John McCain, Lindsey Graham fire back at Rand Paul after being called Obama 'lap dogs'


Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham are speaking out after fellow Republican Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) called them "lap dogs" for President Obama and his foreign policy.
"Sen. Paul is the worst possible candidate of the 20 or so that are running on the most important issue, which is national security," McCain (Ariz.) said Wednesday on the Fox News program Your World With Neil Cavuto. "The record is very clear that he simply does not have an understanding about the needs and the threats of United States national security." Later, McCain mimicked a dog barking when asked by Politico how he felt about being called out by Paul, and said that an anonymous Obama administration official actually compared the two to Doberman Pinschers.
Graham (S.C.), who is considering joining the 2016 race, told reporters that Paul's foreign policy vision is "one step behind leading from behind." He did concede that if Paul is the nominee, "I will support him. But if he's the nominee of the party, we risk giving up the central issue of the 2016 campaign, which will be foreign policy." Watch Paul's "lap dog" comments below. —Catherine Garcia
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Courts deal setbacks to Trump’s Chicago operations
Speed Read President Donald Trump cannot deploy the National Guard in Illinois
-
‘The illusion of wealth can encourage people to take on more debt’
instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Could U.S. Tomahawk missiles help Ukraine end the war?
Today's Big Question Or is Trump bluffing?
-
Courts deal setbacks to Trump’s Chicago operations
Speed Read President Donald Trump cannot deploy the National Guard in Illinois
-
Pentagon reporters turn in badges after refusing rules
Speed Read They refused to sign a restrictive new press policy imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
-
Supreme Court points to gutting Voting Rights Act
speed read States would no longer be required to consider race when drawing congressional maps
-
Trump says he authorized covert CIA ops in Venezuela
Speed Read He is also considering military strikes inside the country
-
‘Vile, racist’ leaked chats roil Young Republicans
Speed Read Leaders of Young Republican groups made racist, antisemitic and violent comments in private chats
-
Trump ties $20B Argentina bailout to Milei votes
speed read Trump will boost Argentina’s economy — if the country’s right-wing president wins upcoming elections
-
News organizations reject Pentagon restrictions
Speed Read The proposed policy is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s latest move to limit press access at the Pentagon
-
Trump declares end to Gaza war, ‘dawn’ of new Mideast
Speed Read Hamas freed the final 20 living Israeli hostages and Israel released thousands of Palestinian detainees