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Just before 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) aself-styled racial and political history resourceall his own, shared this tidbit.

Trying to read the mind of an elected official or the meaning of any 2016 candidate's social media feed can be a risky business. But we'll make an attempt.

First, let's set the stage. Paul was in Denver to address a crowd gathered at Chopper's Sports Bar. Per coverage of the speech, Paul seemed to share his ideas on the state of the republic and the Republican Party and why Republicans must be less inclined to move toward what he called "the mushy middle." Then came the thoughts in that tweet.

We could certainly quibble with the idea that "minority" status is always defined by one's appearance -- or at Paul put it, the color of one's skin. But that would distractattention from thereally interesting part of the tweet:Paul appears to have joined agrowing legion of conservative minds focused on the idea that "minority" status is a particularly potent and influential one -- and according, a desirable one -- in American society.

Certainly, political scientists and philosophers have made a study for decades of so-called identity politics. That's banning together of ethnic or ideological minorities in a democratic society to advance a core set of policy ideas or political priorities and maximize their potential influence. It's a political practice that, as Paul seemed to hint at his Denver gathering, sometimes requires those inside said group to put aside some of their differences and maximize their impact. And maybe, that's reallywhat Paul was going for.

After all, there are plenty of reasons that an increasingly conservative Republican Party might wantto embrace smaller-group politics. The much-chronicled changing demographics of the electorate are not moving in a direction that will make Republican expansion easy. So a thought exercise or even a rallying cry for the shrinking but still significant portion of the electorate that votes Republican (or mightbe inclined to do so) makes some sense.

[The GOP's major 2016 problem - in 3 maps]

But quite often, the conservative fixation on "minority" politics and power is also tied up with a sense that said minority groups exert undue influence over American politics or issues in public life. The notion that said groups somehow unfairly or unreasonably make use of their group status and identity to hamstring and control "the majority" is fairly widespread. It gains support or a least an audience each time something major (think the Supreme Court's gay marriage decision) or ultimately minor or symbolic (think the push to remove the Confederate flag from public spaces) happens to change the cultural landscape.

That's the set of ideas that kept the Confederate flag in a cultural space where it could be sold on t-shirts and cell-phone covers and largely unmolested on the South Carolina statehouse grounds until this month. That's the sentiment that Donald Trump just tried to foment as the consequences of his statements about immigration, Mexicans and their alleged criminality began to mushroom. That was the idea behind the numerous articles about the allegedly endangered white male, that CNN piece questioning whether white Americans had become an imperiled and oppressed minority and that Deadline Hollywood story arguing that the drive to diversify film and television casting having "gone too far."

Ok, let's face it, that list is long. Very, very long. And much of what those reactions seek to excuse or defend is pretty, in the minds of many Americans (and especially racial minorities), reprehensible.

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Rand Paul says you can be a minority because of your ...

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD - MARCH 07: Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord International Hotel and Conference Center March 7, 2014 in National Harbor, Maryland. The CPAC annual meeting brings together conservative politicians, pundits and their supporters for speeches, panels and classes. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD - MARCH 07: Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) takes the stage before addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord International Hotel and Conference Center March 7, 2014 in National Harbor, Maryland. The CPAC annual meeting brings together conservative politicians, pundits and their supporters for speeches, panels and classes. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) (C), former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (L) and and Matt Kibbe, president of FreedomWorks, departs a press conference in front of U.S. District Court to announce the filing of a class action lawsuit against the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander and FBI Director James Comey. Paul said he filed the lawsuit to stop NSA surveillance of U.S. phone records because Obama has publicly refused to stop a clear and continuing violation of the 4th amendment. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) (C) holds up a group of cell phones in front of U.S. District Court to announce the filing of a class action lawsuit against the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander and FBI Director James Comey. Paul said he filed the lawsuit to stop NSA surveillance of U.S. phone records because Obama has publicly refused to stop a clear and continuing violation of the 4th amendment. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) arrives in front of U.S. District Court to announce the filing of a class action lawsuit against the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander and FBI Director James Comey. Paul said he filed the lawsuit to stop NSA surveillance of U.S. phone records because Obama has publicly refused to stop a clear and continuing violation of the 4th amendment. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2013 file photo, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. This is a year of auditioning, positioning, networking and just plain hard work for people who are considering running for president in 2016. You could see them stirring in 2013 as they plugged holes in resumes, took preliminary steps to build potential campaign organizations and made carefully calibrated moves to get better known by Americans generally and key constituencies in particular. Most _ but not all _ are ticking off items on what could be called the presidential prep checklist. And theyve got baggage to deal with. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., talks to media outside the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014, after an event hosted by President Barack Obama about the Promise Zones Initiative. The Promise Zone Initiative is part of a plan to create a better bargain for the middle-class by partnering with local communities and businesses to create jobs, increase economic security, expand educational opportunities, increase access to quality, affordable housing and improve public safety. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 07: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) (2nd L) talks to reporters while walking to the Senate chamber to vote on unemployment insurance at the US Capitol January 7, 2014 in Washington, DC. The U.S. Senate voted 60-37 to move forward with a bill to extend federal unemployment benefits for three months. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 17: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) (3rd R) talks to reporters after a vote December 17, 2013 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The Senate has passed a cloture vote to clear the way for a final vote of the Ryan-Murray Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul speaks at the Detroit Economic Club held at the Motor City Casino, in Detroit, Dec. 6, 2013. Paul, spoke of economic freedom zones. (AP Photo/The Detroit News, Max Ortiz)

