Topic: Ron Paul
What Happens After Ron Paul? For those who look at the glass half empty, there is a chance that Ron Paul may not win the Republican nomination for President. My daughter asks, what then?by DigitalBob
(Libertarian)
Sunday, December 2, 2007
My fourteen-year-old daughter asked that question last night. She sees me search for his name at Google News. I've shown her the pictures of the blimp and the videos. She sees the Ron Paul yard signs, but doesn't understand why all the news ever talks about are Hillary and Rudy.
She asked what are all these people going to do with their time if Ron Paul doesn't win? What's going to happen to all that money he raised? If he does win, will people start hating him the same way they do any of the other presidents?
Nobody knows for sure, but I'll try to answer her questions here.
First off, those of us who got excited again for a candidate who voiced our views will be disappointed. I've looked for a candidate that would bring us home from unending foreign wars and run-away government spending. I've seen that before in Ross Perot and Pat Buchanan. I don't think the poll-leading candidates of either of the two parties are serious about these issues. I predict that there will be some in the Ron Paul movement who will petition him to run for a third party. Given the track record of the Libertarians, Greens, Reformists, and others, that's not going to give Paul the White House.
Paul's already stated that he won't automatically support any of the Republican candidates. Pat Buchanan endorsed Dole and Kemp in the 1996 campaign after losing the nomination. Buchanan ran on his opposition to NAFTA and other trade agreements he felt were un-American. He won New Hampshire. Buchanan figured it was best to support the Republican candidate, who was closer to his beliefs than the Democrats. His endorsement didn't generate support for Dole. I liked Jack Kemp's message of smaller government, but I felt that Dole negotiated far too much in his years in the Senate. Paul's defeat, like Buchanan's, may translate into a win for the status quo.
Paul will probably run for his eleventh term in the U.S. House of Representatives. I'm sure he'll continue his predictable politics. He will continue to speak and write about the Constitution, sound money, limited government, non-interventionism and personal liberties. He may support individual candidates running for office, who have the same views as him. I think he will appear on talk shows when they need his contrarian opinions.
I think those who have libertarian leanings will have to face up to the sad reality that this country is run by two powerful, permanent political parties. The political parties now don't stand for anything other than getting their candidates elected. They negotiate everything and exist for power.
Perhaps those espousing minimalist government can use this survival instinct in their favor?
I wish that some of these supporters, who have the time and the energy, would run for Congress, using either party. They might win, if they get the Internet crowd behind them. Apparently Meetup works. Paul's example shows that technically connected people can make a difference.
This week the Virginia GOP wanted primary voters to take a loyalty oath, to support the candidate of the Republican party, regardless who wins the nomination. It proved to be so unpopular, that it was retracted. They realized that independent voters need a reason to participate in party politics. Later in the day, their straw poll showed that 38% of the attendees supported Ron Paul for president. That's loyalty.
Unless there is someone else, supporters may slip back into apathy. We'll wait for someone else to bubble up to the top for 2012. I don't think Paul will run for president again. If he did, it's never too early to campaign. Take the 1824 election, for instance.
At that time in American politics, there was just one party, the Democratic-Republicans. The Federalist Party had dissolved. Andrew Jackson received the most popular votes and the most electoral college votes, but John Quincy Adams won. The House of Representatives had to decide, because no candidate got the majority of electoral college votes. Andrew Jackson started campaigning for president for 1828, starting in 1825. Al Gore should have done the same thing, if he thought he'd won the 2000 election, instead of just whining.
I think Ron Paul would be content to stick to his message as a Congressman, rather than go through all this again for another four years.
Some of these younger activists may want to follow Paul's example and run for Congress. Senators Clinton and Obama seem to do well in their presidential runs, with their relatively short time in the U.S. Senate. We can always hope.
Where does the money go? I guess most of the money that's been raised so far gets spent in the primary. The Republican party has enough money for the general election. It exists to elect candidates. It will back whoever the winning candidate is. The golden rule for elections is that you can never have too much money.
