Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) delivered his first Senate speech last week.  Senator Paul discussed the idea of compromise. Please watch an excellent speech by an emerging conservative leader of our great nation.

I will sit at Henry Clay’s desk. There is likely no legislator from Kentucky more famous than Henry Clay. He served as both the Speaker of the House and Leader of the Senate. He ran for President four times and nearly bested James Polk. Henry Clay was called the Great Compromiser. During orientation, one of my new colleagues asked me with a touch of irony and a twinkle in his eye, “Will you be a great compromiser?”

[youtube][http://youtu.be/LE_fD-_rzJ8)[/youtube]

Check out the transcript here.

It is a great speech about a historical figure who refused to compromise over the slavery issue — Cassius Clay.  Cassius clay “was an unapologetic abolitionists who called out the slave traders.”  Senator Paul used the life of Cassius’ cousin, Kentuckian Henry Clay, to show how some compromise is morally wrong.

Henry Clay’s life story is, at best, a mixed message. Henry Clay’s great compromise was over slavery. One could argue that he rose above sectional strife to carve out compromise after compromise trying to ward off civil war.  Or one could argue that his compromises were morally wrong and may have even encouraged war, that his compromises meant the acceptance during his 50 years of public life of not only slavery, but the slave trade itself.

Senator Paul makes the case against a compromise being promoted today.  He argued that compromising by increasing taxes to balance the budget will encourage more government spending and may be morally wrong.

Should we compromise by raising taxes and cutting spending as the Debt Commission proposes?  Is that the compromise that will save us from financial ruin?  Several facts argue against such a compromise. Government now spends more money than ever before. Raising taxes seems to only encourage more spending.  Government now spends one in four GDP dollars. Twenty-five percent of our nation’s economy is government spending. Any compromise must shrink the government sector and grow the private sector.  Any compromise should be about where we cut federal spending, not where we raise taxes.

What does Red State America think of Senator Paul and his speech?