Mediaboss Marketing

Today were publishing my Make or Break piece on Rand Paul, a story that identifies a key characteristic his libertarianish philosophy that can distinguish him from the pack of GOP candidates but potentially put a ceiling on his support. I hope this story gives you a better idea of where RP is coming from (literally I went to Lake Jackson, Tex., where he grew up).

This was not the easiest story Ive ever done, in part because the senator didnt talk to me, but I did speak with his mother, older brother, younger sister, high school math teacher, childhood friend, medical residency friend, a Texas political operative who worked for his dad, several of his closest friends in Kentucky, and several close advisers. I want to thank all of them for being generous with their time and sharing their thoughts with the readers of The Washington Post. Special thanks to Mark Monical for giving me a terrific tour of Lake Jackson.

[Journalism digression: Yeah, I probably could have written a story about four times longer than this one, given all my reporting. But this is pretty long as it is, and they dont pay us to dump everything from my notebook into the text. Sometimes not always, but sometimes a reporter should be a filter. The goal is to say, this is the essence of the issue. This is what matters most. A shorter story is value-added in a time-stressed media universe. Minimalism will cost you extra.]

I was with Sen. Paul this week at his announcement in Louisville and then at the first official campaign stop, in Milford, N.H. the latter a classic New England town that is postcard-perfect for anyone campaigning for the presidency. [In fact, now that I think about it, I wrote that exact story many years ago lets paste some of it in, down below, at the *.]

This is a person steeped in a philosophy, but a man determined to expand the reach of the Republican Party and create a new kind of coalition. The Rand Paul camp believes that the Republican Party cant win by doubling-down on whatever its been doing the past several decades. The votes arent there.

Can Rand win? Its a longshot, according to the pundits and political prognosticators, including Nate Cohn in todaysNew York Times. But I agree with those who say that its not all about the W. Rand Paul has other metrics for success and is potentially playing a long game here. Hes only 52. Lets not get too far ahead of ourselves (its only April 2015!), but one could imagine that a more mainstream Republican nominee might consider him as a running mate. Even a prominent speaking role at the next Republican convention would propel Rand Paul to a level his father didnt enjoy.

Heres the top of the story:

By Joel Achenbach

Here we go again with presidential politics in the Live Free or Die state, with a man named Dr. Paul making his pitch in this historic town hall across from a vintage gazebo. Theres hardly a place in America more receptive to Dr. Pauls libertarian message, which drew big crowds in the 2008 and 2012 campaigns. But this time its a different Dr. Paul not 79-year-old libertarian hero Ron but his crafty, ambitious son Rand.

Do we have any lovers of liberty in here? the 52-year-old freshman senator from Kentucky asked Wednesday as he took the stage, and the Stand with Rand supporters standing all around him cheered affirmatively.

More:
Achenbach: How to write a political profile of Rand Paul when Rand Paul wont talk to you

CHARLESTON, South Carolina -- Kentucky senator and newly minted presidential candidate Rand Paul is in Iowa City, Iowa Friday for the second to last official event of his weeklong campaign launch: a rally at the University of Iowa, where young voters are expected to gather to embrace his signature call for smaller, less intrusive government.

Paul has been criss-crossing the country since he formally announced his bid for the White House Tuesday, to win votes and raise money. This trip -- accompanied by an aggressive online push and a slew of interviews with major media outlets along the way -- allowed him to introduce himself to those voters who will vote first - and who could make or break his campaign.

Play Video

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul announces he will run for president in 2016.

Here's a look at the venues chosen to kick off Paul's campaign and what they convey about his candidacy:

Paul first formalized his bid for the White House in a hotel ballroom in his home state where, less than five years ago, he was elected into office for the first time. Dr. Dewey Clayton, a political science professor at the University of Louisville who has witnessed the freshman senator's meteoric rise, said he was initially surprised that Paul chose Louisville instead of his adopted hometown of Bowling Green. It was Bowling Green where Paul established his ophthalmology practice and became involved with local politics and his local church, which Paul was careful to mention in his remarks Tuesday. Bowling Green is also more conservative. But Louisville, with a population of more than 700,000, is the biggest city in the state.

Clayton said he expects the state to embrace Paul, whose anti-Obama rhetoric plays well in Kentucky.

