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MOSCOW Sen. Rand Paul, one of President Trumps more eager defenders on Russia, jetted into Moscow on Monday in a bid to increase engagement with the country.

Paul (R-Ky.) met with several Russian senators, including Sergey Kislyak, Russias former envoy to Washington and a key player at the heart of the election interference scandal that continues to rock relations between the United States and Russia.

In a meeting at Russias upper house of parliament, Paul also invited Russian lawmakers to meet with U.S. Congress members, in Washington or elsewhere, the Interfax news agency reported him as saying.I think this is incredibly important, Paul said after the high-profile sit-down.

That meeting could take place as soon as this fall, saidKonstantin Kosachev, head of the foreign relations committee in the upper house.

Mondays whirlwind visit to Moscow, however, was not official diplomacy.Sen. Rand Paul is visiting Russia as part of a private group, said a spokesman from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

The senator, who was once a foe of the president, has emerged as a unique and somewhat renegade voice, coming as both Republicans and Democrats criticize the president for not taking a tougher stance against Russia. The relationship between the two countries has sunk to lows not seen since the Cold War as they spar over a range of issues from election interference to the crises in Syria and Ukraine.

Paul was accompanied by Don Huffines, a Republican member of the Texas state Senate; and Peter Goettler, president and chief executive of the libertarian Cato Institute. The group also planned to visit St. Petersburg, Russias second-largest city and President Vladimir Putins hometown, Russian state-run media reported.

[Onetime political foe Rand Paul, Trumps fiercest defender on Russia]

His visit comes just weeks after a delegation of Republican lawmakers visited Moscow for meetings with the Russian parliament, as well as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the first time the two sides had had direct contact in years. That largely conciliatory meeting, held over the July4 holiday, was met with bipartisan scorn at home.

Paul is a backer of Trumps controversial interactions with Putin, heralding the two leaders Helsinki summit last month as exactly the sort of action Washington should be taking to mend ties between the two.

The summit drew sharp criticism at home after Trump suggested he was inclined to believe Putins version of events regarding the 2016 U.S. presidential election that is, Russias denial of interference over the conclusions of the U.S. intelligence community.

Paul has questioned the extent of Russian interference. Kosachev, meanwhile, echoed the Kremlins claims that it had no role in election interference in 2016.

And it will certainly not happen during the ongoing election campaign, either, Kosachev told reporters after meeting with Paul, referring to the U.S. midterms, Interfax reported.

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Sen. Rand Paul said Monday that he will support Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh after meeting with him last week.

"I believe he will carefully adhere to the Constitution and will take his job to protect individual liberty seriously," Paul said in a statement.

The Kentucky senator was one of the few Republicans considered a possible swing vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also are being closely watched.

But with Paul voicing clear support -- and Collins and Murkowski signaling potential support in recent weeks -- Kavanaugh's prospects appear to be improving as GOP leaders aim to engineer a swift confirmation by the fall.

In another sign of congressional outreach, Kavanaugh is having his first meeting Monday with a Democratic senator since becoming Trump's high court nominee.

He plans to sit down with Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, one of a handful of Democratic senators who could cross the aisle to vote for Kavanaugh as most Democrats line up against him.

Paul, meanwhile, has taken issue with Kavanaugh's record supporting the warrantless collection of telephone metadata.

"I have expressed my concern over Judge Kavanaughs record on warrantless bulk collection of data and how that might apply to very important privacy cases before the Supreme Court," he said Monday.

But he said his vote is not a "single-issue" decision and voiced confidence in Kavanaugh's record on other issues.

"My conversation with Judge Kavanaugh reinforces my belief that he will evaluate cases before the Supreme Court from a textual and originalist point of view," Paul said.

On issues such as property rights and reining in the administrative state, Judge Kavanaugh has a strong record and showed a deep commitment during our meeting. ... Finally, his strong defenses of the First and Second Amendments in landmark cases show someone who isnt afraid to challenge the status quo and will fight with backbone. Judge Kavanaugh will have my support and my vote to confirm him to the Supreme Court.

Republicans, with a 51-49 majority, have little wiggle room on the Kavanaugh vote. And with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., out battling brain cancer, GOP leaders cannot spare a single vote unless they attract Democratic support.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Rand Paul will head a U.S. delegation Monday to meet with Russian members of parliament, a spokesman for the Kentucky Republican confirmed on Thursday.

Senator Rand Paul is a proponent of diplomacy and is supporting President Donald J. Trump in engaging around the world. He looks forward to his meetings, his press secretary Sergio Gor told The Washington Times.

Reuters initially reported the visit Thursday morning.

Russian agencies said Konstantin Kosachov, who heads the parliaments foreign affairs committee, announced the meeting.

Mr. Paul has not yet confirmed Reuters report.

In July, the Kentucky senator penned an op-ed for Politico saying he planned on venturing to Russia.