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Rand Paul: Take Down South Carolina's 'Symbol Of Human ...

Hoping that switching the conversation from his unconventional foreign policy to domestic affairs will revive his flagging presidential ambitions, SenatorRand Paul (R-KY) has taken to the Wall Street Journal Op-Ed page to introduce his plan to reform the United States federal tax system.

I am announcing an over $2 trillion tax cut that would repeal the entire IRS tax codemore than 70,000 pagesand replace it with a low, broad-based tax of 14.5% on individuals and businesses. I would eliminate nearly every special-interest loophole. The plan also eliminates the payroll tax on workers and several federal taxes outright, including gift and estate taxes, telephone taxes, and all duties and tariffs. I call this The Fair and Flat Tax.

While calling for a flat tax, Paul writes that he would retain the mortgage and charitable contribution deductionsnote that a pure flat tax tends to go by the wayside when a politician is confronted with the popularity of the mortgage and charitable deductionsand would levy no tax on the first $50,000 of income for a family of four. Low-income working families would additionally be permitted to retain the earned-income tax credit.

As I have noted on many occasions, I do not have an immediate, allergic response to the concept of a flat tax.

It is, after all, an enticing notion to imagine wiping out 70,000 plus pages of incomprehensible tax rules and regulations. This is particularly true when acknowledging that most of these pages are filled with tax breaks that benefit the wealthy special interests and others who can mold the tax code to their advantage through generous contributions to elected officials in Congress.

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. speaks during the Road to Majority 2015 convention at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, Thursday, June 18, 2015. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

And who, with the exception of H&R Block, would not prefer simply dropping a postcard in the mail on April 15thavoiding much of the stress, strain and agony that tax day represents to so many Americans?

Still, there are lingering concerns that this approach will benefit the wealthy by making less of their incomesactive and passiveand estates fair game for the taxman while shifting the tax burden onto the shoulders of the middle class.

The reality is that our current progressive tax system in its purest formone unfettered by reams of special interest breaks and exemptionsis, in part, a system of wealth distribution. And while, for many, the words wealth distribution constitute the most offensive phrase in the English language, the concept may be far more important to our economy than those who harbor such feelings maycare to recognize.

By taxing the wealthy at a higher rate, thereby leaving extra money in the pockets of those who earn less, we fund government while creating the opportunity for the middle-class to spend more money in our consumer-driven economy without denying the wealthy the opportunity to do the same.

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Rand Paul Struggles To Keep Candidacy Alive By Introducing ...

If theres one thing most political media can agree upon its that Senator Rand Paul is as authentic as it comes. Hes a man of principle who doesnt bend with the wind just because its politically expedient to do so. Indeed, hes bravely running for the nomination for president in the Republican Party despite his courageous willingness to confront both the establishment and the base on the hard issues.

Well, it is true that he has waffled somewhat on foreign policy, which is supposedly one of the libertarian bedrock principles, but hey, hes running for president and he needs to assure Republican voters that he will defend America from the bad people. Surely, hell return to his isolationist principles just as soon as he is elected. Hes alsodone a little plagiarizing.

And now, a book he wrote called The Tea Party Goes to Washingtonhas come under renewed scrutiny,owing to the fact that it includes one fake quote from Thomas Jefferson after another. This is socommon on the right, however, that people hardly even mention it anymore. Aside from sending outchain emails every yearwith a bunch of bogus quotes that make the founders sound like they were early members of the John Birch Society, they haveanointed a known hoaxter by the name of David Barton as their official Founders historian.

