Free Republic

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul contends that the federal government has overreacted by limiting personal freedom in the wake of terrorist attacks six years ago, noting more people die on U.S. highways in less than a month’s time compared to the number who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. “We have been told that we have to give up our freedoms in order to be safe because terrorism is such a horrible event,” Paul said today to more than 1,000 supporters who attended a rally at a downtown Chicago hotel ballroom. “A lot fewer lives died on 9/11 than...

In today’s testimony before the house, Fed Chairman Bernanke was questioned by Representative Ron Paul in what was a remarkable exchange. Remarkable for how straightforward, lucid, and anti-statist the question was. In his questioning, Ron Paul stated: “I want to follow up on the discussion about moral hazard. I think we have a very narrow understanding about what moral hazard really is. Because I think moral hazard begins at the very moment that we create artificially low interest rates which we constantly do. And this is the reason people make mistakes. It isn’t because human nature causes us to make...

<p>Our American way of life is under attack. And it is up to us to save it.</p> <p>The world's elites are busy forming a North American Union. If they succeed, as they did in forming the European Union, the good ol’ USA will only be a memory. We cannot let that happen.</p>

Composite vote: Ron Paul 15.2% 1,196 Member vote: Ron Paul 5.5% 161 Non-member vote: Ron Paul 20.8% 1,035 We're being spammed.

The Republican Party, by almost universal disgruntled consent, is in every way a cause of concern for the limited government espoused in the articles adopted by the GOP membership. The Republican Party has become in governing what they've fear-mongered us for decades the Democratic party would be if, in fact, we elected Democrats to Washington. Let's be honest: The D.C. Republicans who've lied their way into leadership are little else than a rejected radical left wing of the Democratic party. Pre-emptive nuclear strikes? NAFTA, CAFTA? The Patriot Act? Enforcing U.N. resolutions? Lowering taxes a couple hundred dollars for the average...

More than 1,000 people gathered Saturday at the Union Pacific Depot in Salt Lake City to rally behind U.S. Rep. Ron Paul in his bid for the Republican presidential nomination. Paul, an obstetrician from Texas, was impressed with the turnout. "Wow. If they only knew you existed over in Washington, they'd change things over there," he said as he greeted the cheering crowd. Paul spoke fervently of his support of smaller government, including the abolition of agencies, such as the Internal Revenue Service, and of his support for strictly following the Constitution. He also spoke out against the war in...

On Tuesday, September 11, the SAIS Center on Politics and Foreign Relations (CPFR) and the Financial Times hosted an event with congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul, entitled "A Traditional Non-Intervention Foreign Policy." Congressman Paul provided keynote remarks, followed by questions from CPFR's director Robert Guttman, the Financial Times White House correspondent Andrew Ward and members of the audience. Here is a link to the audio of Ron Pauls' speech today at SAIS

<p>Congressman Ron Paul spoke at the memorial service for Aaron Russo Friday morning in West Hollywood, California.</p> <p>Mr. Russo had a long and accomplished career in the entertainment industry and was a leading advocate in the freedom movement. He was one of the first public figures to endorse Dr. Paul for president in January of this year.</p>

It’s Wednesday and I’m posting, so those are two big fat hints right there. Of course: it’s the Prince of Darkness himself, Bob Novak. How could that be, when Novak has been pimping Fred Thompson for weeks? Well, acquaint yourself with Novak’s weird sense of humor. Loathe as I am to link to the Washington Times, it’s in their “Fishwrap” (snicker) blog that he is quoted as follows: When asked to rate the current field of Republican presidential candidates, Novak didn’t have any kind words for the current top-tier field of Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney and John McCain....

Avery Knapp is typical of the Paul Web supporter. A 28-year-old radiology resident, Knapp describes himself as a lifelong conservative who voted for President Bush in 2000 before growing disillusioned with the Iraq war and federal spending. Bush "did nothing but increase the size of government. The Republican Party needs to move back to its core principles," Knapp said. Many Paul supporters share Knapp's disdain for what he called a "neo-conservative clique" and hope Paul can spark a Goldwater-style insurgency. At 46, Kevin Leslie has never bothered with politics. After watching an interview with Paul during his 1988 campaign as...

"Part II???! Where's Part I?", you ask? I'm working on it, at the same time I'm working on part III, IV, and more. From the debate last night: MR. WALLACE: Congressman Paul -- (interrupted by cheers, applause) -- Congressman Paul, your position on the war is pretty simple: Get out. What about, though, trying to minimize the bloodbath that would certainly occur if we pull out in a hurry? What about protecting the thousands of Iraqis who have staked their lives in backing the U.S.? And would you leave troops in the region to take out any al Qaeda...

