Paul: Recovery after attack was ‘a living hell’

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Sunday called the recovery from a November attack outside of his Kentucky home “a living hell.” 

“It was sort of a living hell for the first four or five weeks,” Paul told CBS News’s “Face the Nation.” 

“Couldn’t get out of bed without assistance. Six broken ribs, damage to my lungs, two bouts of pneumonia,” he continued. 

{mosads}“It was really a tough go of it, but each day I feel a little bit better,” he said. “This last month I’ve been doing better.” 

Paul’s neighbor of 17 years, Rene Boucher, pleaded not guilty to assaulting the senator.

The senator was away from the Capitol for weeks.

Paul on Sunday also discussed the increased concern for lawmakers’ safety and security, citing the attack on the GOP congressional baseball team last June.

“My colleagues come up all the time, and they want to make sure that there is some kind of deterrent because people don’t want to think that it’s open season on our elected officials,” Paul said.

“So yeah, I’ve been involved in violent attacks twice in the last year. And so, we’re very aware of it,” he continued.

Paul was present at last summer’s attack at a practice field outside of Washington, D.C., but was not among those injured.

–This report was updated at 12:41 a.m.