Posted on 01/14/2008 2:28:06 PM PST by mnehring
It was supposed to be a revolution. Ron Paul was set to take America and the world by storm by winning primary after primary on his way to the White House. The supporters of the ten-term US Congressman from Texas were convinced that the money he raised would equal support at the actual ballot box. Now in the cold hard days of January, the truth has broken though.
So what has happened to Ron Paul? The answer isn't difficult; his support was never very large to begin with. It was magnified by a presence on the Internet (or the "Internets" if you prefer) and it would never push through into the real world of voting. This was never really anything more than an online revolution that could never come close to cracking the mainstream of political thought.
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For a dark horse candidate, he made all that he could out of his Libertarian philosophies. He brought forward a whole bunch of young folks that didn't really understand the political process and they are now excited and involved. Of course, Iowa and New Hampshire slapped many of them across the face and Michigan and New Hampshire will do the same. Come February 5 even the staunchest Paul political supporter will have to realize that it isn't going to happen.
The problem that many didn't really understand is that Paul wasn't preaching anything new. This was the same Libertarian Party line that had been regurgitated over and over in one form of another for election after election. I'm not certain why so many thought it might be "magical" this campaign season.
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There is a reason that the Libertarian Party exists in relative obscurity. Though many of us hold several of the ideas of the party dear to our hearts and believe them fully, once the movement of the fringe takes hold it is too much to bear for most people.
Many scoffed at the "mainstream" and believed they didn't need them as their man Ron Paul would rise above and dominate. They didn't believe the polls that showed little support and the true believers don't even believe the votes that have been cast at the ballot box. I'm not certain if Paul and his supporters will go away quietly, but one thing is certain, they won't win this election or even come close enough to move the political debate.
What hypocrisy? I happen to think that the FR moderator crew has been terrific over the years. Certainly more fair than my biased a$$ would be.
Awwww. I’ll miss her fish sticks.
Armageddon?
Pretty obscure people do it and they must be able to profit from it."
That's why a lot of them run - the Rev. Al, for instance, Dennis Kucinich, to name a couple. Besides living better than they live at home - best of hotels, fine restaurants, etc., they put all of their family and friends on the payroll. They solicit donations from fools, their entourage profits, they live well and with any luck, they qualify for matching funds from us suckers, the taxpayers. Nice work if you can get it, huh?
Tough question. I'm definitely going third-party in the event of a Giuliani nomination. But with McCain, I truly do like him as a person and have no doubt that he's a bona fide war hero. I also happen think he's freaking crazy and don't want his finger on "the button" and that many of his policies suck. I would probably end up throwing back a bottle of Jack Daniels, smoking some high-quality pot and voting for him in the general. And then I'd go home and cry. But until then, I'm throwing my shekels to Fred and hoping that day never comes.
Victory: John McCain is committed to seeing that the War on Terror is fought to end no matter how long that may take.
Ron has fallen into the obsurity he so richly deserves.
Define "end".
Hillary wants to make sure she has the nomination sewed up before wasting any more money on Paul.
Rhetorical question? Paul’s nearly decade of publications show him to be a racist with very ugly views that range from wakadoo to filthy. Fairly or unfairly, the stench of his ideology, by inference carries over to FR. How many of his enablers, who post here all to often, agree with his newsletters?
The 4th quarter FEC candidate reports will be due in a couple of weeks.
Have fun identifying all the "leftists" and "Dems" among Paul's 100,000+ individual donors.
Oh, and when you're through be sure to file a complaint with the FEC about all that "funneled" George Soros money those individuals are fronting. They'll appreciate it.
And post it here for us all to see, if you would. (I have a little money riding on this, so make sure you post it here in some detail.)
More like loaded.
But at what price? I'm not so sure 8 years of liberal domestic policies would be worth it. Would you at least agree that McCain would need an extremely conservative running mate to have any chance whatsoever?
Might be longer than that. It sounds like if it hasn't been fought "to end" in 8 years, he won't be leaving.
That's incorrect I think. If the GOP runs a liberal like McCain or Giuliani, I won't vote for him. Now I disagree with Ron Paul on his view of Islam, but I'll readily vote for him because of the rest of his platform. He dislikes government as much as Golwater ever did. I find that attractive.
Hi Illbay.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1944545/posts?page=5#5
and you're repeating yourself
The forum has strict rules regarding stalking....I'm sure theyre still in effect. have a blessed evening
ROFL. I never even suspected.
Ehrling is definitely not that dude. "Illbay" was allergic to humor and levity. Ehrling is definitely cool in that regard. A lot nicer too.
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