Welcome to Rand Paul vs. Steve King, quite possibly the second best matchup so far in the 2013 Daily Kos Republican March to Madness Tournament. The best? Calgary Cruz vs. Michele Bachmann, also from the Teabaggers Region. Of course.
Paul is the only number two seed to make to the Insane 16, while King is joined by Bobby Jindal as one of two #3 seeds to make it this far. Neither has had an easy path. Paul beat Donald Trump in the first round and held off Sarah Palin in the second round, proving beyond doubt the legendary nature of his lunacy. King had an easy first round against FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe, but faced the scare of his life when he battled Louis Gohmert in the second round. King is probably happy that Gohmert's parking ticket kerfuffle didn't become public until after their matchup—if it had, Gohmert might easily have won. Earlier this week King said he was exploring a bid to join his buddy Rand Paul in the Senate, a decision that would at the very least guarantee him prominent billing in the 2014 Tournament.
The winner of this matchup will face the winner of #1 Ted Cruz vs. #4 Michele Bachmann in the Crazy 8. You can vote on (and track results of) all the Insane 16 matchups here. Voting ends Saturday at 8:30 AM ET, after which we'll announce the winners and kick off the Crazy 8, from which will emerge the Freakshow Four.
As with previous rounds, you're voting for whomever you believe makes for a better poster-child for Republican craziness. That doesn't necessarily need to mean you're voting for the craziest person, because you might also consider their prominence and influence as well as their association with the GOP. It's entirely up to you.