--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? The…" description: "\"Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? The reason I ask this is, if you're going to close the Internet, realize, America, what that entails. That entails..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/395/rand-paul-606_amendments_is-donald-trump-a-serious-candidate-the_2053591.jpg" --- # Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? The reason I ask this… ![“Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? The reason I ask this is, if you're going to close the Internet, realize, America, what that entails. That entails getting rid of the First amendment, ok? It's no small feat.” quote by Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/395/rand-paul-606_amendments_is-donald-trump-a-serious-candidate-the_2053591.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/395/rand-paul-606_amendments_is-donald-trump-a-serious-candidate-the_2053591.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/395/rand-paul-606_amendments_is-donald-trump-a-serious-candidate-the_2053591.jpg) > “Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? The reason I ask this is, if you're going to close the Internet, realize, America, what that entails. That entails getting rid of the First amendment, ok? It's no small feat.” [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker questions Donald Trump’s seriousness as a candidate, linking it to potential threats to internet freedom and the First Amendment. **In simple terms:** Questioning Trump’s candidacy and its impact on free speech Key Takeaway Assess political risks to civil liberties Themes politics free speech media election Mood critical concerned Type political analytical When to use this quote - voter decisions - legislative debates - media coverage - public protests Key Concepts First Amendment censorship candidate viability Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards protect free speech? - How should voters evaluate candidate platforms? A Different Perspective The statement may oversimplify complex political dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amendments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendments/) [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Feats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feats/) [First amendment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-amendment/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) ## Related quotes > [One of the reasons why I think people have gone from reading mainstream newspapers to the Internet is because they realize they're being lied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fisk/one-of-the-reasons-why-i-think-people-have-gone-from-reading/) [Robert Fisk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fisk/) > [Anybody intelligent enough to realize what America is, is not going to sit around and do nothing about it. They're going to be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/anybody-intelligent-enough-to-realize-what-america-is-is-not-going-to/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [Donald Trump is a candidate who divided his own party more deeply than any presidential candidate has before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-liasson/donald-trump-is-a-candidate-who-divided-his-own-party-more-deeply/) [Mara Liasson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-liasson/) > [We are the only campaign that has beaten Donald Trump. And we're the only candidate that can beat Donald Trump. If you look at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/we-are-the-only-campaign-that-has-beaten-donald-trump-and-we-re-the/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [When Trump was a candidate, he talked about the stock market, because, oh, the stock market was going up when Obama was president.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/when-trump-was-a-candidate-he-talked-about-the-stock-market-because/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [If Donald Trump is the candidate against Hillary Clinton, then I will be supporting Donald Trump.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-zeldin/if-donald-trump-is-the-candidate-against-hillary-clinton-then-i-will/) [Lee Zeldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-zeldin/) > [Donald Trump is the first candidate ever to run for president in the last 40-plus years who has not released his tax returns, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/donald-trump-is-the-first-candidate-ever-to-run-for-president-in-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I think he tries to be nice. But he has absolutely zero self-awareness. None. Zip. So we see the public Donald Trump, the candidate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/i-think-he-tries-to-be-nice-but-he-has-absolutely-zero-self-awareness/) [Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/) > [Congressman Heck says Donald Trump is the candidate he trusts on national security and changing our economy. Well, I don't know about you, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-cortez-masto/congressman-heck-says-donald-trump-is-the-candidate-he-trusts-on/) [Catherine Cortez-Masto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-cortez-masto/) > [There is no evidence at all that a voting booth was hacked or one person's vote in America was taken from Trump candidate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-gorka/there-is-no-evidence-at-all-that-a-voting-booth-was-hacked-or-one/) [Sebastian Gorka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-gorka/) > [Trump campaigned as somebody who was very skeptical of the multinational deals. He was supportive of Brexit. He was very skeptical of NATO. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-walter/trump-campaigned-as-somebody-who-was-very-skeptical-of-the/) [Amy Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-walter/) > [Previous candidates who get elected are almost always sobered by the office and the responsibility they take on. Donald Trump shows no evidence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/previous-candidates-who-get-elected-are-almost-always-sobered-by-the/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [One thing we've learned about Donald Trump - this candidate first, president-elect, and now president - is that he has this sort of reptilian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-h-winters/one-thing-we-ve-learned-about-donald-trump-this-candidate-first/) [Ben H. Winters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-h-winters/) > [The expectation that 'Trump as president' will be starkly different from 'Trump as candidate' is a false hope at best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamal-khashoggi/the-expectation-that-trump-as-president-will-be-starkly-different/) [Jamal Khashoggi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamal-khashoggi/) > [As an American, no one expected Donald Trump to ever be a serious candidate for President. I don't think he even expected to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/as-an-american-no-one-expected-donald-trump-to-ever-be-a-serious/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) ## More by Rand Paul > [I have a question, a question for the president: Do you hate all rich people, or just rich people who don't contribute to your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-have-a-question-a-question-for-the-president-do-you-hate-all-rich/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I am encouraged President Obama now says he will fulfill his constitutional obligation to seek authorization for any potential military action in Syria. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-am-encouraged-president-obama-now-says-he-will-fulfill-his/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I can tell you who's planning terroris attacks. The leaders of ISIL. And I can tell you where they're at. They're in Raqqa, Syria.