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With his victory (or, ahem, RANDSLIDE) in the Kentucky Republican primary for U.S. Senate, Rand Paul (son of Texas Congressman and 2-time Presidential candidate Ron Paul) is on a fast track to Washington.
“We’ve come to take our government back,” said Paul, who courted the nation’s anti-tax Tea Party movement, after defeating party-backed Secretary of State Trey Grayson in Tuesday’s primary. “We’re unhappy and we want things done differently.”
It seems highly likely that, as the Republican nominee, Rand will win an easy victory in November.
I strongly suspect that the “Draft Ron Paul” folks will switch their efforts into trying to win over Senator Rand Paul as a candidate for the White House in 2012 or 2016.
After all, the elder Paul will be in his late-70’s by 2012 and carries decades of political baggage with him.
I also suspect that Rand Paul knows he needs more than 2 years in the Senate under his belt before he can make a credible bid for the nation’s top job, so he won’t try anything in 2012… but may take a serious look at 2016 or 2020. Depending on how things shake out nationally and in Kentucky.
Because of all this, I think that Rand Paul’s victory in Kentucky will actually cause his dad, Ron Paul, to take a pass on any future Presidential bids so as to avoid creating “Paul fatigue” among the electorate.
The liberty activists who’ve supported both men should be prepared to back another horse in 2012.
Perhaps Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson?
We need to start rallying for Johnson now, getting his name out and spreading awareness. Johnson’s slightly better than Ron Paul on many points, and he comes packaged with executive experience. But he also runs the risk of being marginalized and he might not even make it as far as Ron did in his 2008 run.
We have to know his intentions soon, but we’ve got to start sooner if we want him to even have a shot at the White House.