After practicing medicine for nearly 30 years, Washington forced Sen. Rand Paul to give up his ophthalmology practice. Now he's found a way to return to that calling.
Read Transcript
Reporter: THIS IS THE
UNKNOWN SIDE OF SENATOR RAND
PAUL.
RIGHT NOW WE'RE OPENING
UP THE CAPSULE.
Reporter: LICENSED
OPHTHALMOLOGIST, PERFORMING
CATARACT SURGERY.
WASHINGTON FORCED HIM TO
GIVE UP A HUGE PART OF HIS
LIFE.
I THOUGHT WHEN I WAS
ELECTED I WOULD GET TO
PRACTICE MEDICINEP GET
MEDICINE AND GET TO DO
SURGERY, BUT I WAS TOLD I
WASN'T ALLOWED, EXCEPT FOR
CHARITY.
Reporter: AND NOW HE
JOINED A TEAM OF DOCTORS
FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
TO PERFORM HUNDREDS OF
SURGERIES IN A TOWN RIGHT IN
THE MIDDLE OF GUATEMALA.
THIS IS YOUR PASSION,
RIGHT?
I LOVE DURING SURGERY.
AND I FIRST GOT INTERESTED
IN OPHTHALMOLOGIST BECAUSE
MY GRANDMOTHER HAD A LOT OF
PROBLEMS.
Reporter: WHY
GUATEMALA?
SOME SAY IT IS PAUL PAVING
HIS VISION FOR THE FUTURE,
AND THERE IS SOME TRUTH TO
THAT.
BUT THIS LATIN CONNECTION
GOES BACK NEARLY 20 YEARS.
THAT'S WHEN THE HERNANDEZ
BROTHERS TRAVELLED TO
BOWLING GREEN SO PAUL COULD
OPERATE ON THEIR EYES.
HERE IN SALAMAN, THIS
OPHTHALMOLOGIST IS ONE OF
ONLY TWO SERVING NEARLY A
MILLION PEOPLE.
IN THE U.S., THERE IS ONE
FOR EVERY 20,000.
AND WITH MORE THAN HALF OF
ALL GUATEMALANS LIVING BELOW
THE POVERTY LINE, EVEN WITH
ACCESS, MOST CAN'T AFFORD
EYE CARE.
SO PEOPLE LINED UP EARLY AND
WAITED PATIENTLY FOR A
CHANCE TO SEE AGAIN.
I FEEL BLESSED, BLESSED
BY THEM HELPING PEOPLE WHO
LOVE THEIR SIGHT, AND THEY
WILL BE ABLE TO GAIN IT
BACK, GOD WILLING.
Translator: MY PROBLEM IS
I CANNOT SEE ANYMORE.
I HAVE EYE PROBLEMS SINCE I
WAS A BABY.
WHEN YOU GO BLIND, YOU
CAN'T CONTRIBUTE, YOU'RE NOT
HELPING THE FAMILY.
AND TYPICALLY IT TAKES ONE
AND A HALF CARE-GIVERS FOR
EVERY BLIND PERSON.
Reporter: 39 MILLION
PEOPLE IN THE WORLD ARE
BLIND.
90% OF THEM LIVE IN POVERTY,
AND MOST OF THEM COULD BE
CURED IF THEY HAD PROPER
ACCESS TO EYE CARE.
YOUNG CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES WHO GO BLIND ONLY
LIVE ANOTHER YEAR OR TWO.
THAT'S WHY DOCTORS HERE PUT
UP WITH THE CAMERAS AND
CHAOS FOLLOWING PAUL, HOPING
IT WILL SHINE A LIGHT ON THE
BURDEN OF GLOBAL BLINDNESS.
ETS JUS IT IS JUST GREAT
TO HAVE ANOTHER DOCTOR,
SOMEONE WHO IS WILLING TO
COME HERE AND WORK IN
CHALLENGING CONDITIONS.
Reporter: PAUL WANTED
TO FOCUS ATTENTION ON HIS
SURGICAL KILLS, BUT WHEN HE
INVITED THE CAMERAS, SOME
SUSPECTED IT WAS TO CATCH
HIMSELF IN A NEW LIGHT, FOR
SOME CONSERVATIVES WHO SEE
HIM WEAK ON FOREIGN POLICY.
SOMETHING HE CALLS A DIRTY
RHEU RUMOR.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS I'M A
BIG FOLLOWER OF RONALD
REAGAN AND BELIEVE IN PEACE
THROUGH STRENGTH.
AND I BELIEVE IT IS THE
NUMBER ONE PRIORITY OF THE
GOVERNMENT, TO DEFEND US
AGAINST FOREIGN ATTACK.
Reporter: THIS YEAR
AUTHORITIES HAVE APPREHENDED
MORE THAN 60,000
UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN, AND
OTHER 60,000 ADULTS WITH
CHILDREN ILLEGALLY CROSSING
THE U.S. BORDER, MANY FROM
GUATEMALA.
SENATOR PAUL TALKED TO THE
NATION'S PRESIDENT ABOUT THE
SOLUTION HE THINKS COULD
EASE THE PRESSURE.
THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE IN AMERICA WHO WANT
TO ADOPT KIDS FROM
GUATEMALA.
A LOT OF KIDS DON'T HAVE
PARENTS OR DON'T HAVE
SUFFICIENT SUPPORT HERE.
SO REALLY, PART OF THE
ANSWER IS LEGAL
IMMIGRATION.
LET'S HAVE MORE LEGAL
IMMIGRATION AND MORE
ADOPTION.
Reporter: AND WHEN IT
COMES TO WASHINGTON'S
IMMIGRATION STALEMATE, PAUL
IS STICKING THE HIS DEMAND
TO SECURE THE BORDER BEFORE
ANYTHING ELSE.
IT IS INTERESTING,
SECURING ISN'T ALWAYS SORT
OF A FENCE OR BARBED WIRE OR
THINGS LIKE THAT.
SECURITY IS ALSO HAVING AN
ADEQUATE WORK PROGRAM.
BECAUSE WE ACTUALLY WANT
PEOPLE TO COME TO OUR
COUNTRY TO WORK.
400,000 PEOPLE COME TO PICK
CROPS EVERY YEAR IN
AMERICAMENT IT I AMERICA.
IT IS A MATTER OF TRYING TO
FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO IT IN
AN ORDERLY FASHION.
Reporter: MEANWHILE,
SHE IS SENDING SIGNALS THAT
HE IS RUNNING FOR
PRESIDENT.
I THINK MOST OF US WANT
TO DO WHAT WE ARE BEST AT
DOING.
WHETHER OR NOT IT WILL
DOING.
IT IS WHETHER OR NOT YOU CAN
HAVE AN IMPACT ON THE
COUNTRY TO HELP MAKE THE
COUNTRY BETTER.
Reporter: FOR MANY OF
THESE GUATEMALANS, IT WAS
LIFE-CHANGING.
I THANK GOD FOR THE
OPERATION.
I FEEL GOOD.
THANKS TO GOD.
Reporter: JENNIFER
WISHON, CBN NEWS, SALAMAN,
GUATEMALA.