MR. WALLACE: So, Congressman Paul, and I’d like you to take 30 seconds to answer this, you’re basically saying that we should take our marching orders from al Qaeda? If they want us off the Arabian Peninsula, we should leave? (Laughter.) REP. PAUL: No! (Cheers, applause.) I’m saying — (laughter) — I’m saying we should take our marching orders from our Constitution. We should not go to war — (cheers, applause) — we should not go to war without a declaration. We should not go to war when it’s an aggressive war. This is an aggressive invasion. We’ve committed the...

ANNAPOLIS— After eleven days of presidential straw poll ballots cast at the Maryland Republican Party’s State Fair booth, Congressman Ron Paul (R-Texas) was announced last night as the winner. The Maryland Republican Party’s first-ever presidential straw poll at the State Fair resulted in nearly 1,000 Marylanders casting a vote for their favorite Republican candidate for president.

Is this what my grand party has come to?  Ron Paul is insulting, incompetent, and now I am sure he is an outright nut.  What I am posting here stupefied me after I read it.  I could not believe I was reading about a Republican... in Congress for 20 YEARS NO LESS!  I've posted the statement from Eric Dondero in its entirety; emphasis mine.  I suggest you take the time to read the whole thing.  It is a sad and pathetic story.  Read my previous post on this so-called Republican and after you do that, read this: ________________________________________My name is Eric Dondero Rittberg.  For 12 years I worked...

(AP) NEW YORK -- Passengers on a plane leaving New York could see three words in 4-foot block letters painted on an East Village rooftop terrace as they ascended: GOOGLE RON PAUL. The entreaty to search the Internet for news of the Republican congressman from rural Texas is one of the more visible signs of enthusiasm from a do-it-yourself base of Web fans. Their support doesn't show up in public opinion polls, but it's unmatched among presidential candidates in its passion. On their own, the fans have developed a Ron Paul Revolution logo, marketing the idea through YouTube. Message boards...

Texas City, Texas – An overflow crowd of energized supporters rose to their feet and cheered as Congressman Ron and Mrs. Carol Paul arrived; a chorus of “Happy Birthday” for Dr. Paul then followed from the standing-room-only gathering, mainly of constituents from Texas’ 14th congressional district. From the cutting of the birthday cake, through a fundraising auction featuring photographs and mementos, a Ron Paul autographed Constitution copy and commemorative edition Martin Henry Rifle, the crowd erupted frequently into applause, making this Texas-style auction anything but silent. After those gathered enjoyed plates stacked high with chicken and beef BBQ, baked beans,...

Monday, August 27, 2007Candidates Hailed For Open Government PledgeCongressman Ron Paul Three presidential candidates (Illinois Senator Barack Obama, Kansas Senator Sam Brownback, and Texas Rep. Ron Paul) are being hailed by the Reason Foundation for putting their signatures on a pledge declaring that, should they win the presidency in 2008, they will issue an executive order during their first month in office instructing the entire executive branch to put into practice the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006.The act would create a Google-like search tool that will allow average Americans to see just how their tax dollars are...

Many of you know that I help organize the Duncan Hunter "meetup" group(s). I decided to peek in at the "competition" and found it very interesting that Ron Paul supporters are being urged to attend the MoveOn.org rally.... http://ronpaul.meetup.com/1/boards/view/viewthread?thread=3421862 I post this because I know there are a lot of folks on FR that support Ron Paul.. I just wonder if you are participating in this effort.. or what you think about this whole business of catering to MoveOn.org .... quote from an active Ron Paul supporter Somebody posted a thread concerning moveon, and letting their members know about Ron...

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. On the other hand, it does not show much honesty, integrity, or conviction. The latest test of this principle is to watch “1st tier” presidential candidate Mitt Romney start to emulate the political philosophy of “2nd tier” candidate Ron Paul. Ron Paul has been in favor of small government since he became a Congressman. He has been in Congress for ten terms or twenty years. (Ron Paul is currently listed with 8 to 1 odds of becoming the next US President) Throughout that time he has consistently advocated that we strictly...