And yes, whoever the president becomes will be hated. If Paul keeps his promises, he will veto many bills from Congress. He will be hated by those who manufacture bombs and planes and Humvees and machine guns. Many people in government will lose their jobs because they won't be needed. Farmers and corporations will hate him because there will no longer be subsidies for products that cannot compete in the marketplace.
There will be those in the Democratic party who will hate him because he will say no to unaffordable government expansions for health care, the environment and education. He will be called heartless because he refuses to play Santa Claus with other people's money. There will be those in the Republican party who will call him soft on the crusade against Islamo-Fascism.
If you stick to principle, you will become hated. That's life, dear.
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2007 DigitalBob, all rights reserved.
Published: Sunday, December 2, 2007
Last modified: Sunday, December 2, 2007
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We'd better hope he wins. A meetup leader in Florida complained to the REC about the blatent cheating going on at the Florida Straw Poll. Romneys people were handing out stacks of ballotts and supporters were voting multiple times. Anyhow, when this meetup leader phoned theREC about this, she was told to drop it or she'd end up hurt. Please investigate and write about it.
Oh yeah, one more thing, voters were complaining about the voting machines. the candidate one voted for turned up on the screen as a vote for Romney. Perhaps a story of this magnitude is worth looking at. I'm sure that the voters in Newhampshire and Ohio might think twice about Romney as the "REAL" voting gets underway.
Be of good cheer, Ron Paul has got a lot more support than anyone might guess. If he did not win the Republican nomination the ensuing uproar by all of us would ensure he understood just how serious we are about challenging the twofaced coin that represents the current American political machine. Not that it would come to that but if it hypotheically did the sheer volume of noise that would erupt would be beyond belief.
ever since i became a critical thinker 2 months ago through ron paul and mike gravel, i started to research in earnest about alot of things that really ails our country. we have a serious cancer and it happened very subtly, conjoining through the greed of others, and more so because of our apathy.
in reality, we are competing against an entrenched established systems of power that is embedded incestuously with various facets of society, i.e. media, corporations, government. it becomes disheartening to see it through our polling system, media bias/lack of coverage, and the various laws that members of government officials enacted on our "behalf." who makes them any more qualified than you? they are the ones who are in collusion with power and money. they are the ones who are selling democracy for 30 pieces of silver.
the truth is....one man cannot do it alone. Ron Paul is a beacon for change and that is why i propose a nationwide approach to take measures in our own hands. If Ron Paul becomes President....he has to overcome the members of Congress and Senate. If we have to make changes in our society, we have to overcome them on a district, regional, and state level. People...the real revolution happens when you take charge of your own lives. It doesn't stop with this election because if we let it stop....we become apathetic again and history will repeat itself.
There is corruption and if let it happen...we become apart of it. Its like the Rolling Stones' song, "Sympathy with the Devil." There is a verse that said that every time we let the JFK assassination go without recourse, we become a part of that conspiracy.
So, I'm going to end this letter by saying....be a precinct inspector at the voting polls and make sure the votes count and document everything. And more importantly, run for any office that you can to influence change...whether is a local school district, water municipality, assemblyman, Congressman, or a Senator....we have to take this revolution ourselves. There are June 2008 elections for Congress. That is vitally important to empower yourselves. There are few who are taking up the call...like Mike Benoit who is running for Congress as a Libertarian in San Diego, Theordore Terbolizard (Rep) in Norcal, and Dean Santoro (Rep) in Miami. We are masters of our destiny, to think otherwise is to be a slave.
Take this message to all the other meetups. Maybe this will get to Trevor Lynman and he could promote an awesome website. Can you imagine that? do you know what kind of message that would be?
Please post this everywhere and lets make this a nationwide event.
Oh what a good Daddy you are DigitalBob, my answers would be similar although I have no children to answer to.
As is said, "It ain't over until the Fat Lady Sings," so onward huskies, mush-mush-mush.
