Rand Paul Plagiarism: Decide for Yourself

Guys, Senator Rand Paul plagiarized. No, I'm not talking about that little incident when he was writing his book. And no, I'm not talking about his Washington Times column or all of these speeches, either. According to Salon, the copycat plagiarized again!  

Before diving into Salon's discoveries, let me just say that this should not surprise anyone. After all, we're talking about a guy who plagiarized every aspect of his father's life. Ron Paul served in Congress; Rand Paul served in Congress. Papa Paul was a doctor; Paul Junior was a doctor. Big Paul is an uber-libertarian; Little Paul is an uber-libertarian. For Pete's sake, the guy even plagiarized his dad's last name! 

Alas, all kidding aside, Salon's discoveries are pretty serious. As McElwee and Kutner report, "In his speech at the Value Voters Summit on October 11, Paul appropriated written material from the Gatestone Institute, a think-tank chaired by John Bolton. Paul’s speech draws — without attribution — from two Gatestone Institute articles, 'The Degradation of Christian Women Under Islam,' published on September 11, 2013 , and 'Muslim Persecution of Christians,' published on April 18th." 

Now, even though I'm a bleeding-heart liberal Democrat, Rand Paul has a special place in my heart. Sure, he's said some pretty stupid things, but he's also been one of the only members of Congress brave enough to oppose the trampling of our constitutional liberties, rampant drone strikes, and unrestricted NSA spying. That said, there is literally no way an objective person can deny the plagiarism. 

Disagree with me? Take a look for yourself. Here are two of the examples uncovered by Salon, pasted below. Let us know what you think in the comments: 

Example one

Gatestone Institute

Benghazi forces raided another Coptic church—rounding up some 100 Coptic Christians and accusing them of being missionaries—simply because they had Bibles and other Christian “paraphernalia,” such as icons of Jesus. Many of these Christians were detained and tortured, including by having their heads shaved and cross tattoos removed with acid. Under such torture, one Copt died.

Paul’s speech

Benghazi militias raided a Christian church — rounding up over a hundred Christians, accusing them of being missionaries because they possessed Bibles and crosses. Many were tortured and one Christian died while being tortured.

Example two

Gatestone Institute:

Motorbike assailants hurled an explosive device into the Earthquake Miracle Ministries Church in Mrima village church … injuring 15 people, including one pastor who had both his legs broken.

Paul’s speech:

In Kenya, motorcycle assailants hurled bombs into a Christian church injuring 15 people including the pastor who had both of his legs broken.