Free Republic

Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), libertarian hero and constitutionalist congressman, will end the last term of his political career as the number two conservative in the House of Representatives behind Jeff Flake (R-AZ), according to a ranking system of all members of congress created by two political science professors. The "DW-Nominate" ranking system, created by University of Georgia political science professor Keith Poole and New York University professor Howard Rosenthal, ranks all 636 legislators in the House and the Senate and is available on Voteview.com. According to the rankings, Paul held the number one spot for multiple years, despite being behind...

RNC might block entire Nevada delegation over Ron Paul delegate mischiefBy Justin Sink - 05/03/12 08:53 AM ET The Republican National Committee is warning the Nevada GOP that if supporters of Ron Paul are allowed to take too many slots for the national convention, the party may opt against seating the state's entire delegation. "I believe it is highly likely that any committee with jurisdiction over the matter would find improper any change to the election, selection, allocation, or binding of delegates, thus jeopardizing the seating of Nevada’s entire delegation to the National Convention," said John R. Phillippe Jr., the...

Well, I am voting for Ron Paul in the Texas primaries. He is the only way to stop Romney. Hear me out before you zot me. I really think that this is the correct call. First and foremost, we need to remove Obama from his throne. I think this should be our number one priority, and believe it or not, Ron Paul polls several points higher than Romney against Obama. I have been checking the polls, and it looks like youth and independents are flocking to Paul. Obama must go. Second, Ron Paul is 100% pro-life. This is a very...

He has a solid, unshakeable base. His poll numbers are rising, not sinking. He hasn’t had to go negative. He hasn’t had to deliver a speech to get past his newsletter-induced Reverend Wright moment. Oh, and one other thing: he’s in this race ’til the finish line. His name is Ron Paul, and you have the establishment to thank for his shocking march from the margins to something almost mainstream. In retrospect, at least, there’s really nothing shocking about it. At every step, he has been boosted up and pushed forward by the horrendous failure of the establishment to remove...

Ron Paul's campaign is out with this new ad in South Carolina, which hits Rick Santorum on his "record of betrayal." "One serial hypocrite exposed," the ad says, showing clips of Newt Gingrich. "Now another has emerged: Rick Santorum, a corporate lobbyist and Washington politician. A record of betrayal."

Texas Rep. Ron Paul, a Republican candidate for president, told The Hill Thursday that he opposes the Republican resolution that would reaffirm "In God We Trust" as the country’s motto. The resolution passed the House easily Wednesday, with only nine "no" votes. Paul was absent for the vote. But he said the bill was superfluous.

From what I've read Mr. Paul would obtain the approval of Congress before sending any troops to fight a war on behalf of the United Nations. I have not heard any of the other candidates make such a promise. We should not be sending our troops to Yugoslavia or Libya because the United Nations has decided that it wants to get rid of a dictator. I'm not too happy with his position of never engaging with foreign countries although I think that that may be an overstatement. The other candidates should make their positions clear on this otherwise I will...

Emerging as a real Republican contender in Iowa, Representative Ron Paul of Texas is receiving new focus for decades-old unbylined columns in his political newsletters that included racist, anti-gay and anti-Israel passages that he has since disavowed. The latest issue of The Weekly Standard, a leading conservative publication, reprised reports of incendiary language in Mr. Paul’s newsletters that were published about 20 years ago. A 1992 passage from the Ron Paul Political Report about the Los Angeles riots read, “Order was only restored in L.A. when it came time for the blacks to pick up their welfare checks.” A passage...

WAVERLY, Iowa -- Iowa Republican voters are taking Ron Paul very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that few would be surprised if he finished a strong second - or even won - the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses. The 76-year-old Texas congressman's potential is evident in recent statewide polls that show him in or near second place, trailing former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich and in a virtual tie with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Paul's strength is also apparent anecdotally - he draws big, diverse crowds, like one recently in this small northeastern Iowa town. People in the audience...

The Case for Ron Paul By Jason McNew Ron Paul, a physician, has earned himself the name "Dr. No" by refusing to vote for any bill which assumes powers other than those given in Article I, Section VIII of the Constitution. When one takes a sober look at our country today, it's easy to see why Dr. Paul would behave this way. Take note that there is no authority in the Constitution for the setting of interest rates (as the Federal Reserve does) -- interference which led directly to the housing bubble (which Ron Paul predicted). Despite U.S. participation in...

