Perhaps frustrated by his own lagging numbers in the polls, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul (R) took to Twitter on Friday afternoon to lament the departure of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry from the 2016 presidential field while questioning the tastes and preferences of the GOP base.

Perry’s support in the polls flat-lined causing fundraising to dry up as the former Texas governor was unable to shake the memory of his 2012 run that caused him to be viewed as an intellectual lightweight after his disastrous debate performances. Relegated to the “kids table” portion of the GOP debates and scarcely able to pay his staffers, Perry mercifully pulled the plug on his campaign on Friday saying he had “no regrets.”

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Perry’s departure brought out the angst in fellow presidential aspirant Paul, who has seen his own campaign stall out as billionaire businessman Donald Trump has sucked all of the air out of the room with his blustery statements and insults aimed at his rivals.

After Perry’s announcement broke, Paul tweeted; “What does it say about GOP when a 3 & half term Gov w/ a successful record of creating jobs bows out as a reality star leads in the polls?”

Followers and critics of Paul on Twitter were quick to respond in ways that were both hilarious and brutal as they attacked the senator, his party, and his perceived whine that life is not fair.

Rand Paul’s tweet:

What does it say about GOP when a 3 & half term Gov w/ a successful record of creating jobs bows out as a reality star leads in the polls? — Dr. Rand Paul (@RandPaul) September 11, 2015

Then came the flood of comments:

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.@RandPaul That you’re a terrible candidate and whining that the voters don’t like you isn’t a good strategy? #tcot pic.twitter.com/PZLdojTqWt — Virginia Dare (@vdare) September 12, 2015

@RandPaul I think you answered your own question in a rhetorical sense…Maybe your party or your base is the problem. ? — Hard Harry (@SirHardHarry) September 11, 2015

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@RandPaul it says you reap what you sow. Donald trump is exactly what you have all created with 30 years of fact free rhetoric. — scotia626 (@scotia626) September 11, 2015

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@RandPaul It says the GOP will lose a 3rd election in a row #ThanksObama — Jason Jones (@ColoredSpaces) September 11, 2015

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that you guys all suck at one of the most basic duties of your job @RandPaul — The Discourse Lover (@Trillburne) September 12, 2015

@RandPaul That the majority of your party’s base are Neanderthals? Just guessing. — Tom Hillgardner (@TomHillgardner) September 12, 2015

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@RandPaul That people who say they are GOP have ditched their conservative values & confused being tough w/ being an asshole. Sad. — Colorado REDTraci (@goptraci) September 12, 2015

.@RandPaul this is the party y’all created — Bryan Gamble (@BVGamble) September 12, 2015

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@RandPaul What it says is that you and Perry rate lower in public esteem than a bigoted egomaniac. Rightly so, considering your negativity. — Christopher Oxford (@QuondamOptimist) September 12, 2015

.@RandPaul Well Senator, it says your GOP is composed of know-nothings, nasty creeps, warmongers, money-worshippers, racists & woman-haters. — AverageChirps (@AverageChirps) September 12, 2015

@RandPaul @EWDolan It says your party is an amazing mess. You’ve never reconciled the Tea Party with the GOP. — Coinspinner (@Coinspinn3r) September 12, 2015

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@RandPaul @PoliticalLine it says that if you create a monster (hateful base, irrationally fueled by Fox News) – you will be consumed by it ! — George A Smirnoff (@GeorgeASmirnoff) September 12, 2015

Comedian and actor Michael Ian Black showed up to explain that Rick Perry’s widely-mocked “smart glasses” were to blame:

@RandPaul @jaketapper It says glasses are for losers. — Michael Ian Black (@michaelianblack) September 12, 2015