Rand Paul partakes in yearly Festivus 'airing of grievances' and takes aim at Clinton, Trump, and Ted Cruz

Brennan Weiss
  • Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul took to Twitter on Saturday to celebrate Festivus in what has become something of a yearly tradition for him.
  • Paul took aim at Fox News, former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, President Donald Trump, and some of his Republican colleagues.
  • The “airing of grievances” is an annual tradition celebrated every December 23. It was first popularised by the hit TV show Seinfeld.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul unloaded his grievances on Twitter on Saturday in what has become an annual tradition in celebration of the faux holiday Festivus.

The fictional holiday, first popularised in a 1997 episode of the hit sitcom series Seinfeld, is celebrated every December 23 by people frustrated with the commercialized aspects of Christmas. In keeping with its traditions, Festivus enthusiasts like Paul participate in what is called an “airing of grievances,” in which they typically vent about people or things that disappoint them.

Paul, who has been airing his grievances since as far back as 2013, took friendly digs at a number of prominent political figures, including his fellow Republicans. But first, he wanted to clear things up with Fox News.

Next, he took aim at former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and her book, “What Happened,” which is her account of the 2016 election.

He then imagined President Donald Trump’s reaction to Clinton’s book while he mocked Trump’s previous claims that his 1987 book, ‘The Art of the Deal,’ is his second favourite book, after the Bible.

It wouldn’t be an airing of grievances without mentioning Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who is often derided by his colleagues in Congress. Paul referenced Cruz’s recent feud over net neutrality with “Star Wars” veteran Mark Hamill, who portrayed Luke Skywalker in the hit film franchise.

Next, Paul transitioned to extra-terrestrial life, jokingly lashing out at former Democratic Sen. Harry Reid for not telling him more about aliens. The New York Times revealed last week that Reid was behind a secret Pentagon program created in 2007 for the purpose of investigating UFOs.

Paul also made sure to go after his Senate colleague Orrin Hatch for having “better pot jokes” than him. Hatch, the senior US senator from Utah, made headlines in September for introducing a bill – in an especially pun-filled manner – to facilitate medical marijuana research.

And finally, Paul ended with a series of tweets criticising the government’s wasteful spending. He even managed to ding special counsel Robert Mueller, who is overseeing the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to tilt the race in his favour.

Paul also didn’t spare Trump’s campaign promise to get Mexico to pay for a wall along the US-Mexico border.

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