If the worst happens as is possible, I will return to my internet music groups which I have sworn off as of Oct 13 to devote my time to Ron Paul.
In 2002 in preperation for the worst possible, I moved to a small town in Alabama, Cullman which is right off I-65 but is 50 miles South of Huntsville and 50 miles North of Birmingham. I am now way outside the blast range of any nuclear bombs which might arrive on our shores from whatever source. Just kidding, sort of, but I did take that possiblity into consideration, among many others, when I choose to move here.
It's starting to look more and more like Ron Paul is going to have a very tough time keeping his Congressional seat here in South Texas. TX CD-14 Republicans are in open revolt against him. Ron Paul's local GOP Chair, a longtime friend of his, has even come out against him.
Chris Peden, Paul's opponent and Vice-Mayor of one of the largest cities in the District, is gaining on him fast.
And Paul has a largely new District, which includes the Clear Lake area of Houston (NASA). These Republican voters are stridently Mainstream. They frown on extremists. They weren't represented by Paul before, and are new to him. They're likely to come out in droves to vote in the Primary for President. With all those new voters who don't know Ron Paul, or only know negative things about him, like he's "kind of kooky" we're like to see big support for Peden.
What an embarrassment it would be for Ron Paul and his supporters if on Texas Primary night, Paul ends up in 5th or 6th place for President, and loses or comes close to losing his own Congressional seat.
This story is false and a plant look it up on the web. Ron Paul's district in not Houston. Also as it is and has been a primarily Democrat district, they all know Ron well after 20 years in Congress and having voted for him.
He hasn't changed any of his ideas in all that time so that this statement is just pure BS.
Hopfully your have just been taken in by this also and are not here to plant disinformation. I any event, Ron Paul supporters are not idiots like most of the other candidates have supporting them.
I actually love it when his opponents have to resort to outright lies about him as this will in the end only make him stronger in the eyes of those newly coming to support him.
Posted By: Chris Mcdonell
Date: 2007-12-02 07:01:06
If Paul looses he will still be the leader of the Paulites. I should know, I am one. I run one of the first Ron Paul "meet-up" groups in the country. I'm a Marine Corps Veteran and a father of three. We are already organizing to take over congress in PA. It will happen and we will run on Dr. Pauls platform. Ron has what Nixon called "the silent Majority". His support is huge. The woman who says she now won't support Dr. Paul because of his stance on the war is an enemy of the troops! She sits like the rest of the retards infront of Zionist controlled TV and probably thinks Israel is the capital of the United States. The News is all Rigged and all fake. If you want to see what's really going on you must do the research otherwise you are a sheep. FACT: RON APUL GETS MORE MONEY FROM ACTIVE DUTY TROOPS THAN ANY OTHER CANDIDATE.
DigBob,tell your daughter to stick with the net and youtube and ignore the controlled media.With all this knowledge at our fingertips even any 14 year can see the truth.That truth and thirst for freedom is spilling into straw poll results which Paul has won 15 of the last 19.People are donating like never before in this race for freedom and there is even a Blimp for Dr.Paul.As Victor Hugo said "No army can stop an idea whose time has come."
Hey guys, don't worry about it, he WILL win. He has won most of the straw polls, which are the true indicators of support. He also received more money from more people than ALL the other Rep. candidates. And he has consistently won all debates.
Ron Paul has finished:
-in the top 3 in 82.9% of the straw polls (34 out of 41)
-in the top 2 in 65.8% of the straw polls (27 out of 41)
-1st in 51.2% of the straw polls (21 out of 41)
http://thecaseforronpaul.com/SP.aspx
http://www.ronpaul2008.com/straw-poll-results/
In peace & freedom
Libertarians know you well as the disgruntled former staffer who Dr. Paul fired. I thought *you* were going to run against Dr. Paul, yourself? So sorry that you have gone over to the dark side.
