Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) did not endorse JD Vance for a possible 2028 bid on Sunday, saying he is in favor of a GOP representative who believes in international trade, a free market, and low taxes.
Vance has not announced he is running for president in 2028 but is fielding plenty of speculation about a bid after receiving support from President Donald Trump, Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk, and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL). Paul, who has challenged Trump administration stances on several issues in its first year, did not throw his support behind Vance as the GOP heir apparent when asked in an interview on ABC News’s This Week on Sunday.
“Now, all these pro-tariff protectionists, they love taxes, and so they tax, tax, tax, and then they brag about all the revenue coming in. That has never been a conservative position,” Paul said. “So I’m going to continue to try to lead a conservative, free market wing of the party, and we’ll see where things lead over time.”
When ABC’s Jonathan Karl asked Paul, “And that’s not JD Vance?” Paul gave a simple, “No.”
“I think there needs to be representatives in the Republican Party who still believe international trade is good, who still believe in free market capitalism, who still believe in low taxes,” Paul said.
A stickler for libertarian-leaning conservative values, such as low government spending, Paul consistently voted against the continuing resolutions to end the government shutdown in October. He has also drawn the ire of the Trump administration by standing against tariffs and the strikes on suspected drug-carrying vessels in the Caribbean.
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But despite his contrarian stance on several administration moves and being deemed a “nasty liddle guy” by Trump himself, the Kentucky Republican has continued to back the president overall.
“I think he’s one of the best presidents, if not the best president, of my lifetime, but it doesn’t mean I will sit quietly and just say, ‘Oh well, whatever you want to do.’ I was elected to have a voice,” Paul said in October.