Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush called out both President Obama and Sen. Rand Paul in the past two days, saying the former is arrogant for believing climate science has been decided, and the latter is wrong in claiming the Patriot Act violates the Constitution.
Most recently was on Thursday, in response to Paul's 10-plus hour "filibuster" against the mass collection of Americans' phone records, which the NSA argues is permitted by the Patriot Act.
"I think he's wrong in saying that this is unconstitutional or saying that people's freedoms have been violated by the Patriot Act," Bush, who is considering seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, said in New Hampshire, according to NH1.com.
Wednesday, during Paul's attempt to prevent the reauthorization of the Patriot Act, he described the legislation as "the most unpatriotic of acts."
"The bulk collection of all Americans' phone records all of the time is a direct violation of the Fourth Amendment," Paul, a Republican presidential contender, said on the Senate floor.
But Bush disagreed, saying Thursday, "I think we need to reauthorize the Patriot Act, and put aside who's speaking where. The simple fact is that it's been an effective tool to keep us free and to keep us from being attacked by Islamic terrorists."
The previous day, Bush hit back against Obama's claim that climate change poses the greatest risk to the nation.
Obama said Wednesday during a commencement speech to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy that climate change "constitutes a serious threat to global security [and] an immediate risk to our national security," according to CNN.
Bush followed up by acknowledging that "the climate is changing," but insisted that no one knows why. "I don't think the science is clear of what percentage is man-made and what percentage is natural," Bush said during a house party in Bedford, N.H.. "It's convoluted."
"For the people to say the science is decided on this is really arrogant, to be honest with you," he continued. "It's this intellectual arrogance that now you can't have a conversation about it, even. The climate is changing. We need to adapt to that reality."
