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Rand Paul's "detainment" by the TSA couldn't have been timed better: Dad Ron is now using Monday's incident to raise funds for his presidential campaign, the Daily Caller reports. The elder Paul emailed supporters asking them to contribute to his "End the TSA Money Bomb," so that he can work to dissolve the "theatrical sham that is the TSA."

Paul says an "anomaly" showed up in his son's body scan, but instead of being allowed to go through the scanner a second time, TSA demanded he be patted down. Rand Paul was detained after refusing the patdown, although the TSA quibbles with the use of the word "detained." The agency does admit he was escorted away from the area by law enforcement. Click through for Ron Paul's reaction to last night's State of the Union address.

Here's something that may illuminate the situation: You go through that scanner ONCE ... no matter WHO you are, even if you're a Libertarian wannabe future presidential candidate with a Congressional daddy. You are advised, both by the signs at the entrance and the officer operating the scanner, to remove EVERYTHING from your pockets ... EVERY ... THING ... each and every thing ... ALL of the things ... IF ... after you have been so instructed and YOU say you HAVE removed ALLLLL THE STUFF from your pockets ... the officer at the screen SEES SOMETHING ON YOUR PERSON ... why, for some reason, that's considered ... well, suspicious and THE ONLY WAY TO CLEAR IT ... is to pat ... that ... down. Usually they only have to pat down the area containing the "anomaly." If you refuse to be cleared ... that, for some reason, is considered MORE suspicious I mean, after all, you were TOLD to get EVERYthing out of your pockets and YOU said you had and THEN they SAW something and THEN ... you refuse to have it cleared... and, guess what: You may find yourself talking to an actual law enforcement officer. Even if you're the wannabe presidential candidate son of a Libertarian Congressman. OH ... and by the way ... if Congressmen are eligible for special screening, specifically not passing through the checkpoints ... he knows that. ... and HE put himself through that checkpoint deliberately ... If he did that, do you suppose he might be willing to leave something on his person he knows would either 1) be detected, requiring a pat down of the area he could refuse; or 2) be missed, at which time he could brandish it before the cameras yowling about it having been missed? The episode has the ambiance of the back door of Fulton's in the Bronx.

$2963277

Jan 25, 2012 9:52 AM CST

Of course he's using it to rake in cash - just like he did with those racist newsletters.