Interviewed Tuesday about the criticism, Paul lashed out at his critics and said they were distorting his record, which includes not only opposition to disaster-specific aid bills, but opposition to most every government spending bill that the Senate has taken up since 2011, when he was sworn in.

“We’re concerned with burying our dead and mourning those who have died right now,” he said. “I think it’s sad that people on the left who have an agenda in the midst of people dying can’t come together to try to help people in their time of need but instead want to score cheap political points, most of which is untrue.”

Paul, who has donated $100,000 from his campaign to the relief effort, said he has routinely requested emergency aid for his state when warranted and that he has “never been opposed to the program, ever.” What he has been opposed to, he said, is refilling disaster aid accounts with borrowed money rather than offsetting the disaster aid with spending cuts elsewhere in the federal budget.

“That’s different than saying, ‘Oh, he now wants it because it’s in his state and he never wanted it [before],’ ” he said. “I’ve never opposed anybody’s disaster relief in any other state. I’ve just asked that it be paid for.”