Rand Paul struggles to get campaign started smoothly
Sen. Rand Paul‘s first days as a presidential candidate have not gone as planned.A tea party favorite, first-term senator, and son of a three-time presidential candidate, Paul is no stranger to attention. But in opening his campaign, he betrayed a hot temperament that, by his own admission, needs some control.After defensive and dodging media interviews about abortion, Iran, and his shifting views on some issues, he acknowledged, “I will have to get better at holding my tongue and holding my temper.” His first-day drama and his history in the Senate suggest that might be difficult. “I think he’s still new at this,” said Andrew Cash, a lawyer in Charleston, S.C., who attended Paul’s rally in the state Thursday. “He’s been around politics for a long time, but it’s his first presidential campaign, and that’s a different beast.” In his first 24 hours as a contender, Paul lectured an NBC anchor about how to ask a question and told another to print his “five-minute answer” when asked an abortion question that he had answered earlier on a Kentucky Right to Life questionnaire. He then picked a fight on the issue with the chairwoman of the Democratic Party, hardly a sin in GOP circles but a provocation he might not have needed in his earliest days defining himself as a candidate. And he asked his campaign attorneys to send a cease-and-desist letter to TV stations running ads critical of his previous statements about Iran. After facing questions about those remarks, Paul turned to lawyers to make the case that the ads did not represent his current views on Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapon and should not be aired. Taken together, it’s clear his transition from Senate iconoclast to GOP candidate has been a rocky one. “I think we can all get better,” he told Fox News on Wednesday. That demeanor could be an asset in his quest for the nomination, especially among conservative and libertarian activists. “Thankfully, our national media doesn’t get to pick and choose our Republican Party’s presidential nominees,” he tweeted. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Congresswoman Martha Roby ‘Leans In,’ discusses return to her native Alabama
Republican Congresswoman from Alabama and working mom Martha Roby now appears like she was always destined to be a leading Yellowhammer woman, but that wasn’t always the case. In a personal op-ed appearing on the pro-ambitious woman website Lean In, she talks about how she was as tempted as anyone to leave her home state for fame and fortune elsewhere. “I was 23 years old, a third-year law student ready to embark on my dream career in the music industry. Having completed a music business degree at NYU, I felt more than ready to make things happen. My boyfriend (now husband) Riley and I were home for my brother’s graduation ceremony. We were both almost finished with law school and had already talked about the possibility of getting married. Our plans included an out-of-state move to Nashville, where I would pursue a career on Music Row.” But of course, circumstances change. Or as Roby puts it, “We plan and God chuckles”: “He challenged the graduates not to contribute to Alabama’s “brain drain,” a long-existing problem in which young, talented Alabamians leave the state to follow their ambitions elsewhere. “Invest in Alabama,” he said. “Chase your dreams, but whenever possible, contribute to building up your home and making it a better place.” I don’t know if the graduates were listening, but I sure was. And so was Riley. How many bright, talented individuals had we seen leave the state to pursue careers in so-called greener pastures? Montgomery and the State of Alabama had hard-to-fix problems. Would it make the difference if Riley and I, who care deeply about our home, put down roots? Ambition to follow one’s dreams is admirable, I thought, but so is realizing a responsibility to stay and help lift up a community. If we didn’t, who would? At 23, I didn’t know what I had to offer. Possibilities raced through my mind. Maybe I could practice law in Montgomery. Maybe I could volunteer and become a civic leader. Maybe I could get more involved at church or in local schools. Whatever my decision, I knew – along with Riley – I felt a sudden and certain calling to stay in Montgomery and help my community and state become a better place. A few short years later, our local city council member announced her retirement. Watching the story on the evening news, I elbowed Riley and he shot me a knowing look. Though young and inexperienced, I worked hard and won that council race. Years later, I entered an equally-unlikely race for Congress and won it as well. Now, beginning a second term in Congress, I realize I’m just scratching the surface of what I can do to help solve Alabama’s hard-to-fix problems.” The 38-year-old Roby represents Alabama’s 2nd district, based in Wiregrass and parts of the Montgomery metro area. She was elected a member of the 112th Congress in 2010.
