As Rand Paul Randal (Rand) Howard PaulSecond GOP senator to quarantine after exposure to coronavirus GOP senator to quarantine after coronavirus exposure The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by National Industries for the Blind - Trump seeks to flip 'Rage' narrative; Dems block COVID-19 bill MORE embarks on a college tour in South Carolina, let’s just say what most already know: the GOP has a youth problem. Millennials are more likely than any other generation to support Democrats and continue to reject Republicans on issue after issue. And who can blame them? Young folks see the Republican brand as “close-minded, racist, rigid and old fashioned”—and that’s just from the College Republican National Committee’s own self-autospy.

With millennials projected to represent one third of the electorate in 2016, you’d think Republicans would work to change the policies that have alienated young folks in election after election. Instead, they’ve convinced themselves that the problem isn’t what they’re saying, just how they’re saying it. Denial is an important step on the journey to acceptance, but that denial has turned to delusion; In their desperate attempt to find their millennial whisperer, they’ve put all of their eggs in one basket—a basket that belongs to Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).

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Paul’s latest swing of his “hip with the kids” tour is no different. He’s spoken on college campuses, to tea party activists groups, and most recently at a youth event sponsored by a Koch-backed group about how his message will resonate with young people. He’s selling himself as something “new” and “fresh.” But here’s the thing: even a quick look at his record shows that it’s a story that isn’t worth buying. Paul, after all, stands proudly on the wrong side of issues that matter to young people.

He’s voted against common sense legislation that would have helped millions of young borrowers refinance their student loans at much lower rates. He’s proudly said he has never used the term ‘gay rights’ because he doesn’t believe in rights based on one’s behavior,which naturally follows with his opposition to marriage equality and discrimination protections for LGBT employees. He’s voted to block measures that would help ensure paycheck fairness for women in the workplace and opposes an increase in the minimum wage. If all that wasn’t enough, he’s voted against comprehensive immigration reform, has tried to limit access to birth control and went so far as to vote against the Violence Against Women Act. He even voiced his doubts about the Civil Rights Act!

By any metric, Paul is a run-of-the-mill tea partier with policy proposals that would hurt the middle class and young people. Paul’s hope is that his “outreach” will lead folks to ignore his record. But here’s the problem: it’s not working. Polling of our generation shows that Rand Paul isn’t really performing better than his fellow Republicans. In fact, his performance with young voters is in line with Mitt Romney, who lost their vote by a significant margin in 2012.

The explanation for that is pretty simple: millennials aren’t dumb. Young people are just looking for a fair shot to succeed. We want to take risks, start businesses, and have the chance to start meaningful careers. But we can’t do that if we’re worried about healthcare or suffocating under the weight of student loan debt. So if you’re going to ask for our vote, you can’t pander your way out of your record. Rand Paul’s policies may please folks like the Koch brothers, but they’re wildly detached from the needs of young Americans. Democrats win young voters because we fight for their values, and if Rand Paul is the best the GOP’s got, that contrast will only be clearer.

McKenzie is president of the College Democrats of America.