HENDERSON — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul appeared to distance himself Wednesday from a proposal to abolish the federal income tax.

An anti-tax group had announced Tuesday that Paul pledged support for a proposal to repeal the Sixteenth Amendment, which created the tax, and replace it with a national sales tax.

But when reporters asked Paul Wednesday why he thought the tax should be abolished, he said, "I really haven't been saying anything like that."

He apparently meant he had not been saying it on the campaign trail.

Paul said he supports a simpler tax code, but the nation first has to bring spending under control.

His support for ending the tax was announced by the FairTax America Support Team, the Associated Press reported.

The campaign of his opponent, Attorney General Jack Conway, had responded that the proposal included a burdensome 23-percent national retail sales tax.