In a rare moment of right wing integrity, Bartons publisher withdrew his book once it was discovered that hed just made stuff up. No word on whether Pauls publisher will feel compelled to do the same. But then, they werent bothered when it was revealed that Pauls Tea Party book was co-written bya close associate by the name of Jack Hunter, also known as The Southern Avenger, so why would this little problem cause them to have second thoughts about distributing the book now?

Youll remember that the Southern Avenger was a right-wing shock jock and member of the League of the South, a racist group which is known for such statements by its leading members as,somebody needs to say a good word for slavery where in the world are the Negroes better off today than in America?(Tea party hero and Sovereign Citizen Cliven Bundy had similar thoughtsabout whether African Americans were better off as slaves picking cotton.) Hunter himself left quitea trail of racist sentimentbehind including musing that he thought Abraham Lincoln was one of the worst figures in American history.

Yes,like his father before him, Rand Paulhas consorted with a number of neo-Confederate white supremacists(is there any other kind). For instance, aside from his Southern Avenger buddy,back in 2010his spokesman had to resign when it was discovered that his MySpace page was riddled with racist rantings from friends and acquaintances which hed not bothered to remove.

Paul has disassociated himself from these racists once its been revealed (althoughhe has agreed to appear at events featuring them). After all, hes a man of principle and we all know that he wants nothing more than to reach out to the African American community and try to persuade them that the libertarian philosophy is one which will benefit them the most. Its a little bit embarrassing to have white supremacists in the inner circle. It might even remind people of what Jonathan Chaitpointed outat the time Hunter was unmasked as the Southern Avenger:

Now, obviously, you can like Ron and Rand Paul without being the slightest bit racist. Very, very few Rand Paul fans are glad Abraham Lincoln was shot. At the same time, the logic of southern white supremacy and the logic of libertarianism run along very similar lines. They both express themselves in terms of opposition to federal power and support for states rights.

Segregation was in large part a policy of government, not the free market. But it took intrusive federal power to destroy segregation. Barry Goldwater expressed his opposition to the 1964 Civil Rights Act in classically race-neutral, anti-big-government terms. The deep connection between the Pauls and the neo-Confederate movement doesnt discredit their ideas, but its also not just an indiscretion. Its a reflection of the fact that white supremacy is a much more important historical constituency for anti-government ideas than libertarians like to admit.

So, perhaps itsnotjust low taxes and regulations that lure libertarians into joining the Republican Party even though its full of theocrats, authoritarians and militaristic imperialists. Oras Rand Paul famously put itwhen he accidentally behaved like the truth-telling iconoclast everyone pretends he is:

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What Rand Paul's libertarian hypocrisy reveals about the ...

GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul proposes to replace the current tax code with a 14.5 percent flat tax. | Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) wants to "blow up the tax code," and he's proposing a new, far-reaching flat tax to do it. The only problem is that his plan could blow up the size of the deficit, too.

The libertarian-leaning senator from Kentucky argued in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Thursday that legislators should scrap the current tax code, which he described as overly complicated with far too many handouts for corporate interests, in favor of a "fair and flat" system that would tax all income levels at 14.5 percent.

It's an idea that former White House wannabe Steve Forbes tried to popularize in the 1990s, although the Forbes Media chief called for a slightly higher tax rate of 17 percent. Current GOP presidential candidates like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee have endorsed similar proposals, but Paul is the first in the 2016 race to offer specifics.

Paul's plan would reduce corporate and individual tax rates while eliminating gift and estate taxes, telephone taxes, duties and tariffs, and, perhaps most significantly, payroll taxes. He would eliminate most personal deductions, sparing only those for home mortgages and charitable giving, which are supported by both liberals and conservatives.

For a family of four, the first $50,000 of income would be tax-free. The plan would also maintain the earned-income tax credit for needy families.

Paul described his proposal as a massive tax cut that would reduce revenue to the U.S. Treasury by $2 trillion over 10 years. Citing an analysis by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, he claimed the plan would increase gross domestic product by approximately 10 percent and create "at least 1.4 million new jobs."

That sounds great on paper, and it will surely sound even better to skeptical Republican voters whom Paul needs to woo in early primary states.

But how much would it actually cost in lost revenue? The Tax Foundation said $2.97 trillion over 10 years, using a static basis, or $960 billion, based on "dynamic scoring" that accounts for economic growth. But another analysis by Citizens for Tax Justice, a nonprofit research and advocacy group, argues that it would cost as much as $15 trillion over a decade.

And how would Paul keep that much lost revenue from blowing "a massive hole in the budget deficit"? Unspecified spending cuts that would magically balance the budget.

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Rand Paul's Plan To 'Blow Up' The Tax Code Could Leave A ...