Freshman Senator, Rand Paul Breaks Free From Politico Stigma, Finally Some Hope

Ditching unwritten rules for freshmen, Paul does it his way

By Alexander Bolton - 02/08/11 

 

Rand Paul has broken with tradition by eschewing the unwritten rules for freshman senators: Keep a low profile, learn the chamber’s arcane procedures and cozy up to senior colleagues.


Unlike ex-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and many others, Paul (R-Ky.) has tried to drive policymaking in the upper chamber instead of sitting quietly in the back. 

Several of Paul’s colleagues in the GOP freshman class are adopting the traditional, keep-your-head down approach.

He has pushed a proposal to cut $500 billion in federal spending over the course of a single year. That has applied pressure to GOP leaders, including Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, to take a similarly hard approach or risk looking timid to Tea Party activists.

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