Is Rand Paul a presidential contender? #tellusatoday

On Tuesday, Rand Paul kicked off his presidential campaign. The Kentucky senator is the second candidate to officially launch a bid for the Republican 2016 nomination. Comments from Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:

I do not yet know enough about Sen. Rand Paul to know if he would make a good president. But one thing I am sure of: We do not need another Bush or another Clinton in the White House!

— Mark Horn

He still needs more experience in the Senate. He should not just have one term and become president like our current commander in chief.

— Margaret Swan

If Paul could run for "president of domestic policy," I would vote for him. Unfortunately, he's running for president of the United States, which includes foreign policy. I can't support a president who has never run much of anything and was only a senator for a short time. I'd rather have one who has been a governor.

— Steve Yuhas

This guy is Ralph Nader 2.0. I suspect Paul will always run and collect fringe votes, but he will never be elected or even seriously contend.

— Vang Po

I'll vote for Paul over any other candidate I've seen this year. Hillary Clinton is a big bank puppet. Jeb Bush is a Bush.

— Christina Coleman-Francis

My libertarian friends are giddy about Paul, but he's going nowhere in the GOP. He'll nab their votes, while Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Sen. Ted Cruz split the Tea Party and old-timer votes. Meanwhile, establishment candidate Jeb Bush will sweep in for the easy win.

— Jeffrey Faber

We asked our followers what they thought Rand Paul's strengths and weaknesses are. Comments from Twitter are edited for clarity and grammar:

People are attracted to his strong libertarian ideals, and he appeals to young people.

— @Sophistifunkk

His main weakness is that he isn't his father, Ron Paul.

— @willmize

GOP has no chance with these candidates. I am a Republican, and I do not connect with any of them.

— @Hector828Miller

One of Paul's main weaknesses is his inclination to make outrageous statements. He is an unelectable loose cannon.

— @PaulWhiteleySr

He matches up well against Hillary Clinton but will have trouble winning the GOP nomination.

— @BittmanSkip

His family is too strange. Libertarians are wrong on drugs and national defense.

— @P_AllenNC5

He is the best choice the Republicans have so far.

— @AJustice4638

For more discussions, follow @USATOpinion and #tellusatoday on Twitter.