Senator Rand Paul, Ron Paul's son: White House bid in 2016 possible

Washington (CNN) -- A candid Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky says he's interested in running for president in 2016.

"I am different than some in that I'm not going to deny that I'm interested," said the Republican first term senator in an interview released Tuesday by ABC News.

Paul is the son of retiring Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who was the 1988 libertarian candidate for president, and who made bids in 2008 and 2012 for the GOP presidential nomination under the mantle of libertarian conservatism.

Asked by ABC's Jonathan Karl if there's going to be another Paul for President campaign in 2016, the senator said "you know, I want to be part of the national debate. I think it's a little too soon to talk about who's going to run and who's not going to run, and to tell you the truth, I don't know what's going to come. Am I interested in thinking about that? Yes."

"Am I ready to make the decision now? No," added Paul, who was elected to the Senate in 2010 with strong support from tea party activists.

CNN Political Editor Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
 
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