According to recent polls, Paul ranks among the top three candidates in Iowa and New Hampshire. But unlike most candidates, given the war chest Paul has amassed and his ability to raise money, there’s no pressing reason for him to drop out quickly even if he begins with a string of disappointing early state performances. As of the fundraising quarter that ended Sept. 30, Paul had raised more than $12 million, the bulk of in small donations. Few others in the field can claim an ongoing donor base to raise money from once voting starts winnowing out the candidates. Paul...

Ron Paul says that Republicans will be punished if they do not hold the line against tax increases in the super-committee negotiations and argued that his campaign was well situated to challenge Mitt Romney for the Republican nomination in a radio interview with Sean Hannity Thursday. "If we capitulate, they will punish the Republican Party," Paul said in response to questions about proposed tax increases. He also said that Republicans needed to be thinking more dramatically about reducing the federal deficit. "Even if they cut a trillion dollars over the next couple of years from the baseline budget it doesn't...

He was a distant fourth in Rasmussen’s poll of likely voters this morning, but there’s no way the “Paul surge!” meme is going to die that easily. New fuel for the fire today from Iowa State: A poll of almost 1,000 Iowa registered Republicans has him just above 20 percent, four points better than Romney and just four points back of a guy whose own supporters have taken to dumping him as unelectable on national TV. As Cain fades a bit, Newt starts to come on strong, and Perry gets his second wind, there’s at least a chance here of...

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — Ron Paul, antagonist of the Federal Reserve and advocate for the gold standard, probably won't capture the Republican presidential nomination. But with his libertarian leanings energizing a small though growing group of passionate conservatives, the quirky Texas congressman is proving to be a force in the 2012 contest. Four months before the initial voting, Paul is having such a big impact on the race that some Republican operatives are convinced that he will play spoiler in important states, siphoning votes and attention from his rivals for months to come and helping determine the nominee. He's empowered...

Ron Paul Can Win By Robin Koerner, on September 17th, 2011 It’s hard to tell if the idea that Ron Paul cannot win in 2012 is more ignorant, in its complete lack of historical sophistication, or more arrogant, in its claim to certainty amid all the complexity of 300 million lives and the myriad issues that affect them.Sometimes, perhaps once in a few generations, a nation can undergo what a mathematician or physicist would call a “phase change.” The classic example of such a thing is a pile of sand. Every grain you add makes the pile slightly steeper and...

Libertarian-leaning Texas Republican Congressman Ron Paul has formed a so-called "testing the waters" fundraising account ahead of a possible 2012 presidential run, Paul aide Jesse Benton confirmed to CBS News. According to Benton, Paul "is close to making a final decision and it is better than 50-50 that he will enter the race in May." A run by Ron Paul would almost surely mean that his son, GOP Sen. Rand Paul, will not seek the presidency. Rand Paul, who shares many political beliefs with Ron Paul, has been considering a run if his father does not seek the nomination. Benton...

Although no official announcement has been made, and the official line remains that he is still deciding on whether to run for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination he appears his making sure everything is ready in the event he decides to run. Today Jesse Benton, a Paul spoksman told the Daily Caller that Paul has filled out the paperwork for a presidential exploratory committee; they have all the forms prepared so that Paul can “flip the switch” as soon as he decides to run. Ron Paul is also listed by South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Karen Floyd as one of...

So Obama has signed the legislation his henchmen pushed through the lame-duck session of Congress, intended to force personnel serving in the United States military to accept homosexual activity as lawful and legitimate conduct. Would this legislation have passed without the support of Republican congressmen like Ron Paul and senators like Scott Brown of Massachusetts? Of course, Paul is the guru of some who claim to be staunch advocates of liberty; and without the votes and financial support of grass-roots conservatives throughout the country, Brown would never have won election. *snip* Now, the prime source of visceral conservative opposition to...

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) is defending WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's release of thousands of classified diplomatic cables. In an interview with Fox Business Thursday, Paul went against the opinions of many of his Republican colleagues, asserting that Assange should be given the same protections as the media. "In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," Paul said. "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it." “This whole notion that Assange, who's an Australian, that we want to prosecute him for...

I know not a lot of people on free republic like Dr. Paul because of his stance on foreign policy. I want to ask: if he changed his foreign policy and supported finishing the war on terror and stood behind Israel 100% would you vote for him in 2012? What other candidate wants to bring America back to the constitution and end the FED?