Rand Paul adds anti-abortion amendment to flood insurance bill

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY)

Living up to both his and his party’s spirit of one-upmanship on matters of casual douchebaggery, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is deliberately holding up an important and already long-belated flood insurance bill by trying to cram in some utterly unrelated anti-choice language about defining whether life begins at conception [original emphasis]:

After years of delay, senators recently came to an agreement over the flood bill and were set to vote on it this week.

But now, Paul is threatening to hold up its final passage by adding an amendment defining when life begins. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) expressed his displeasure with that move this morning, saying he would not bring the bill up for a vote if the amendment is added:

This is ridiculous, that somebody says I’m not going to let this bill goes forward unless I have a vote on when life begins. I am not going to do that, and I think I speak for the majority of senators. Now, if the Republicans won’t stand up to the person who is going to do that, I’m not going to. I have tried my best to deal with these issues that have nothing to do with a piece of legislation.

How ironic – or maybe it’s entirely predictable – that the same “limited government” conservatives are the ones who are constantly thrusting their political rods down the throats of those who do, think and look like things they don’t approve of.

Tags: Rand Paul • U.S. Senate • anti-choice • anti-choicers • anti-abortion • anti-abortionists • Harry Reid • National Flood Insurance Program • conception