It’s become fashionable of late for political observers to declare that Sen. Rand Paul actually has a chance to win the GOP nomination (something I’ve thought for years.)
It’s unclear why this has all of a sudden dawned on everyone. But it is true that, compared to his father, the younger Paul is frequently impressive.
Consider just the last few weeks: His tea party response to the State of the Union was terrific — and he had a solid performance on Fox News Sunday this past week. Even Jennifer Rubin admits he is “formidable.”
But what is not widely appreciated is the incredibly difficult challenge Rand Paul will face if he chooses to seek the nomination. And that’s what my latest column at The Week is about.
As I note, Rand Paul “will attempt to position himself as a younger, saner, more broadly appealing Ron Paul.”
This may seem easy. “But if you look below the surface, you’ll see signs that it may be hard for Rand to have his cake and eat it, too.”
The bottom line is that it’s hard to keep everyone happy, but this is a challenge that particularly confronts Paul.