Sen. Rand Paul, speaking to supporters about
federal disability programs:
The thing is that all of these programs, there's always someone who's deserving, but everybody in this room knows somebody who's gaming the system. What I tell people is, if you look like me and you hop out of a truck, you shouldn't be getting a disability check. You know, over half the people on disability are either anxious or their back hurts. Join the club. (Laughter.) Who doesn't get up a little anxious for work every day or their back hurts. Everybody over 40 has a back pain.
First, kudos to Rand Paul for presuming that a room full of Rand Paul supporters would all definitely "know somebody" screwing the government. Hey, he said it, not me.
I am going to presume, however, that there are differences between having "back pain" versus having debilitating back pain, or between being "anxious" and having bouts of anxiety so severe that it interferes with your ability to go places or interact with other people. I am no doctor—certainly, not a medical expert as pedigreed as Sen. Rand Paul—but I do recall there being gradations between these things. I don't know if Sen. Paul is one of those people who can't tell the difference between getting a paper cut and getting your arm severed by farm equipment, but he certainly can't seem to fathom that real mental illnesses can even exist. I had hoped we had at least gotten past that part, but no. No, there is always a Rand Paul.
I presume this is a scripted part of the new Republican plan to pit people with disabilities against seniors and have them fight Thunderdome-style to see who will continue to receive government support and who can go straight to hell. Sen. Rand Paul's opening premise is that over half of the disabled people in this nation are just faking it, and that's a pretty bold stance.