GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul Monday praised the release of five U.S. prisoners from Iran, saying that he's "very conservative," but still believes that "when something good happens, we ought to celebrate it."
"I think sometimes for partisan reasons politicians on both sides become sort of like wind-up dolls, and if the other side does something good, they have to complain, no matter how good it is," the Kentucky senator told
MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program.
He pointed out that he's been advocating for several years and introducing legislation to get
Pastor Saeed Abedini, who he called "a hero," released from custody.
But, he said, when politicians oppose actions taken by those in opposing parties, that is "empty partisanship," pointing out that he often disagrees with President Barack Obama, but he does agree with him on some topics, such as criminal justice reform.
"I really don't see party labels stopping me," said Paul. "It's not that I'm not ideological, I'm very conservative, very much for a balanced budget, but I'll work with other people who have similar ideas on certain subjects."