'Washington 's horribly broken , ' Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul said Tuesday , but it came in the midst of a TV interview broken up by prickly moments and interruptions . Paul , who launched his presidential campaign Tuesday in Louisville , Kentucky , sparred with TODAY host Savannah Guthrie about his past foreign policy positions . As Guthrie rattled off a list of issues where she said the senator had flipped and flopped – Iran , aid to Israel and defense spending – a testy and impatient Paul cut her off . 'Why do n't we let me explain instead of talking over me , OK ? ' he griped . PRICKLY : Newly minted White House hopeful Rand Paul and NBC host Savannah Guthrie talked over each other on Wednesday . Paul , a libertarian-leaning Kentucky senator , launched his presidential bid on Tuesday in Louisville . 'No , no , no , no , no , no , no , no ! ' Listen , you 've editorialized , ' Paul blasted at Guthrie . 'Before we go through a litany of things you say I 've changed on , why do n't you ask me a question : `` Have I changed my opinion ? '' That would be sort of a better way to approach an interview . ' Guthrie obliged , asking him if he had changed his views , but he charged ahead . 'No , no , you 've editorialized , ' Paul said . 'No , no , no , no , no , no , no , no ! ' Listen , you 've editorialized . Let me answer a question ! You ask a question , and you say , `` Have your views changed ? '' instead of editorializing and saying my views have changed . ' A spokesman for American Bridge 21st Century , a liberal opposition-research group , leaped on Paul after the broadcast . 'Rand Paul ca n't seem to step in front of a camera without proving that shooting from the hip is a good way to shoot yourself in the foot , ' Ben Ray told Daily Mail Online . 'He 's got miles to go before his ability catches up to his ambition , ' Ray added . 'And judging by his temper , he knows it , too . ' When style gave way to substance on TODAY , Paul clarified that when he said in 2007 that Iran was n't a threat to the United States , the world was different and he was n't yet a candidate for the Senate . '2007 was a long time ago and events do change over long periods of time , ' he said . 'So we 're talking about 8 years ago . We 're talking about a time when I was n't running for office and I was helping someone else run for office . ' That 'someone else ' was his father , Ron Paul , a former congressman who ran for president three times but never grabed the brass ring . The elder Paul was known for strictly non-interventionist views overseas in the face of growing threats abroad , a trap that his son has taken great pains to avoid . 'There has always been a threat around gaining nuclear weapons and that 's greater now than it was many years ago , ' he said Wednesday . His troublesome 2007 moment came during an interview with conspiracy-theorist radio host Alex Jones . 'You know , it ’ s ridiculous to think they ’ re a threat to our national security , ' Paul said then of Iran . 'It ’ s not even that viable to say they ’ re a national threat to Israel , ' he added later . 'Most people say Israel has 100 nuclear weapons , you know . ' On the TODAY show , Paul the younger avoided taking a stand on the nuclear agreement the White House says it has carved out with Tehran 's mullahs . Paul was joined by his wife Kelley Ashby on stage Tuesday as he declared that he would campaign to 'take our country back ' ' I 'm going to keep an open mind and look at the agreement , ' Paul said , while allowing that ' I do believe that negotiation is better than war . ' He mirrored other Republicans in questioning the 'sincerity of the Iranians ' in reaching an agreement with the U.S. and five European nations . 'If they 're immediately saying that the agreement does n't mean what President Obama says , that is a big problem , ' Paul said . 'The Iranians put out 500 words , the Americans put out 1,300 words , the Europeans put out 200 words . And they do n't all seem to agree , but it 's very , very little information so far . ' He defended his position on foreign aid , saying that even Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed that his country should one day shake off its dependence on America to fund its defense program . ' I still agree with my original precept , which is – lem me answer the question ! – I still agree with my original statement from years ago that ultimately all nations should be free of foreign aid , ' he said , 'because we should n't borrow money to do it . ' 'But my opinion 's not any different than Netanyahu 's opinion . ' The Paul campaign did not respond to a request for comment no whether or not Guthrie gave him a fair interview .
Paul is already under fire for his evolving views on Iran , foreign aid to Israel and defense spending . Why do n't we let me explain instead of talking over me , OK ? ' he asked the 'TODAY ' host as she tried to corner him . Paul launched his presidential quest on Tuesday in Kentucky andis already on a five-state campaign swing . He pinned his 2007 claim that Iran was not a threat to the US on the fact that he was campaigning for his father 's presidential bid at the time .