King says Paul 'creates this illusion' of spying in an attempt to play off Americans’ fear. King: Paul creates 'paranoia' on NSA

Rep. Peter King took swings at fellow Republican Sen. Rand Paul on Monday, saying he does not deserve to be in Congress and that he is stoking “paranoia” among Americans.

The New York Republican pointed to the debate over the National Security Agency’s surveillance, which King supports but Paul criticizes, as an example of why he believes the senator doesn’t belong in Congress.


“We can have honest differences about what [NSA’s] policies are, but what Rand Paul is creating is hysteria,” King said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday. “When Rand Paul is comparing [NSA Director] Gen. [James] Clapper to [leaker Edward] Snowden, saying Clapper belongs in jail with Snowden, talking about how all phone calls are being listened to, trying to create this paranoia among Americans that the NSA is spying on everyone, the fact is he has not been able to cite one abuse by the NSA.”

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King said the Kentucky Republican “creates this illusion” of spying in an attempt to play off Americans’ fear in an “offensive” way.

“The same reason he was saying he was worried about the CIA using drones to kill Americans in Starbucks. He is playing on some sort of … fear mongering, isolationism,” King said. “Rather than using intelligent arguments, as people could well do, he is resorting to fear, he’s appealing to the lowest common denominator. And I find that very offensive.”

The congressman pointed to a report that NSA surveillance was key to stopping a New York City subway attack planned by Najibullah Zazi, asking what Paul would do if the plot had been carried out.

“The fact is there would have been hundreds, if not thousands, of New Yorkers killed, and Rand Paul just ignores that,” King said. “So I’m saying, if we listen to him, an attack like Zazi’s could have been successful, hundreds if not thousands of people would be dead, and what would Rand Paul say then?”

King is exploring a run for president in 2016, in part, he says, to offer an alternative to the wing of his party represented by Paul. The senator is also the focus of 2016 speculation, though he has been noncommittal about any potential campaign.