The use of drones to kill Americans without any judicial trial is 'worrisome,' Paul said. Paul: Drone program 'very scary'

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said Wednesday night that support for President Barack Obama’s drone program was “very scary and worrisome” and feared it could open a “Pandora’s box” about government’s power.

Paul was on CNN discussing his consideration of filibustering Obama’s nomination of John Brennan for CIA director, doubling down on his criticism of Brennan’s question-dodging regarding drone use at his confirmation hearing last week.


“If you’re not going to answer, No,’ I think that means you’re telling us, ‘Yes’ — you believe that the president has the power to kill an Americans in America. That is appalling,” Paul said on CNN.

( Also on POLITICO: Poll: Drone hits on foreigners OK)

The White House has received criticism following the release of a memo earlier this month about the government’s use of drones overseas to kill Americans linked to terrorism.

Paul continued the criticism on Wednesday.

“It is very scary and worrisome to me… We don’t even name the target of people we kill with drones. If there’s a line of traffic coming out of a camp and we think that is populated by people who don’t like America — we bomb them,” Paul said on CNN.

( PHOTOS: Rand Paul's career)

He continued: “Is that a high enough standard for Americans maybe coming out of a city or an encampment somewhere in the U.S. where they’re meeting and saying anti-government things? Are we going to have signature strikes in America? I mean, it opens Pandora’s box once you say we may as well kill Americans in America without any judicial trial, with politicians making the decision, that’s very worrisome.”

This article tagged under: Drones

Rand Paul

Politics