Rand Paul Announces Filibuster of David Barron

Benjamin Wittes
Thursday, May 15, 2014, 6:25 PM
How very unpleasant: Rand Paul announces, only semi-coherently, that he is filibustering David Barron's First Circuit nomination. The statement reads:

"I've read David Barron's memos concerning the legal justification for killing an American citizen overseas without a trial or legal representation, and I am not satisfied. While the President forbids me from discussing what is in the memos, I can tell you what is not in the memos.

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How very unpleasant: Rand Paul announces, only semi-coherently, that he is filibustering David Barron's First Circuit nomination. The statement reads:

"I've read David Barron's memos concerning the legal justification for killing an American citizen overseas without a trial or legal representation, and I am not satisfied. While the President forbids me from discussing what is in the memos, I can tell you what is not in the memos.

There is no valid legal precedent to justify the killing of an American citizen not engaged in combat. In fact, one can surmise as much because the legal question at hand has never been adjudicated. Therefore, I shall not only oppose the nomination of David Barron, but will filibuster," Sen. Paul said.


Benjamin Wittes is editor in chief of Lawfare and a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of several books.

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