Why should we always protect the Petro Dollar interesat. On Fri, Jun 10, 2011 at 12:40 PM, MJ <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Candidate Ron Paul thinks GOP, nation moving closer to his libertarian views > By Jordan Fabian - 06/10/11 06:00 AM ET > > Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) is running a different presidential campaign in 2012 > than he did in 2008, sensing that the evolving politics of the GOP could > give him a better chance at building a wave of support and contending for > his party’s nomination. > > The last time Paul sought the presidency, he was a little-known libertarian > back-bencher in Congress, largely dismissed at debates and by party insiders > as nothing more than a fringe candidate. > > But just three years later, Paul is faced with a Republican Party that is > more receptive to his small-government, anti-war attitudes, fueled in part > by the rise of the Tea Party. He’s also begun to reach out to mainstream > conservative voices in an effort to spread his message beyond his hardcore > supporters. > > With the experience of one presidential campaign under his belt, Paul is > building a more streamlined and formal campaign apparatus that gives him a > better chance of competing in key early primary states. > > Paul has a better chance in New Hampshire than in Iowa, but the congressman > is not counting out any early states. He told The Hill last week that his > campaign is focused on all the early states: Iowa, New Hampshire, South > Carolina and Nevada. > > Paul, who announced last month on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program that he > would form an exploratory committee, disputed the notion that he is running > a different kind of campaign from 2008. > > Pressed on whether Hannity would have invited him on his show a few years > ago, Paul responded that more people are questioning U.S. involvement in > Iraq and Afghanistan and the role of the Federal Reserve than they were > three years ago. > > “During the last campaign, I knew what was happening,” Paul said last week > on CNN’s “State of the Union.” > > “You know, they mocked me for my foreign policy and they laughed at my > monetary policy,” he added. “No more. No more.” > > While Republicans by and large still support the war in Afghanistan, signs > of war-weariness have shown. > > Last month, more than two dozen House Republicans joined Paul in voting for > a Democratic amendment that would have required President Obama to submit a > timeline for withdrawal from Afghanistan, and even more voted for a > resolution questioning the U.S. intervention in Libya. > > And unlike some GOP contenders, like former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, > former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Paul > can claim total consistency in his opposition to the 2008 TARP bailouts, a > key issue that resonates with Republican voters and Tea Party activists. > > Other candidates have started to move toward Paul on some economic issues. > During a major speech this week, Pawlenty said he supports ending the Fed’s > dual mandate, and he has criticized the central bank for months over its > efforts to stimulate the economy through quantitative easing. > > In a preview of his argument against other candidates at next week’s > presidential debate in New Hampshire, Paul said he is still the only > candidate in the field with credibility on such issues. > > The Texan has built on his name recognition from the 2008 campaign to post > strong showings in several national polls. And he still enjoys fervent > support from his base, especially young voters. > > Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), who supports Paul for president, told The Hill > last week that he was approached by a 19-year-old named Trevor Benson during > an event in his home state. With Benson donning a Paul 2012 button, the two > struck up a conversation about Paul. Later, Jones had the Texan autograph > photos for Benson and his friend. > > For his 2012 bid, Paul is combining supporters’ enthusiasm and his ability > to raise large sums of campaign cash online with a more traditional campaign > structure. > > In 2008 in New Hampshire, for instance, Paul relied on a loosely formed > collection of county campaign activists and finished a disappointing fifth > place in the first primary in the nation. This time around, when Paul > stopped in New Hampshire this week, he named a state campaign chairman and > field staff. > > He has also reached out to Tea Party and social conservative activists in > key early states at the beginning of the process in order to have a better > shot of earning their support. > > Paul spokesman Jesse Benton said another key difference is Paul’s improved > ability to raise money early in the cycle. In 2008, Benton noted, big > donations came in too late to build a full campaign staff in early states > like Iowa. This year, Paul has raised more than $2 million from two one-day > online “money bomb” fundraisers alone. > > “This time, we are raising money early to fund the campaign we need,” he > said. > > But more than any other state, New Hampshire, with its strong > small-government tradition, will be Paul’s proving ground. > > “New Hampshire will be a critical state for him,” said Dartmouth College > government professor Dean Lacy, who said Paul has a slim, but viable, chance > of winning the nomination. > > “Ron Paul doesn’t have to win New Hampshire, but he should hope to be a > top-three finisher,” he added. “That’s the litmus test. > > “He had no real formal organization in ’08 and now he is adopting a more > conventional campaign structure,” Lacy said. “He is running as more of a > mainstream candidate this year.” > > But many still believe there is a ceiling of support for Paul and that he > lacks the ability to appeal to mainstream GOP voters to capture the > nomination due to his unorthodox political views. > > On the day he announced his presidential campaign in Iowa, Paul said that he > would not have voted for the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, explaining > he is not against ending segregation but the “property rights” elements in > the law violate his libertarian beliefs. > > Paul’s son, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), said the same thing during his election > campaign in 2010 and faced heavy criticism from his opponents, a danger Paul > faces on an even larger scale in a presidential contest. > > The elder Paul has also said he would not have authorized the mission that > killed Osama bin Laden, and voiced support for the legalization of heroin > during the first GOP primary debate last month. > > “He just has to shake the cranky-grandfather image,” Lacy said. “To become a > more mainstream candidate, he has to soften his appeal a little bit.” > > But Paul’s supporters remain unfazed. > > “If he were to win the nomination, I think he would definitely have a good > shot,” Jones said. “He would have a lot of momentum.” > > Bob Cusack contributed to this story. > > http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/165725-candidate-ron-paul-thinks-gop-nation-moving-closer-to-his-libertarian-views > > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
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