GOP Leader Rand Paul Visits Silicon Valley

Rand Paul hits Silicon Valley, looking for kindred spirits (and cash).

Senator Rand Paul is in Silicon Valley, and the Republican lawmaker and Tea Party hero has reportedly met with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel, according to reports.

What does the GOP leader want? "Cash and geeks," according to TIME.com.

Paul is hoping to fundraise among libertarian techies, whose political leanings are toward independence from government interference, meaning the red-blooded lawmaker has a shot in deep-blue California, observers say.

He wants more of the $2.7 million Thiel donated to Ron Paul's 2012 presidential run, the website reported, and along with the cash, he's hoping for some tech talent to work on his own campaign.

In other words, the free-market tech efforts like Uber and Airbnb share intellectual common ground with Paul, TIME.com reports, so he may find friends here.

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