Rand Paul: ‘I Was Blessed To Be Able To Do Things that Made a Difference in People’s Lives’

RUSH TRANSCRIPT:
RAND PAUL: "That's not why I ran for office the first time a few years ago. The truth is I love my life as a smalltown doctor. Every day I woke up and felt lucky to do the things I loved. More importantly, I was blessed to be able to do things that made a difference in people's lives. I never could have done any of this though without the help of my parents, who are here today. I'd like you to join me in thanking my mother and dad. [ Cheers and applause ] With my parents' help I was able to make it through long years of medical training to become an eye surgeon. For me there's nothing that compares with help someone see better. Last August I was priflthed to travel to Guatemala together with a team of surgeon across the U.S. We operated on more than 200 people blind or nearly blind from cataracts. I was grateful to put my scrubs back on and peer into the Mike crow scope and focus on the task at hand, to take a surgical approach to fix a problem. One day in Guatemala, I man told me I operated on his wife the day before. She could see clearly for the first time in years. She had begged him to get on the bus, travel the winding roads and come back to our surgery center. He took was nearly blind from hardened cataracts. After the surgery, the next day his wife sat next to me as I unveiled the patch from his eyes, it was a powerful emotional moment for me to see them looking at each other clearly for first time in years to see the face they loved again. As I saw the joy in their eyes, I thought this is why I became a doctor. In that moment, I also remembered my grandmother, who inspired me to become an eye surgeon. She spent hours with me as a kid. We would sort through the coin collection looking for wheat pennies and as the vision became impaired, it was my responsibility and went with my grandmother to the open that will monthlyologist and when she received the sad news Mac lar degeneration had done harm to her eyes. It made me want to become an eye surgeon and make a difference in people's lives. I've been fortunate and able to enjoy the American dream. I worry that the opportunity and hope are slipping away for our sons and daughters, as I watch our once great economy collapse under mounting spending and debt, what kind of America will our grandchildren see. It seems to me both parties and the entire political system are to blame!"