said the ads are a sign that hawks see his
campaign as a threat.
Aides did not detail how Paul would respond to the ads, but said the
differences between him and his party's hawkish wing have been
exaggerated. They noted Paul believes Iran should be barred from
acquiring nuclear weapons, he has backed sanctions against Tehran,
and he was one of the 47 senators who signed a letter to Iranian
leaders last month warning that an eventual deal could be undone by
Congress.
But Paul was the lone "no" vote on a 2012 Senate resolution saying
that it was U.S. policy to prevent Iran from getting nuclear
weapons, arguing this could lock the United States into a
pre-emptive war.
[to top of second column] |
The ads, the first major attack ads of the nascent 2016 election
campaign, are scheduled to run in New Hampshire, South Carolina,
Iowa and Nevada as Paul visits those states, which vote early in the
primary process.
Media strategist Reed is known partly for his role in an ad campaign
against Kerry in 2004 that featured a group of Vietnam War veterans
known as the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, who questioned Kerry's
record as a commander of Navy Swift Boats in the war. That campaign
gave rise to the political term "swiftboating," generally taken to
mean an attack campaign based on unsubstantiated accusations.
A SKEPTIC ON WAR
Paul's view on the Iran deal, while clearly not completely behind
Obama, reflects his skeptical approach to foreign policy and in
particular to wars.
He argues that actions like the U.S. participation in NATO air
strikes on Libya that helped rebels overthrow former leader Muammar
Gaddafi in 2011 can lead to unintended consequences and tie the
United States down to years of expensive and fruitless
nation-building.
That has resonated with younger voters who came of age during the
long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as many voters of all
ages who worry the United States is living beyond its means.
Even so, Paul last month proposed an increase in military spending.
But Paul is viewed with suspicion by many in the party's hawkish
wing, said Norm Coleman, a former Republican senator who has close
ties to pro-Israel donors.
Among likely Republican candidates, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker
said last week the United States should walk away from the Iran
nuclear deal, while Senator Marco Rubio of Florida called it a
mistake.
Republican voters are split. Some 31 percent of Republican voters
favor the deal, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll this week, and 30
percent oppose it. Another 40 percent are undecided.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu
and Lucas Iberico Lozada; Editing by Frances Kerry and Leslie Adler)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