"To be honest, it's somewhat exciting for the state of Kentucky," he said. The state is the birthplace of one U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln. Clayton mused, "I cannot remember the last Kentuckian who was running for President of the United States." (The name he was looking for - the last true Kentuckian to run for president - was then-Vice President Alben Barkley, in 1952.)

Paul began his speech by repeating his own words from the night he won Kentucky's Republican senate primary back in 2010 -- "[W]e've come to take our country back!" -- and he found his words were as well-received the second time around.

Few Republican politicians pass up the chance to invoke the state motto of New Hampshire: "Live Free or Die." Paul, who prides himself on defending the Bill of Rights, was quick to incorporate it into his speech Wednesday when he addressed an overflowing town hall of Granite State voters.

See more here:
What do Rand Paul's venues say about his campaign launch?

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) announces his campaign for president. (AP)

In March of 2013, Rand Paul occupied the Senate floor for a 13-hour filibuster, promising to speak until I can no longer speak in the cause that no American should be killed by a drone on American soil without first being charged with a crime. Enthused Ted Cruz: Youre standing here today like a modern Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Marco Rubio also rose in support, with a speech that will be long remembered for its quotes from rappers Wiz Khalifa and Jay-Z.

This was probably the high point of hip-hop-based Senate discourse (though who knows what the future might bring). It was certainly the center-stage moment for libertarian foreign policy appealing to a concern for civil liberties, an exhaustion with the global war on terrorism and a suspicion among elements of the right that President Obama is capable of anything, including missile strikes against citizens at cafes.

But the greatest enemy of ideology is history, which tends to pick apart political abstractions bit by bit. Military aggression by Russia, a regional power grab by Iran and the rise of the Islamic State as the most dangerous terror state in modern times have all highlighted the risks of American passivity. The main GOP charge against Obama is weakness, not executive overreach. And the three musketeers from that day in 2013 have had a nasty breakup. I dont agree with Paul on foreign policy, says Cruz, who like Paul, has announced his run for the Republican presidential nomination. Rubio, should he run for the presidency, would be the fields foremost exponent of muscular internationalism.

Paul himself has beat a tactical retreat from the front lines of libertarian foreign policy. Having previously proposed slashing defense spending, he now awkwardly embraces increases. Having tracked closely with Obamas position on Iran, the Kentucky Republican now prefers negotiation from a position of strength.

This movement from paranoia to platitudes highlights the tension at the heart of the Paul 2016 campaign. He must send signals of sympathy to the extensive libertarian field organization assembled by his father. He must also show indications of evolution to mainstream Republicans in order to be imaginable as commander in chief. Every word Paul says on foreign policy must pass this balancing test. The result is a tap dance on a tightrope.

Paul is either abandoning his deepest beliefs on foreign policy or playing a libertarian long game. The latter is much more likely.

Paul often uses policy and proposals not to reveal his deepest beliefs but to advance a set of unstated beliefs. His drone filibuster was not really about the lunchtime vulnerability of Americans to Hellfire missiles. Paul was using the issue strategically, to advance his opposition to the global war on terrorism. His proposed restrictions on the war against the Islamic State involving yearly congressional reauthorization of the use of force is couched as constitutionalism. But his plan would make it practically impossible for a chief executive to conduct a war. Which, we can fairly assume, is the larger goal.

Paul opposes aid to Syrian rebels because, he says, arms might fall into the wrong hands and be used against Syrian Christians. But what, then, is his plan to save Christians and fight jihadists? That really isnt the point. The objective of his argument is to reinforce a policy of nonintervention.

Or take Pauls Stand with Israel Act, which would end all foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority. But Pauls broader, libertarian agenda is the gradual elimination of all foreign aid, period, including to Israel. All nations should be free of foreign aid, he recently said.

Original post:
Rand Pauls grand deception

Rand Paul Announces 2016 Run for President, Campaigns With Branded Beats Headphones
Rand Paul is running for president. Credit: D Dipasupil/FilmMagic President Paul? Republican Senator Rand Paul announced on Tuesday, April 7, that he is kicking off a campaign to run in 2016 #39;s...

By: Fast Furious

View original post here:
Rand Paul Announces 2016 Run for President, Campaigns With Branded Beats Headphones - Video

Richard Socarides on Rand Paul, CNN New Day 04-07-2015

By: Richard Socarides

Go here to see the original:
Richard Socarides on Rand Paul, CNN New Day 04-07-2015 - Video