For Rand Paul, it's all led to this moment. <\/p>\n
Since riding the tea party wave into the Senate in 2010, Paul has carefully built a brand of mainstream libertarianism -- dogged advocacy of civil liberties combined with an anti-interventionist foreign policy and general support for family values -- that he bets will create a coalition of younger voters and traditional Republicans to usher him into the White House. <\/p>\n
The test of that theory begins Tuesday when the Kentucky senator is expected to make official what has been clear for years: He's running for president. <\/p>\n
The formal announcement will come at a rally in Louisville and he'll immediately hit the campaign trail, swinging through New Hampshire, South Carolina, Iowa and Nevada -- the states that traditionally vote first in the primaries and caucuses. <\/p>\n
In a preview of his likely message, Paul's political operation released a video saying that on Tuesday, \"one leader will stand up to defeat the Washington machine and unleash the American dream.\" <\/p>\n
So far, Paul joins only Texas Sen. Ted Cruz as a declared candidate for the GOP presidential nomination. But the field is certain to grow in the months ahead with Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, Scott Walker, Lindsey Graham and others eyeing a campaign. Marco Rubio, a Florida GOP senator, is expected to launch his campaign next week. <\/p>\n
For now, the nomination is up for grabs with no clear front-runner. Paul came in third place at 12% in a CNN\/ORC International Poll of Republicans. Bush led the pack at 16% while Walker came in second at 13%. <\/p>\n
Ron vs. Rand Paul <\/p>\n
Paul, the son of former Texas congressman and three-time presidential hopeful Ron Paul, will build on his father's legacy as a candidate eager to bring civil liberties to the forefront of the national dialogue. He's already used his perch on Capitol Hill to draw attention to those issues, including a 13-hour filibuster two years ago blasting the Obama administration's drone policies and a lawsuit against the National Security Agency's phone metadata collection effort. <\/p>\n
But Paul, 52, will split from his father in one important way: his approach to the campaign. Where Ron Paul often focused on creating a libertarian movement, Rand Paul is planning a more strategic, less purist operation that could have a hope of competing in a general election. <\/p>\n
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See more here: For Rand Paul, it's all led to this moment. Since riding the tea party wave into the Senate in 2010, Paul has carefully built a brand of mainstream libertarianism -- dogged advocacy of civil liberties combined with an anti-interventionist foreign policy and general support for family values -- that he bets will create a coalition of younger voters and traditional Republicans to usher him into the White House Continue reading
\nRand Paul poised to launch presidential bid<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"