I feel like we are climbing a bull market's "wall of worry." Fans of the stock market should get my analogy. I'm optimistic about Paul's campaign, but am a realist. Paul is up against the welfare/nanny state, the military industrial complex and the global elite. We know what the aforementioned institutions have done to silence reform in the past. Thankfully, Dr. Pauls supporters are educated and armed. If Paul doesn't win due to unscrupulous voting machines or, heaven forbid, something more sinister, I could see a full on violent revolution. Let's hope it doesn't come down to that.
In fact, America's economic state is so precarious, that a Ron Paul presidency would find itself presiding over one of the worst depressions in America's history. A smart global elite could easily spin such a predicament and unrest in its favor. American's love their nanny state and might turn on a President Paul in favor of more socialism.
Posted By: Koh Choon Lin
Date: 2007-12-02 09:07:52
True. He would be hated by both parties if he is the POTUS. But who cares about them? The people had made their choice and it is Ron Paul who would be President 2009!
Vote for Dr No, donate to the Tea Party 07.
LOL at "Eric Dondero", if it is in fact the real one, and not some fake. After all the media digging desperately trying to find some kind of dirt on Rep. Paul, without success, the worst thing anyone can say about him is the poor judgement he used in ever allowing Dondero to work for him. What a treacherous sellout. If you want to hear some genuinely "crazy" thinking read up on Dondero. He actually says he thinks Giuliani will let you keep your guns and protect you from the Government. He will tell you that gun-grabbing, police statist, war-mongering, Muslim-baiting, political graftmeister Rudy is the LIBERTARIAN candidate. Hilarious!
Don't worry, you'll see more of him as Rep. Paul picks up speed. He's being warmed up for a Swift Boat attack on Paul by Giuli's thugs. Watch for it.
Hey! There's your example of somebody who hates Ron Paul, right on cue! Eric Dondero! I do not think that Ron Paul will be hated by anybody if he wins the presidency, I do not think. Yes, Ron Paul has truly radical positions, but he isn't going to jump into anything that will hurt the public until the necessary measure will be taken so that the changes away from unConstitutional Executive Branch and the Fed will not hurt the masses. We are capable of running our own lives, without one thim dime given out by the federal government, and that's the way Ron Paul should play it.
It looks like DigitalBob and I are concerned about the same things, for whether Ron Paul wins or loses, where do Paulites go and what is to be done next?
What???!!! Jim??? Are you that stupid? You obviously don't live here. I DO live in Ron Paul's District.
Firstly, it is an overwhelmingly Republican District. The ORVS (Otpmimum Rep. Voting Strength) is 63%. Tom DeLay gerrymandered the District for his old friend Ron Paul.
Look very closely at the District map. You see the town of LaMarque in Galveston County? It's a well-known fact, that DeLay purposely took overwhelmingly Democrat and 95% minority, out of his own District 22, to make Ron Paul's District more safe for Paul and the GOP.
Secondly, the District is most certainly "Houston-oriented." It wraps all around Houston, and even includes a tiny segment of the City of Houston itself near Pearland. (Pearland is practically Houston, as are Houston suburbs like Friendswood and League City both in CD-14.)
Sure, I was "fired" alright. "Fired" with a Congressional pension, and a $10,000 bonus directly from Ron. And the guy - Ron Paul - calls me up for months after I resigned just to shoot the shit about gardening and to ask me how his banana trees in my backyard are doing.
Oh, and did I mention I have used Ron Paul (and Lizardo) as an employment reference for the last 3 years?
Tell ya what. If you think I was "fired" from Ron Paul's staff, contact Tom Lizardo, Ron's longtime Chief of Staff in DC and ask him directly.
"Eric, your enthusiasm for liberty is infectious. Stay that way. Your help is deeply appreciated." -- US Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX)
It will be real interesting to see how the Paul-bots respond to the Huckabee surge? Will they spew as much vitriol for Huckabee as they have for Giuliani?
