Rand Paul may be a tea party darling but his fledgling
presidential candidacy is taking hits from the right that may portend a rough
ride on the Republican campaign trail.

The defense hawks have made it clear that they don’t
think much of Paul’s sometimes-isolationist views on foreign policy. A $1 million TV ad campaign airing in key states — launched by the same group that
damaged John Kerry’s 2004 presidential bid — which tags the Kentucky senator
as “dangerous” on national security sets the tone from the neocon perspective.

Over at Fox News, the new contender for the White House has received a rather chilly
reception – or worse – from some of the conservative commentators. The freshman
senator’s libertarian stance on NSA surveillance, drone strikes and the war on
terror spark criticism.

Earlier this week, Charles Krauthammer said with a
straight face (as always) that Paul is “to the left of President Obama on many
of these issues.”

But the snub received by Paul from the National Rifle
Association is particularly intriguing.

The NRA convention in Nashville this weekend features
speeches by every potential GOP candidate in 2016, even Indiana Gov. Mike Pence
and Donald Trump. But not Rand Paul.

The Daily Beast has confirmed that Paul was not invited
to the convention, despite his unblemished pro-gun record.  

The reason appears to be that Paul’s views on gun rights
are too extreme — or they represent too much competition for the NRA in the
Second Amendment absolutists category. Yes, the gun lobby has its own internal
politics.

“Paul has an A-rating from the
NRA, but the objective grading of his gun-rights credentials has little to do
with the politics of the pro-gun lobby, wherein his involvement with extremist
groups tied to his father, former congressman and libertarian-icon Ron Paul,
has not won him many friends,” The Daily Beast reported.

“‘Sometimes the NRA doesn’t
like it when people are bigger defenders of the issue than they are,’ (a source)
suggested. ‘They also don’t like it that he helps other, stronger groups like
the Gun Owners of America and the National Association for Gun Rights.’”

On the website of the Gun Owners of America, which gives
Paul an A+ rating for his views on firearms, they quote the senator saying that
the GOA is the only “no-comprise” gun lobby.

For the NRA, those are fightin’ words.