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-can-tell-you-who-s-planning-terroris-attacks-the-leaders-of-isil/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [There comes a time, in the history of Nations when fear and forgetfulness cause a nation to hesitate, to waver and perhaps even to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/there-comes-a-time-in-the-history-of-nations-when-fear-and/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [As long as I sit at Henry Clay's desk, I will remember his lifelong desire to forge agreement, but I will also keep close…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/as-long-as-i-sit-at-henry-clay-s-desk-i-will-remember-his-lifelong/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I believe people ought to be treated fairly under the law. I see no reason why if the marriage contract conveys certain things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-believe-people-ought-to-be-treated-fairly-under-the-law-i-see-no/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I think that, most importantly, when I see issues of war, I see them in a personal vein, and I am reluctant to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-think-that-most-importantly-when-i-see-issues-of-war-i-see-them-in/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I would have handled it differently than the mayor of Baltimore, that's for sure. I think it's a mistake to say, hey, guys, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-would-have-handled-it-differently-than-the-mayor-of-baltimore-that/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [We have to think before we act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/we-have-to-think-before-we-act/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I would introduce and support legislation to send Roe v. Wade back to the states.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-would-introduce-and-support-legislation-to-send-roe-v-wade-back-to/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [President Obama, I think, wanted what was best for the country, but I think it didn't work well. I think we have the death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/president-obama-i-think-wanted-what-was-best-for-the-country-but-i/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I think it's a mistake to downgrade and say surveillance is no big deal. It is a huge deal that we are collecting millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-think-it-s-a-mistake-to-downgrade-and-say-surveillance-is-no-big/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [We need a revival in the country,” Paul said. “We need another Great Awakening with tent revivals of thousands of people saying, 'reform or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/we-need-a-revival-in-the-country-paul-said-we-need-another-great/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [We do not project power from bankruptcy court. We're borrowing a million dollars a minute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/we-do-not-project-power-from-bankruptcy-court-we-re-borrowing-a/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [I can use most of the tools that every American teenager can master. Maybe not all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-can-use-most-of-the-tools-that-every-american-teenager-can-master/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) [Explore all 449 Rand Paul quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) ## More Amendments quotes > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The First Amendment makes confidence in the common sense of our people and in the maturity of their judgement the great postulate of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/the-first-amendment-makes-confidence-in-the-common-sense-of-our/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [Anybody who pretends that how you read the 10th and 11th Amendment doesn't have a fundamental impact on the things we care about is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/anybody-who-pretends-that-how-you-read-the-10th-and-11th-amendment/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [I have a lot of guns on my ranch. I don't use them for hunting. I'm not a hunter. It's for protection. The Second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-norris/i-have-a-lot-of-guns-on-my-ranch-i-don-t-use-them-for-hunting-i-m-not/) [Chuck Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-norris/) > [All human situations have their inconveniences. We feel those of the present but neither see nor feel those of the future; and hence we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/all-human-situations-have-their-inconveniences-we-feel-those-of-the/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [If, in the opinion of the people, the distribution or modification of the constitutional powers be in any particular wrong, let it be corrected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/if-in-the-opinion-of-the-people-the-distribution-or-modification-of/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [The First Amendment exists to protect our religious liberty--to ensure that all Americans are able to seek out worship God with all our hearts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/the-first-amendment-exists-to-protect-our-religious-liberty-to-ensure/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [Laws that forbid the carrying of arms . . . disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/laws-that-forbid-the-carrying-of-arms-disarm-only-those-who-are/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [As civil rulers, not having their duty to the people duly before them, may attempt to tyrannize,... The people are confirmed by the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tench-coxe/as-civil-rulers-not-having-their-duty-to-the-people-duly-before-them/) [Tench Coxe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tench-coxe/) > [The lessons of the First Amendment are as urgent in the modern world as the 18th Century when it was written. One timeless lesson…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kennedy/the-lessons-of-the-first-amendment-are-as-urgent-in-the-modern-world/) [Anthony Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kennedy/) > [The American people intuitively understand this, which is why the majority of Catholics practice birth control and some of those opposed to gay marriage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-american-people-intuitively-understand-this-which-is-why-the/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I think the reality is that copyright law has for a very long time been a tiny little part of American jurisprudence, far removed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-the-reality-is-that-copyright-law-has-for-a-very-long-time/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/what-country-can-preserve-its-liberties-if-its-rulers-are-not-warned/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The First Amendment defends all forms of speech including hate speech, which is why groups like Ku Klux Klan are allowed to utter their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-first-amendment-defends-all-forms-of-speech-including-hate-speech/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The Second Amendment has no place in modern society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/the-second-amendment-has-no-place-in-modern-society/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) [Browse all 709 Amendments quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendments/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Is Donald Trump a serious candidate? 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