Not likely. You see the "fiscally populist/socially conservative" Huckabee is on the opposite end of the GOP spectrum from Giuliani, who is "fiscally conservative/socially tolerant."
Huckabee is no threat to Ron Paul. Giuliani is direct competition, (as is Fred Thompson to some extent too.)
So, the strategy is for the so-called libertarian guy in the race, to viciously attack the libertarian-leaning guy in the race. Meanwhile, you lay off the non-libertarians.
Now that Huckabee's leading in Iowa, watch for the Paul-bots to almost completely ignore him.
Hey Eric -- if you look at the various Ron Paul blogs, you'll see none of them (I'm thinking here of dailypaul, lewrockwell's blog, and ronpaulforpresident2008) have neglected Huckleberry's famous speech on taxes before the Arkansas congress. You kow the one -- where he expresses his love of all Taxes -- Great and Small. No, Paulites have not ignored Huckleberry.
You also misunderstand the Paulite disdain for Guilliani as well. As someone who spends 3-4 days a week with Paul supporters in Austin, I can tell you for certain: Guilliani is viewed not as "competition", but as an antithesis of Dr. Paul on issues near and dear to many hearts: the love of war for its own sake, and the big government that it entails, love of the Patriot Act, Millitary Commissions Act, etc.. and his mayoral history as a lover of the police state (meaning someone uncritical of intrusive law, but adament about enforcing them).
Eric, in all sincerety -- educate us: what departments will Guilliani campaign for and insist are eliminated if elected? Will Guilliani ease off on the drug war, or re-arm it? Do you *seriously* think Guilliani is libertarian in the least???
Hey, look, I'm going to admit something here, that I probably should not.
If I was in your shoes, as a hardcore politcal activist, I'd do the exact same thing you're doing right now. I'd viciouosly attack the very guy who is closest to me. The libertarian movement is split, right smack down the middle right now between Giuliani and Paul:
Giuliani: Dondero, Club for Growth, Grover Norquist, Steve Forbes, all the free market think tank policy wonkers, Cato, Ryan Sager, DeRoy Murdock, et.al.
Paul: Barry Goldwater II, Rockwell, Raimondo, grass roots Libertarians across the Nation
The funny thing though, is that Giuliani and his team are taking the high road, not attacking Paul and his supporters. But Paul and his supporters are doing precisely that.
Which tells me, that Paul is way behind in support from libertarians.
I've spoken to some insider Giuliani people. BTW, as an aside, EVERY SINGLE GIULIANI CAMPAIGN STAFFER THAT I KNOW CALLS HIM/HERSELF A "LIBERTARIAN."
I've asked them if I can get Giuliani on my Talk Show "Libertarian Politics Live" to give a pitch for libertarian support.
Their reaction to me is "Why?" We already have the libertarian support.
They're truly baffled. They hardly even know of the Libertarian Party. They are not even aware that there are so-called "libertarians" out there who are not supporting Rudy.
As for Ron Paul, they don't regard him so much as a "libertarian" but rather as a very hardcore conservative right-winger, conspiratorialist John Bircher type.
You gotta understand, for Northeasters, the term "libertarian" means something very different than what it means to Southwesterners, Texans, or Mid-Westerners.
"Libertarian" to someone in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, or Connecticut, means "Republican who is Pro-Choice and Pro-Gay."
So, they don't see Ron Paul as a "libertarian" per se.
Drew, you sound like a fascist/statist. The opposite of a libertarian. So coming from you, your comments are meaningless. *Places a sign next to Drew - whose too much of a pussy to sign his posts with his full name - don't feed the asshole.
Wow, very original comeback there! I think you didn't post your full name either dumb shit, as I've heard Dondero is just your middle name. Regardless you are probably not the real ex-campaign staffer for Ron Paul, just some stupid 14 year old internet tough-guy fascist who trolls from his parents basement. In fact if you really used to be Ron Paul's cheif staffer, it makes you even more immature for trolling the internet against him because he fired you. Either way you are a pathetic loser. Go get laid.
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