--- title: Rand Paul: John McCain is 'Past His Prime' description: Sen. Rand Paul said Sen. John McCain has become “unhinged” after the two senators clashed on a vote to allow Montenegro to join NATO canonical: https://time.com/4703572/rand-paul-john-mccain-unhinged/ author: Jennifer Calfas article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-03-16T15:36:55.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T03:52:41.602Z article:section: Politics og:title: ‘He’s Past His Prime.’ Rand Paul Says John McCain Is 'Unhinged' og:description: “I think he makes a really, really strong case for term limits" og:url: https://time.com/4703572/rand-paul-john-mccain-unhinged/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82d977be09ec7702/6988bea4a988ca15ef6bb5f7/rand-paul1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4800 og:image:height: 2700 og:image:alt: Rand Paul og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: ‘He’s Past His Prime.’ Rand Paul Says John McCain Is 'Unhinged' twitter:description: “I think he makes a really, really strong case for term limits" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82d977be09ec7702/6988bea4a988ca15ef6bb5f7/rand-paul1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # ‘He’s Past His Prime.’ Rand Paul Says John McCain Is 'Unhinged' > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Mar 16, 2017 3:36 PM UTC  Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., an opponent of the House Republican healthcare reform plan, discusses the bill before a TV interview on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March, 15, 2017. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., an opponent of the House Republican healthcare reform plan, discusses the bill before a TV interview on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March, 15, 2017. J. Scott Applewhite—AP by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Mar 16, 2017 3:36 PM UTC [Sen. Rand Paul](http://time.com/4596673/rand-paul-repeal-obamacare/) said his colleague [Sen. John McCain](http://time.com/4699123/trump-russia-john-mccain/) has become “unhinged,” extending a heated war of words between the two Republicans. “You know, I think he makes a really, really strong case for term limits,” [Paul said of McCain on MSNBC](http://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/rand-paul-not-much-unity-over-ryan-s-replacement-plan-899450947573) Thursday morning. “I think maybe he’s past his prime. I think maybe he’s gotten a little bit unhinged.” Paul’s comments come after McCain claimed on the Senate floor Wednesday the Kentucky senator “is now working for Vladimir Putin.” McCain had asked for unanimous consent to establish a vote for a treaty that would allow Montenegro to join NATO. Paul had objected to consenting. “He has no justification for his objection to having a small nation be part of NATO that is under assault from the Russians,” McCain said. “The senator from Kentucky is now working for Vladimir Putin.” McCain also said anyone who blocked his request would be “now carrying out the desires and ambitions of Vladimir Putin.” Paul defended his decision on MSNBC, calling McCain’s accusations “over the top.” “To call someone somehow an enemy of the state or a traitor might be considered by most reasonable people to be a little over the top,” Paul said. Paul also said he objected to McCain’s proposal because he did not want U.S. troops to “to pledge to get involved in war if Montenegro has an altercation with anyone.” “His foreign policy is something that would greatly endanger the United States, greatly overextend us,” Paul said. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4703572/rand-paul-john-mccain-unhinged/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4703572/rand-paul-john-mccain-unhinged/"},"headline":"‘He’s Past His Prime.’ Rand Paul Says John McCain Is 'Unhinged'","datePublished":"2017-03-16T15:36:55.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T03:52:41.602Z","description":"The Ky. senator shot back at McCain after McCain said he\" is now working for Vladimir Putin”","url":"https://time.com/4703572/rand-paul-john-mccain-unhinged/","keywords":["Senate","Rand Paul","John McCain","NATO","Russian President Vladimir Putin","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82d977be09ec7702/6988bea4a988ca15ef6bb5f7/rand-paul1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jennifer Calfas","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82d977be09ec7702/6988bea4a988ca15ef6bb5f7/rand-paul1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Rand Paul","caption":"Rand Paul","creditText":"J. 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