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Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) appears on CBS Face the Nation on March 12, 2017.

CBS News

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) hasnt been shy about his issues with the Republican health care overhaul plan -- and on Sunday, he said congressional conservatives are not going to vote for it.

Right now I think theres a charm offensive going on -- everybodys being nice to everybody because they want us to vote for this, but were not going to vote for it, Paul told CBS Face the Nation.

Paul said House Speaker Paul Ryan is pitching the health care bill as a binary choice between his overhaul plan and Obamacare as it currently stands -- and isnt interested in negotiating with the more conservative members of his party.

What were hearing is a binary choice is that its the Ryan plan or the status quo, he said. And what hes rammed through his committee is his, without any amendments, and thats the question. If we get what weve got from Ryan, Obamacare lite, he will not have the votes.

The biggest problem with the new GOP plan, Paul said, is that it doesnt fix the fundamental problem with Obamacare.

The one primary thing thats wrong with Obamacare thats visible to everybody is that premiums are rising through the roof, soaring in the individual market, Paul said. That will happen under the Ryan plan as well because they do nothing to fix the fundamental problem.

He repeatedly referred to the bill as Obamacare lite, saying it keeps the major components of Obamacare in place: it includes insurance subsidies, keeps certain taxes in place for one year, keeps the Cadillac tax in place indefinitely and still contains a penalty for people who dont get insurance.

Paul said the bill is currently in the pre-negotiation phase -- and that he believes President Donald Trump is open to negotiating.

I dont think the president is rigid in support of the House bill, I think hes open to seeing how we can get consensus, he said. And what Ive told the president is what Im telling everybody: were united on repeal, not so much on replacement. We do not agree with the fundamental three or four things that the ryan has: subsidies, taxes, mandates and insurance bailout.

Asked about Mr. Trumps claims that President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower during the 2016 campaign, Paul said he doesnt believe the Obama administration directly targeted Mr. Trump for wiretapping -- but that they may have picked up conversations of his associates while wiretapping foreign individuals.

I doubt that Trump was a target directly of any kind of eavesdropping but Im not saying it didnt happen, I think theres a very good chance it does, he said. I dont have any special information but the way it works is the FISA court ... wiretaps foreigners and then listens to Americans. Its a backdoor search of Americans.

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Rand Paul: Conservatives "not going to vote for" GOP health care plan - CBS News

A Republican governor who had to back down from his own vows to dismantle Obamacare in his state is siding with congressional conservatives like Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) who say GOP leadership is not going far enough in its bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

"Sen. Paul ... is not impressed with what has currently been offered," Gov. Matt Bevin (R-KY) told reporters Friday, according to the Associated Press. "Truth be told, I'm not either. So I'm with him."

Paul and other conservatives object to some of the replacement provisions, like refundable tax credits, that leadership has placed in the repeal bill, and have argued that Republicans should vote on a "clean" repeal akin to the 2015 bill they passed but which was vetoed by President Obama. The potential replacement plans can then be brought up separately, argue conservatives, including Paul, who introduced his own ACA alternative. The conservatives also want to speed up the sunset period of Medicaid expansion, which the leadership bill would begin to wind down in 2020.

It's a little awkward that Bevin is bashing the leadership's legislation, known as the American Health Care Act, given that Vice President Mike Pence is traveling to Kentucky this weekend to promote it (though Bevin did say that he will tell Pence "we support their effort to fix this problem," according to the AP.)

It's also a little ironic that Bevin is criticizing other Republicans for recalibrating their repeal promises once they are in power. Bevin kicked off his campaign for governor of Kentucky, a Medicaid expansion state, in 2015 with a promise to uproot Obamacare in the state in every way possible. Over the course of the race he softened that stance, particularly in regards to the Medicaid expansion, which had extended coverage to 400,000 Kentuckians. He ultimately sought to maintain the expansion and apply for a waiver with the Obama administration to change the program instead. For the first year of his term he and the administration were in a back and forth about whether he could impose work requirements, cost sharing and other obstacles for Medicaid recipients. The Trump administration will likely be more amenable to those requests.

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O'Care-Hating KY Guv Sides With Rand Paul In Fight With Leaders Over GOP Bill - TPM

Rand Paul contended that if we get what we have from Ryan, he will not have the votes in the Senate. | AP Photo

Sen. Rand Paul said Sunday that Republicans lack sufficient votes to even begin real negotiations on House leaders Obamacare replacement plan.

We are still in the pre-negotiation period, the Kentucky Republican told host John Dickerson on CBS Face the Nation.

