McConnell: ‘Almost certainly’ backing Rand Paul in 2016

Incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Monday says he’s likely to endorse Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) if he runs for president in 2016.

{mosads}In an interview on CNN’s “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer,” reporter Dana Bash asked McConnell directly if he’d endorse Paul for the White House.

“I’m almost certainly going to be doing that at some point,” McConnell said.

It’s the latest sign that the two men have made strides in repairing their relationship since 2010, when McConnell endorsed Paul’s GOP rival in the Senate primary.

Paul campaigned heavily for McConnell this year, helping him to defeat Alison Lundergan Grimes to win reelection.

“I’m a big fan of his,” McConnell said Monday. “I mean we started off on opposite paths, but we’ve become great allies. … I think he’s a very, very smart, capable guy.”

Still, McConnell said Paul shouldn’t expect him to be on the campaign trail for him in the early primary states.

“I’m going to be helpful to him in any way I can be,” he said. “But I’m not going to be tromping around in New Hampshire and Iowa, I can tell you that.”

McConnell has already endorsed Paul in his reelection campaign for the Senate.

Paul says that he hasn’t made his mind up yet about a potential presidential run. He says he’s weighing family considerations, and will gauge whether the public would be receptive to his candidacy.

Paul is expected to announce his decision sometime in the spring. If he runs, he’ll enter as a top contender in what could be a crowded field with potential candidates like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Gov. Chris Christie (N.J.).