Ron Paul has indeed been responsible for several legislative earmarks intended to fund government activity inconsistent with his libertarian philosophy. At face value, his actions seem hypocritical; however, there is an important mitigating factor which your editorial ("Ron Paul's Earmarks," Aug. 6) failed to mention: Mr. Paul proceeds to vote against the passage of the earmarked bills. In other words, Mr. Paul opposes the type of legislation that allows for the inclusion of these earmarks, yet acknowledges that in the face of a federal government sadly keen on spending, his district deserves the same treatment as others. Considering that extra...

“That’s what you get for pretending the danger’s not real. Meek and obedient , you follow the leader down well trodden corridors, into the valley of steel. What a surprise! A look of terminal shock in your eyes! Now things are really what they seem. No, this is not a bad dream.” Excerpt from the song Sheep by Pink Floyd I’ve noticed a number of people on the Internet complaining about Ron Paul supporters recently. Many of them have the same complaint, that Ron Paul supporters are too pervasive. They call them Ron Paul spammers. They claim that a...

High Risk Spending August 13, 2007 Last week this column addressed the train wreck that federal spending has become. To score political points politicians will make loud noise about fairly small matters such as earmarks, even while refusing to address the real problem. Namely, that our federal government is too big and does too much. Politicians prefer to pass a bill or create a program every time somebody points to a new social problem, this way they can tell their constituents how much they are doing to help. Instead of rationally explaining the proper role of government, politicians have attempted...

I have been watching with interest the candidacy of Libertarian Ron Paul. Like many, I've been wondering what the heck he is doing in this race in the first place. Let's face it, even in the GOP field of candidates he doesn't fit in well. Naturally, he is a whipping boy for the GOP establishment... well, maybe just a laughing stock, would be more accurate. But, there is real substance to Mr. Paul, a substance that is all too easy to gloss over by focusing on his quirks. And he does serve a very important purpose; he helps bring the...

Texas congressman and Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul — who is campaigning as a critic of congressional overspending — has revealed that he is requesting $400 million worth of earmarks this year. The Wall Street Journal reports Paul's office says those requests include $8 million for the marketing of wild American shrimp and $2.3 million to pay for research into shrimp fishing. A spokesman says, "Reducing earmarks does not reduce government spending, and it does not prohibit spending upon those things that are earmarked. What people who push earmark reform are doing is they are particularly misleading the public —...

Rep. Ron Paul Isn’t Going Away * When he deigned last month to include Ron Paul in his Sunday morning show, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos told the Republican presidential candidate that he’d bet every last cent that Dr. Paul won’t end up in the White House. He’s right, of course. But that doesn’t mean that the 71-year-old congressman from Texas isn’t a surprising force in the 2008 race. He commands far more attention—from the media and from his opponents—than his low standing in the polls seems to warrant, has amassed an ideology-defying army of true believers through the Internet, and actually...

These last few weeks the House has been in a rush to pass spending bills before August recess. In fact, visitors walking the hallways of Congress become immediately struck by the apparent spending battle between the “conservative Democrats” of the so-called “Blue Dog Coalition,” and the Republican Study Committee, or RSC, generally representing the more conservative bloc of Republican House members. Members of each of these groups place large posters on easels outside their offices. The purpose behind this seems clear, to point the finger at the opposite party for the current budget mess that continues to threaten America’s future....

Wild shrimp! I am your pork pimp! I'll make federal funds ... easy! Wild shrimp! Wild shrimp, I want to pimp you But I gotta know for sure. Will eight mil be enough? You need it... Wild shrimp! My values go limp! I'm just an earmark pimp For my wild shrimp!

It's in a subscribers only link at the Wall Street Journal. The Congressman wants $8,000,000.00 to pay for marketing of wild American shrimp and $2.3 million to fund research into shrimp-fishing. These are but two of the Congressman's 65 earmarks sought thus far this year to the tune of $400,000,000.00. HIs chief spokesman pulled a Tom DeLay and said "Reducing earmarks does not reduce government spending, and it does not prohibit spending upon those things that are earmarked," the spokesman said. "What people who push earmark reform are doing is they are particularly misleading the public -- and I have...

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul began running television campaign ads Tuesday in Iowa. The spots for the Texas congressman began just days before a straw poll in the first presidential nominating state. The 30-second ads will be in rotation in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Sioux City. Campaign spokesman Jesse Benton declined to reveal the cost. The ad features Paul speaking to a crowd of supporters while an announcer repeats the Texan's fiscally conservative campaign themes. Various statements flash across the screen, including "Stop the national I.D. Card." Benton said the ad, the first of two for TV, will be...