Concerned GOP push Rand Paul to focus on Senate re-election

(AP) — A defiant Rand Paul is brushing off weak fundraising and weaker poll numbers as would-be donors and home state Republicans push him to abandon an uphill presidential bid to focus on his Senate re-election.

While showing some frustration, the first-term Kentucky senator this week claimed his superior political organization would prove wrong those doubting his chances in the White House contest.

[...] he released fundraising numbers that place him squarely in the bottom tier of the GOP's 2016 class over the last three months, a painful symbol of stalled momentum for the libertarian favorite who was considered a major presidential contender earlier in the year.

[...] back in Kentucky, a growing chorus of Republicans suggested that Paul's Senate re-election was by no means guaranteed, despite the state's strong GOP leanings and the lack of a clear Democratic challenger.

While Paul's national numbers hover in the low single digits, he continues to divert resources from his Senate campaign to his presidential bid.

Straw polls and opinion polls, however, are not the same as actual voting, which begins with the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses.

With Paul having a nearly perfect attendance record in the Senate, his team suggests he's been fulfilling his responsibility to Kentucky voters despite a hectic presidential campaign schedule.