Posted on 02/14/2011 7:20:00 AM PST by SeekAndFind
As expected, Rep. Ron Paul (R., Texas) won the annual straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, an early, though unscientific, indicator of conservative favor as the 2012 presidential campaign cycle kicks into gear. Paul, with a 30 percent plurality, topped numerous high-profile White House contenders. He finished seven points ahead of former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who placed second. All other candidates finished with less than ten percent of the vote: former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson snagged six percent, as did Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich won five percent.
For Paul, whose 2008 presidential bid stirred thousands of libertarian-leaning conservatives to the polls, it was repeat performance: He won the CPAC contest last year, buoyed by strong grassroots support. This year, Paul’s highly-organized supporters followed a similar on-site strategy, rallying for the 75 year-old throughout the three-day gathering via panel sessions and heavy politicking in the lobby of the sprawling Marriott Wardman Park. As Paul remarked in his Friday speech, “I’m glad to see the revolution is continuing.”
CPAC brass played down the results. “The straw poll is not a poll; the straw poll is entertainment for the people that are here,” says David Keene, the former president of the American Conservative Union, in an interview with National Review Online. “He won it last time because he was the only one running. Even I could win it if I was the only one running. He is the only one who seems to focus on it exclusively.”
Grover Norquist, the influential taxpayer advocate, tells NRO that Paul’s win is far from meaningless. “If you are running for president, you need to be able to connect with the activists,” he says. “This is a measure of how connected you are to activists, especially the young activists. Some people talk about the money primary — this is the activist primary.”
Paul’s growing following on the right, Norquist predicts, could shake up the 2012 race, especially on issues championed by the Texas congressman, like monetary policy. “It’s like 1988, when Pat Robertson ran for president,” he observes. “Robertson brought a whole collection of people into the Republican party.” While acknowledging that some Republicans find Paul supporters “strange” for their dogged focus on the Federal Reserve, the fresh faces, Norquist says, are “very healthy” for the future of the GOP.
Alexander McCobin, a Paul supporter and founder of Students for Liberty, agrees. “This shows that libertarianism really is what Ronald Reagan said: the heart and soul of conservatism,” he tells us. “Libertarianism — belief in individual liberty, limited government, free markets — these are the principles that should be defining conservatism. If the GOP decides to ignore that lesson, they’re going to be hurt.”
At CPAC, Paul’s maneuvers were not limited to hallway organizing. The rail-thin congressman also generated sparks for his criticism of U.S. foreign policy — a rarity at CPAC. From the dais, facing thousands of conservatives, he shamed both parties for supporting former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. “The people don’t like us propping up their dictators,” he said. “No more than we would like it if a foreign country propped up a dictator in our country.” He also had strong words about ladling cash to U.S. allies. “Foreign aid is taking money from the poor people of rich countries and giving it to the rich people of poor countries,” he argued.
Nearly 11,000 conservative activists attended the conference. However, two politicians with vocal backing from attendees — Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee — did not show, making the straw poll a notable, though hardly definitive, glimpse at the emerging field of candidates. The ballot box was also closed on Friday afternoon, hours before two prominent GOP governors, Gov. Mitch Daniels of Indiana and Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi, spoke, so Paul’s win, though newsworthy, may not carry too much weight in the run-up to 2012.
UPDATE: Full results:
Rep. Ron Paul (R., Texas) — 30%
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney — 23%
Former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson — 6%
Gov. Chris Christie (R., N.J.) — 6%
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich — 5%
Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty — 4%
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R., Minn.) — 4%
Gov. Mitch Daniels (R., Ind.) — 4%
Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin — 3%
Former business executive Herman Cain — 2%
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee — 2%
Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum — 2%
Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.) — 2%
Amb. Jon Huntsman — 1%
Gov. Haley Barbour (R., Miss.) — 1%
Other — 5%
Undecided — 1%
Read the same thing. 2/3 of attendees did not vote.
He obviously won’t be the candidate, but he needs to run to force intelligent discussion of the issues. Even when he’s wrong, he tends to force a clear policy discussion, which makes it difficult for the standard pols to blather in their usual dishonest, incoherent way.
What a joke !!
The last few years have been a joke as far as the winner of the straw polls go.
Romney won them in 07,08,09 and Paul won in 10, 11.
Trump was right. You have a better chance electing Santa Claus to be President than you do Ron Paul.
Looking back at history.......have any of the top two in the straw polls ever been elected? If not, then the straw poll means nothing.
Yeah, I wonder if anyone can remember/recite the winners of last year's straw poll, the year before that, the year before that.....
The sore losers are out in force on this thread!! Of course, these losers would be praising the poll if their candidate had won. I wonder if they also turn over the board when they lose a game of checkers!
Leni
All this fooly-bear senior class president stuff is a lot fun. My question is whether any these fine-feathered young people will get back on the ‘hacienda’ at the end of the day and vote for the GOP candidate. If not they are leeching resources from the conservative core and doing real harm to the poeple. Maybe Paul should search deep whether that’s what he’s really all about.
Unfortunately, for the masses who vote but don't pay much attention to current events, it's all about looks. It's human nature to react positively to someone who looks good, and negatively to someone who doesn't. In addition, there have been numerous studies showing that people don't trust men with facial hair as much as those without. If Ambassador Bolton wants to make a serious run at the presidency, he would do well to shave off the moustache and get a hair cut.
“Unfortunately, for the masses who vote but don’t pay much attention to current events, it’s all about looks.”
True, true. Lincoln never would have been elected with today’s low standards. It’s like the general public is trying to cast a movie and is looking for the perfect face . . . kinda’ like Romney, sort of. Altho, I’m not sure how Nobama was picked for looks . . . skinny as hell . . . dumbo ears. But, then again, McLame looked tired and crippled (both of which he was).
Pray for our republic. We’re in a lot of trouble.
That’s what I think. He may not have a chance at winning. He’s too old. Admittedly I’m not jump up and down enthusiastic with any of the candidates.
Most politicians support views and policies that blow with the wind, and when they speak it is hot air. Paul has been saying the same thing for 30 years on big issues even when everyone criticized and laughed at him such as how the Federal Reserve is destructive, and how we need to end foreign aid, and how our borders need closed and most important how our US Constitution is more important than politics.
As I recall, Ron Paul “ran away” with multiple straw polls prior to the last Presidential primary election, but it didn’t give him any traction in actual voting.
Well, I’m not surprised that that Gay Muslim Rat Grover Norquist supports Ron Paul. But I must say, I think the increasingly irrelevant National Review might at least mention that Ron Paul bussed in a ton of young Paulites to vote for him.
Also, that CPAC has become HomoPac this past couple of years, so fewer and fewer of those who attend have any real conservative values.
Who won the last CPAC straw poll? How well did that individual do in the actual election?
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