LOUISVILLE – Rand Paul, whose candidacy for the Senate has been buoyed by anti-establishment fervor, struggled Tuesday to explain why the man who embodies the Kentucky Republican establishment – Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – still maintains strong approval ratings with GOP voters.

“I think some things are hard to explain,” Paul said when asked by radio host Tom Roten about a poll that found 64 percent of Paul supporters approving of McConnell’s job performance.

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Grayson has sought to make Paul’s distance from McConnell an issue in the final days of the campaign.

“He’s reached out a little bit to Mitch McConnell, but he still continues to refuse to endorse him as Republican leader,” Grayson said Monday. “He’s got to be able to reach out to these people in order to win and bring this party back together.”


Both McConnell and Paul have said that they would work together in a general election, starting with a Saturday “unity” rally at the state party headquarters in Frankfort.

Following a campaign rally in his hometown Monday afternoon, Paul tried to begin that healing process – saying he’d ask for as much support as McConnell would give him in a general election, and he suggested he would support McConnell as leader since he’d likely run unopposed next year. And he praised McConnell’s stands against campaign finance reform legislation.

“Even though we’ve been on opposite sides of the primary, I’ve gone to great lengths form the very beginning to try to find our areas of common ground,” Paul said. “I think it will be easier for us to work together than many will think.”

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