[The second installment of the "Rand Paul: Just Another Politician" series.]
Rand Paul blah blah small government blah blah states' rights blah blah TENTH AMENDEMENT blah blah and here we are:
Ahead of a scheduled Wednesday morning markup of a bill to give D.C. budget autonomy, Paul has proposed a handful of amendments that could delay consideration of Sen. Joseph Lieberman’s (I-Conn.) measure, once again tying controversial add-ons to a key legislative priority for District leaders.
[...] One Paul amendment would require the District to allow residents to obtain concealed weapon permits for handguns, and would require the city to honor permits issued to residents of other states. Another amendment would make the District "establish an office for the purpose of facilitating the purchase and registration of firearms by DC residents," in response to reports that there is only one licensed gun dealer in the city.
Paul has also submitted an amendment to codify the city-funded abortion ban. The prohibition — a continuing source of frustration for local leaders that is strongly supported by anti-abortion groups — has been extended via appropriations bills every year that Republicans have controlled one or both chambers of Congress since the mid-1990s.
Paul proposed another amendment saying "membership in a labor organization may not be applied as a precondition for employment" in the District, and protecting employees "from discrimination on the basis of their membership status" in a union. [Via WaPo]
So where does Mr. Federal Government Shouldn't Be Pushing The States Around, a.k.a. the distinguished Senator from Kentucky (R-Not Washington D.C.), get off telling somebody else's district how to run their show?
"I think it’s a good way to call attention to some issues that have national implications," Paul said in an interview Tuesday. "We don’t have [control] over the states but we do for D.C."
Good to know! As the government actually does have some constitutionally-enumerated control over the states, we'll remember Paul's amendments the next time we pass a law that concerns Kentcuky.
Check back regularly for more entries in the "Rand Paul: Just Another Politician" series.
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