http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/article/2573064/Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., dinged fellow Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Tuesday for constantly attacking members of their party, explaining in a radio interview that decorum needs to be observed if conservatives hope to achieve anything in Congress.
The 2016 Republican presidential candidate's comments came after he was asked to respond during a "Kilmeade & Friends "interview to Cruz being denied a roll call vote on defunding Planned Parenthood Monday by senators on both sides of the aisles.
The Texas senator had hoped to force a vote that would single out lawmakers who oppose efforts to strip federal dollars from the nations' largest provider of abortions. Unfortunately for Cruz, he didn't get that chance as both Democratic and Republican lawmakers refused him the opportunity.
"Ted has chosen to make this really personal and chosen to call people dishonest in leadership and call them names which really goes against the decorum and also against the rules of the Senate. And as a consequence, he can't get anything done legislatively," Paul said.
"He is pretty much done for and stifled and it's really because of personal relationships, or lack of personal relationships, and it is a problem. I approach things a little different, I am still just as hardcore in saying what we are doing, I just chose not to call people liars on the Senate floor and it's just a matter of different perspectives on how best to get to the end result," the Kentucky senator said.
Paul came to the Senate in 2010, swept into office on the November midterms "red wave." Cruz followed two years later, winning election in 2012 in a major upset.
Paul was asked Tuesday if he felt "let down" by fellow Kentuckian and Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell.
"I think I would say we have disagreements on tactics on how to do it and I stand up forcefully for what I think is right and I try not to make it personal," Paul responded.
"So I will stand up. I stood up on the NSA. I stood up on Planned Parenthood," he added. "I forced a vote on Planned Parenthood in August but I try not to make it personal and I think in not making it personal and understanding other people have different perspectives and really this is a democratic republic, you have to woo people. You can't hit them over the head."
Paul was then asked to respond to outgoing House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, who said recently that GOP "false prophets" have plagued the party with unrealistic promises and un-winnable fights, such as the 2013 government shutdown over defunding the Affordable Care Act.
"I think he mistakes what can be done and what can't be done. I am not saying we can get everything we want but I am saying don't start by saying we are not going to get anything. People always talk about in foreign policy, negotiate from a position of strength; a position of strength would be we defund Obamacare, we defund hundreds of hundreds of regulations, we defund Planned Parenthood and we put it out there," Paul said.
"Not just with Planned Parenthood being defunded but with hundreds and hundreds of offensive items that President Obama has put forth through executive action, we defund them all," he added.
The senator was then asked to offer advise to whomever takes the speaker roll when Boehner exits later this year.
"I am not interested in continuing to spend money like crazy without reforming, I am not interested in borrowing a million dollars a minute and I wasn't elected to preside and govern over the status quo," Paul said.
"It's time somebody takes a stand…and we need to do something different than the democrats, dramatically different. We need to challenge them and maybe it's time for a rumble, maybe its time to stand up and struggle with the democrats on what should be spent and what shouldn't be spent by government," he added.
