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Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) made one of the boldest and most memorable statementson the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson, Mo., going a place members of his party wouldn'ttouch with a 10-foot pole.

Now, he's literally goneto the place -- as in, Ferguson -- where he's meeting with the NAACP, the Urban League and other church and business leaders about criminal justice.

A cynic would say that Paul, a likely 2016 presidential contender, is simply trying to expand his appeal.

That cynic wouldn't be entirely wrong.

I am a politician, and I do recognize that [Republicans]havent done very well with people who live in cities -- primarily African Americans -- and I do think we need to do better, he said in a phone interview from Ferguson. The thing I found is that you might interview 20 people, and you find that they are not ready to vote for a Republican yet, but they are interested in Republicans competing for their vote and showing up in their communities.

Paul has been on something of an urban America tour, meeting with leaders all over the country. He is the closest thing the GOP has to a race man, unafraid to put himself in the shoes of African Americans and to talk about disparities.

But at the same time, this is a relatively new effort for him. And for a guy who in his first campaign struggledwithquestions about the Civil Rights Act, thediscovery does coincide with his increasing national political ambitions.

"I think Ive discovered more of urban America from being elected than not being elected. I grew up in a small rural town, so from a firsthand experience, I wasn't as aware," he said. "But as a senator ... Ive tried to learn about problems that I frankly didnt know as much about. And as I met with community leaders, Ive discovered that there were things like many people didnt have the right to vote, and I wasnt aware of that. And since that time, Ive become more active in those issues."

But the education of Rand Paul is also about national politics, and it's likely hewill have an even bigger platform to speak to and about urban America come 2015 and early 2016. This couldpose challenges for his party and for Democrats, who seem to be focused on a different part of the Obama coalition.

Paul didn't want to speak about the specifics of the case in Ferguson, where a grand jury is still deciding whether to charge Darren Wilson, the officerwho shot and killed Michael Brown. But it's clear that what happened there will become an inflection point and a symbol long after the unrest is over and the case is decided.

More here:
Rand Paul is in Ferguson. Heres why.