In 2010, political prognosticator Charlie Cook felt that Republicans might win back the Senate, unless they nominated far right candidates who would lose to moderate Democrats.
As his prime example, Cook used Kentucky, where ophthalmologist Rand Paul was the Tea Party choice against the establishment favorite, Secretary of State Trey Grayson. (In Cook’s defense, this was before Christine O’Donnell was forever connected to the phrase “I am not a witch.”)
Nationwide, Cook was right. Candidates like O’Donnell (DE), Ken Buck (CO), and Sharron Angle (NV) cost the Republicans the Senate in 2010. Cook was wrong about Paul. After besting Grayson in the primary, Paul handily won the general election against Democratic dream candidate Jack Conway, a moderate attorney general with movie star looks.
Still, he was oft dismissed as a product of nepotism, a possibly unworthy heir to the libertarian energy nurtured by his father, Texas representative and frequent presidential candidate Ron Paul. After just three years in the Senate, many of the naysayers are touting him as a 2016 Republican presidential candidate. How has Rand expanded the Paul brand? In large part by highlighting issues where he can be perceived as a moderate, albeit in a non-traditional way.
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