Rand Paul

Rand Paul: Kentucky's Senator and Physician

Dr. Rand Paul is the current junior U.S. Senator for Kentucky and a member of the GOP.

Early Life

Rand Paul was born in Pittsburgh in 1963 to his mother and father, Ron Paul who is most known for being a physician and a current Representative for the 14th Congressional District of Texas. Rand Pail was raised in Lake Jackson, Texas where he attended Brazoswood high school.

After high school, Rand Paul attended Baylor University in 1981 and then Duke Medical School in 1988. He continued with an internship at Georgia Baptist Medical Center in general surgery and then completed his residency at Duke University medical Center in ophthalmology.

After completing his residency, Rand Paul moved to Bowling Green where he opened up an ophthalmology practice. Two years later he started the Southern Kentucky Lions Eye Clinic which provided surgery and eye exams to families and individuals in need of such services.

In 1993, Rand Paul started the Kentucky Taxpayers United in order to help inform taxpayers in Kentucky about the voting records of elected officials as well as their taxation issues and spending. While the organization is self-described to be nonpartisan, the organization has been criticized for aligning with more conservative views.

In 2009, the incumbent for the primary elections for Senate did not run for another term, leaving only Rand Paul and Trey Grayson, the Secretary of State, as the candidates for the Republican nomination. He won the Republican Senatorial primary and then proceeded to go against Jack Conway, the Kentucky Attorney General, in the general election which he also won.

Rand Paul was sworn into the Senate in 2011 where he was then assigned to several committees including:

• Committee on Health, Labor, Education, and Pensions

o Subcommittee on Retirement and Aging

• Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship

• Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs

o Subcommittee on Investigations (Permanent)

o Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight (Ad-hoc)

• Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

o Subcommittee on Energy

Some of Rand Paul’s significant opinions include the following:

• Opposed to raising Medicare deductible or the Social Security retirement age for individuals who are close to the age already (not applicable for younger Americans)

• Opposed to cutting any benefits from Social Security and Medicare

• Supports more transparency in the operation of the Federal Reserve

• Supports reducing the Federal government’s scope and size and campaign finance reform

• Pro-life, believes in ending abortion in all circumstances

• Opposes President Obama’s health care reform

• Supports creating requirements for legal immigrants and creating local solutions to deal with illegal immigration under the 10th amendment.

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