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Paul, who has panned House Speaker Paul Ryans American Health Care Act as Obamacare-lite, outlined the pathway toward legitimate negotiations with fellow Republicans.

The real negotiation period comes and I promise this is the way it's going to work: We will get Obamacare-lite, Ryan's plan, unless there's enough conservatives in the House to say no, he explained. If there's enough to say no, when they start voting on the rules of debate, if they bring down the rule, if they stop him in the tracks, then a true negotiation begins. No negotiation right now counts, until they determine to have enough votes to stop Obamacare-lite.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said earlier Sunday that the current version of the House bill would not only fail in the Senate but could also cost House Republicans their majority in 2018. Ryan was more optimistic Sunday about the bills fate, insisting it could muster 51 votes in the Senate and dismissing objections from Republicans as efforts to negotiate.

But Paul contended that if we get what we have from Ryan, he will not have the votes in the Senate.

And we have to get to that point before true negotiations begin, he added.

Paul, whom President Donald Trump tried to nudge toward supporting the bill via Twitter, said Trump isnt firm in his support of the legislation and is open to seeing how he can reach a consensus.

And what I have told the president is what I am telling everybody: We are united on repeal, not so much on replacement. We do not agree with the fundamental three or four things that Ryan has: subsidies, taxes, mandates and insurance bailout, Paul said. That is Obamacare. We don't want that.

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Paul: GOP lacks votes to begin 'real' negotiations on health care - Politico

SUNDAY, MARCH 12, 2017, 2:42 P.M.

Mark Wicks, standing, addresses Montana Libertarians gathering for their party's nominating convention in Helena, Mont., on Saturday, March 11, 2017. Wicks will represent the Libertarian Party in the May 25 special election to fill the state's vacant congressional seat. (Bobby Caina Calvan / AP)

HELENA Montanas Libertarian Party picked Mark Wicks to be its candidate in the May 25 special election, finalizing the slate to fill the states vacant congressional seat.

The 46-year-old cattle rancher and writer from Inverness will be up against Democrat Rob Quist, a political newcomer, and Republican Greg Gianforte, who unsuccessfully ran for governor last fall.

The Libertarian Party selected Wicks during a nominating convention Saturday in Helena attended by about three dozen people.

Wicks acknowledged the long odds against him.

I know its an uphill battle, he said. I can see where I have a lot of advantages. My party is not fighting with anybody. The other parties are fighting back and forth. Im going to stand up and show that Montana can send somebody back to Washington who can stand up for Montana.

After being nominated, Wicks brushed off questions about his ability to mount a serious campaign. He said he would travel the state to convince voters that his candidacy represents an opportunity to set aside the hyper-partisanship in Washington.

With just $1,000 in the bank, Wicks has little chance of getting the necessary attention from voters across the expansive state.

He said he would draw votes from Republicans and Democrats alike, but rejected that he would act as a spoiler.

He took a jab at Gianforte, a wealthy Bozeman entrepreneur, who Wicks noted has the ability to self-finance his congressional campaign as he did in his bid for governor. And Wicks asserted Quist as out of touch with the philosophical and political convictions of most Montanans.

A tight race between Gianforte and Quist could put Wicks in a position to influence the outcome of the race.

In the 2016 gubernatorial campaign, the Libertarian ticket drew 3 percent of the vote just below the 4 percent margin separating Gianforte and Gov. Steve Bullock, who was re-elected with slightly more than half of all votes cast.

Each candidate has their own ideas about the direction we should take for our country, but Gregs running for Congress to be on Montanas side, said the Republicans spokesman, Shane Scanlon.

Quist said he welcomed Wicks in the race.

Its good for Montanans to have choices in this election and we are confident that Rob Quist will earn Montanans vote as an independent voice for Montana, said Quists spokeswoman, Tina Olechowski.

Quist, a well-known entertainer, stumped for votes in Helena and Butte on Saturday and was scheduled to hold a rally in Polson later in the evening. He was expected to meet with supporters in Whitefish on Monday.

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Libertarians pick Inverness rancher for congressional race - The Spokesman-Review

The Liberty Conservative

HL Mecken: Pro-German Rather Than Libertarian The Liberty Conservative Conservatives today claim him for his libertarian opposition to the New Deal, his fierce commitment to civil liberties, and his denouncement of collectivism in all forms. Liberals adopt him for his attacks on Christian fundamentalism, his faith in ...

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HL Mecken: Pro-German Rather Than Libertarian - The Liberty Conservative