Des Moines , Iowa ( CNN ) Rand Paul kicked off his first event in Iowa this year with a rally that let him blaze through his favorite libertarian-leaning talking points and draw a contrast between himself and his potential Republican rivals . `` You 're going to get a choice on who the nominee is for the Republican Party . You 're going to have 9 , 10 , 15 , 20 who are eager to go and want troops on the ground , '' he said , talking about the war against Islamic extremism . `` They want 100,000 troops on the ground . Right now . In all the countries . '' The Kentucky Republican had a rough week but found a friendly audience Friday night headlining an `` Audit the Fed '' rally at Jasper Winery in Des Moines , an event packed with many of his father 's supporters and hosted by a group called Liberty Iowa . It was a curious strategy for a man who 's trying to build a broad coalition of voters behind him , but he assured supporters that he has n't strayed far from his roots . `` Some of you may remember I sued the President , '' he said , pointing to a lawsuit he launched last year against the National Security Agency over its bulk metadata collection effort . He did n't , however , mention that the lawsuit has been put on hold , or that he voted against a reform package in Congress last year because he felt it did n't go far enough in tweaking the agency . Paul , who faced criticism this week over comments expressing doubt about the effectiveness of vaccinations and took heat over drama involving one of his advisers , is in Iowa on a quick two-day swing that puts him in front of familiar audiences . Following the `` Audit the Fed '' rally Friday night , he attends the Iowa State University men 's basketball game Saturday , as well as a watch party with young voters and a meet-and-greet with freshman Rep. Rod Blum . Paul is one of many Republicans who will barnstorm the state in the coming months , seeking support ahead of Iowa 's first-in-the-nation presidential nominating contest a year from now . While it 's his first time in the state this year , Paul visited Iowa five times last cycle , and has indicated he plans to make the state a big part of his 2016 strategy . His father , ex-Texas Rep. Ron Paul , built a solid foundation of supporters in Iowa during his 2008 and 2012 campaigns , a base that Paul is trying to court while also making inroads with the mainstream and socially conservative Republicans in the state . A Des Moines Register/Bloomberg poll earlier this week showed Paul in second place at 14 % support among likely Republican caucus goers , behind Wisconsin Gov . Scott Walker at 15 % . Along with repeating familiar refrains that hammer Obamacare and the President 's executive action on immigration , Paul brandished his anti-war credentials . He sought to remind the audience that he caused headaches in the Senate in December by forcing a vote that would declare war against ISIS , but stressed that he voted no . `` I said we have to debate this . And they -- can I say bitched and moaned ? They bitched and moaned and were so unhappy with me that I brought that up . But we made a vote , '' he said . `` Every time we 've toppled a secular dictator , we 've gotten chaos and we 've gotten a rise in radical Islam , and we 've been less safe , '' he added . Paul , attempting to balance his anti-government persona with his efforts to appear bipartisan , pointed out that he 's still been `` willing to work with the President '' on criminal justice reform , noting that the same day he sued the administration , Paul sat down for lunch with Attorney General Eric Holder . `` He looks at me and says , ' I see you 're suing me and the President today . ' I said , 'Well , you know , we can still be friends right ? ' `` Paul offered some rare praise for Holder , saying at the end he `` did some good things on criminal justice , '' but warned that he may be replaced by current nominee Loretta Lynch , saying she 's not strong enough on reforming civil forfeiture . The main thrust of the event was rallying support behind his new legislation to audit the Federal Reserve . It is already audited by a third-party accounting firm arranged through the inspector general and partially by the Government Accountability Office , but Paul 's bill would give full auditing power to the GAO and would require regular reports to Congress . `` Is there a revolving door between Wall Street , the fed , and back to Wall Street again ? '' Paul asked , twirling his arm in the air . The bill last year passed the GOP-controlled House with bipartisan support but was blocked by the Democratic-led Senate . Critics , including Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen , have vowed to aggressively fight such efforts . Emboldened by the new Republican Congress , however , Paul feels that the legislation has a better shot at breaking through and making it to the President 's desk . `` I think there needs to be some sunshine . I 'm going to fight 'em and we 're going to get a vote on Audit the Fed , '' he said to applause .
Rand Paul makes first 2015 trip to Iowa , home of first presidential caucuses . Score: 6