Replies

Upon investigation, it appears that Mr. Dondero is exactly right. Much of Ron Paul’s money is not coming from mainstream Libertarians or Republicans. Although he is running as a Republican, he actually has very little support from rank and file Republicans, as every national Republican poll confirms. But it turns out that he has very little support from mainstream Libertarians either. As Dondero pointed out, “Ron Paul is only attracting support from the leftwing side of the libertarian spectrum, virtually none of whom are Republicans.”

If that's the case, why are Republicans so freaked out that they are calling for "shutting down" Paul's campaign? We've heard for years that if a "true conservative" ran he would win easily...so what possible difference does it make if a Ron Paul is out there with an (R) after his name getting cross-over primary votes from liberals?

The only thing I see here is a tired, paternalistic old party feeling threatened that the kids might be listening to a message Dad doesn't approve of... ;)

You ask why Republicans are freaking out over Ron Paul’s nurturing of new campaign contributions sources that were previously untapped by Republicans. Here is your answer:

http://www.nysun.com/article/53420

Clinton and Obama Raiding Donors Who Backed Bush

By JOSH GERSTEIN
Staff Reporter of the Sun
April 30, 2007

As senators Clinton and Obama crisscross the country seeking the Democratic presidential nomination and sharply criticizing President Bush, they have been collecting hundreds of thousands of dollars from donors who funded one or both of Mr. Bush’s campaigns for the White House.

In the first quarter of this year, more than 150 former Bush donors pitched in for Mrs. Clinton’s campaign, while a similar number anted up for Mr. Obama, according to an analysis of Federal Election Commission data performed for The New York Sun by the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics.

The motives of those who lend financial support to candidates with divergent views are difficult to assess. For some donors, personal ties to politicians or their top fund-raisers transcend partisan politics. Executives at businesses susceptible to government regulation regularly straddle the field, even supporting multiple candidates in the same race. Some contributors find that their politics change over time or that the politicians they formerly supported failed to follow through on their promises.

Since April the number of large donors who have switched from Republican to Democrat has continue to increase.