William Paul, the son of Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), reportedly hurled antisemitic hate toward Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) at a bar near Capitol Hill on Tuesday night.
Reese Gorman, a reporter for NOTUS, alleged in an article on Wednesday that he personally witnessed William Paul harassing Lawler at a restaurant bar.
In full view of this NOTUS reporter, the younger Paul — who introduced himself as the Republican senator’s son — confronted Lawler about Rep. Thomas Massie’s GOP primary election in Kentucky next week. William Paul was seated a couple of seats down from Lawler at the restaurant bar, and interrupted a conversation between NOTUS and Lawler to say that if Massie loses, it’s going to be because of “your people.”
The argument escalated as Paul wrongly asserted that Lawler, a Catholic of Irish and Italian descent, was Jewish.
“My people?” Lawler asked Paul.
“Yeah, you Jews,” Paul responded.
“Do you think I’m Jewish?” Lawler asked. “I’m not.”
“Oh wow, I’m so sorry for calling you a Jew,” Paul replied.
According to Gorman, Paul further pressed the topic by saying Jews are “anti-American” and that Lawler and his “Jewish supporters” serve only Israel.
“Lawler repeatedly pushed back and engaged with Paul, defending his support of Israel, and told Paul he was being antisemitic,” noted Gorman. “‘Paul Singer serves Israeli interests, not American interests,’ Paul said, referring to the GOP megadonor who is helping bankroll an anti-Massie super PAC. Singer is Jewish.”
The arguing took a more aggressive turn when Lawler said, “Well, you just seem to hate Jews, so there’s no point arguing anymore.”
“Don’t put words in my mouth, Mike Lawler, I never said that,” said Paul as he shoved his finger into Lawler’s face.
Willam Paul was charged with assaulting a flight attendant in 2013, but those charges were dropped. In 2015, he pleaded guilty to driving under the influence following a car crash. He later issued a statement online that seemed to confirm the report, blaming it on an alleged “drinking problem.”
“Last night, I had too much to drink and said some things that don’t represent who I really am. I’m sorry and today I am seeking help for my drinking problem,” he wrote.