Rand Paul: It would be an "honor" to be considered to be Romney's VP

First-term Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said Friday that he would consider it an honor to be considered as a running mate for presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

"A year, year and a half ago, I was a physician in a small town," Paul told CNN. "And it would be a great honor to be considered as a vice president for the Republican Party. I think that would be something that anybody who said otherwise would not be being truthful."

Paul endorsed Romney Thursday on Fox News, saying that while "my first choice had always been my father," he is "happy to announce I am supporting Governor Romney." Paul's father, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has suspended active campaigning for the presidency and acknowledged he will not be the Republican presidential nominee, though he remains a candidate. Rand Paul, whose beliefs echo those of his Libertarian-leaning father, is expected to strongly consider a presidential run of his own in 2016 or 2020.

Romney and Ron Paul had a relatively friendly relationship throughout the Republican primary process despite deep differences on a number of issues, including the size of the U.S. military footprint. Rand Paul said that he "decided to endorse Romney after meeting with him and talking about a lot of areas that we actually do have common ground on."

Romney welcomed Rand Paul's endorsement Thursday, calling the Tea Party-linked Kentucky senator "a leading voice in the effort to scale back the size and reach of government and promote liberty." He seems unlikely to tap Paul as a running mate, however, in light of their differences on a number of policy issues.