Rand Paul seems pretty solid. He doesn’t hold his dad’s peacenik BS beliefs, best I can tell.
As for qualifications, there are none necessary, save as spelled out in the constitution. I’d take a random selection of ex-felons over the morons there right now.
See, that's the problem. You don't know for 100%. Nobody has been able to definitively claim he's not a paleo-isolationist. He's got the same supporters as his father's, and if this guy weren't that far afield from dad in his views, he'd not be getting their support. And as for the qualifications part, it may not be spelled out in the Constitution, but there are some basics that make a candidate viable in a general election, just some basic experience. You may take a random selection of ex-felons, I prefer to set the bar a little higher. I want to know they're right on the issues, aren't going to sabotage the movement, and aren't a nutter.