In just a few weeks, I will take my own trip to Russia in an attempt to discuss common ground with their leaders and help prevent further, unnecessary escalation of tensions, Mr. Paul wrote. We will discuss trade, cultural exchanges and how to better work for peace and prosperity in the world. I look forward to consulting with Trump between his visit and mine and to working with diplomats from both countries to have a successful trip and better relationships.

Mr. Paul was one of President Trumps staunchest supporters following the Helsinki summit. In the face of harsh bipartisan backlash, Mr. Paul repeatedly called for the president to be praised for meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The trip will be the second time a group of Republican members of Congress meet with their Russian counterparts. Several GOP lawmakers journeyed to Moscow in July, just a few days prior to Mr. Trumps summit with Mr. Putin.

The first visit addressed several topics, including Russian interference in the 2016 elections. Mr. Putin strongly denied the American intelligence communitys findings at the Helsinki summit, but top defense and intelligence officials all agree the Russian threat is ongoing.

No details have been released yet as to what will be discussed at the upcoming meeting.

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Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) announced on Monday he will support the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, President Donald Trumps nominee to the Supreme Court.

The Kentucky Republican had previously expressed concerns about Kavanaughs stance on the Constitutions Fourth Amendment, which bans unreasonable searches and seizures by government officials.In 2015, for example, Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion to a District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruling affirming the constitutionality of the National Security Agencys warrantless phone records collection program,which allowed the government to track Americans metadata.

I disagree completely, Paul said of Kavanaughs ruling earlier this month.

But after meeting with Kavanaugh last week in his office for over an hour, and after reviewing his caseload, Paul said he hoped the conservative judge will be more open to a Fourth Amendment that protects digital records and property.

Of course, my vote is not a single-issue vote, and much of my reading and conversation has been in trying to figure out exactly how good Judge Kavanaugh will be on other issues before the Court, Paul said in a statement released by his office on Monday. My conversation with Judge Kavanaugh reinforces my belief that he will evaluate cases before the Supreme Court from a textual and originalist point of view.

He added: I believe he will carefully adhere to the Constitution and will take his job to protect individual liberty seriously.

Paul, a libertarian-leaning critic of U.S. interventions abroad, also said he found Kavanaughs views on war powers and separation of powers encouraging.

Paul has garnered a bit of a reputation in the Senate for his loud but ultimately brief stands against Trump nominees.Earlier this year, for example,he pledged to block Trumps pick of Mike Pompeo to lead the State Department over the nominees support on the Iraq War. But Paul ended up voting for Pompeo after receiving assurances from Trump that the former CIA director now believes the war was a mistake.

With Pauls vote now safely in the yes column, the chances of Kavanaughs confirmation are looking like more of a safe bet.Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) still remain undecided on his nomination, but they have both signaled comfort with the judge. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), meanwhile, is meeting with Kavanaugh on Monday,and he too is expected to back the judges nomination.

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There is a time for military action, such as after 9/11, he wrote. There is a time for diplomacy and the strategic use of soft power, such as now with Russia.

That stand neatly encompasses where right meets left: A year ago, Mr. Paul and Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont, were the only opponents of a bill imposing further sanctions on Russia and Iran. This spring, Mr. Paul threatened to do whatever it takes to block the confirmation of Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, saying that Mr. Pompeos support for military intervention in Iraq, Iran, Syria and Afghanistan did not square with Mr. Trumps own views. Mr. Paul next delayed, then voted against, the nomination of Gina Haspel to replace Mr. Pompeo as C.I.A. director, saying, Im still concerned about her role in extreme rendition and torture.

Mr. Paul now says he is questioning Mr. Trumps nomination of Brett M. Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, over Judge Kavanaughs stances on privacy and government surveillance.

But as with his threats to vote against the Affordable Care Act repeal that did not go far enough; against the presidents tax cuts, which did not cut deep enough; and against Mr. Pompeo, few believe Mr. Paul will make good on his threat against Judge Kavanaugh if his vote matters.

It has, in fact, been a rough patch for Mr. Paul. Last fall, Mr. Paul had gotten off his riding mower at his home in Bowling Green, Ky., to move some branches when he was tackled from behind by Rene A. Boucher, his next-door neighbor. Mr. Boucher, who took a running start down a steep slope in Mr. Pauls front yard, landed on him with such force that he broke several ribs and bruised the senators lungs.

Mr. Bouchers lawyers said the fight was the climax of a long-simmering dispute over Mr. Pauls stacking brush too near his property. Mr. Boucher was sentenced last month to a 30-day jail term, and Mr. Paul is suing him for damages.

The velocity of the hit was just more than pushing somebody down in their yard, said Mr. Pauls mother, Carol Paul. He had no idea he was coming until he landed on him.

She is struggling not to see the blindsiding as a metaphor for the nations politics.

This is not the America I grew up in, she said. Everyone loved our country, loved our president and didnt say horrible things and make up stories, she said. Rand is so intelligent and has so many good ideas. Hes not the kind that wont listen, but hes not going to go along to get along.

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