Rand Paul on Monday, in his first extensive comments since Ted Cruz officially announced his presidential candidacy, made the case that he’s the electable Republican candidate.
The Kentucky senator, hours after his Senate colleague jumped into the presidential race, suggested his more inclusive vision for the Republican Party makes him a more appealing general-election candidate.
“Ted Cruz is a conservative. But it also goes to winnability,” Paul said on Fox News’ “The Kelly File.”
The senator said that he didn’t watch much of Cruz’s Monday morning announcement and declined to take any major jabs at his likely rival. But he did suggest on several occasions that the party needs to do more than throw out “red meat” to its supporters and rally the conservative base — an apparent attempt to differentiate himself from Cruz, a darling of the conservative wing but a polarizing national figure.
“We kind of come from the same wing of the party. And if you look at our voting records, you’ll find we’re very, very similar,” Paul said. “I guess what makes us different is probably our approach as to how we would make the party bigger. And I’m a big believer that you should stand on principle and be true to your principles, but I also think that we should take those principles and try to bring in new people with them.”
