Debating Ron Paul

National Ledger ^ | Aug 29, 2007 | JB Williams

[PlainOleAmerican]

Ron Paul supporters are fast making a name for themselves on the web. Not because they are just web savvy, but because they have proven themselves to be the best at hacking on-line polls, invalidating conservative polling data on behalf of their candidate. It seems that even Democrat 527 MoveOn.org is now onboard the Ron Paul anti-war train.

Despite the fact that presidential candidate Ron Paul can not score better than 3% in any legitimate national poll, his supporters claim he is “the conservative” candidate to beat in the 2008 Republican race for the White House. Despite his less than conservative voting record in congress and his Teddy Kennedy like position on the war on terror in Iraq, his supporters think he is the most “conservative” candidate in the race. How?

[PlainOleAmerican]

I predict he will pull the Cindy Sheehan voters from the Democrats far more than he will affect the Republican primary.

Ron Paul speaks for Sheehan, Fonda, Kennedy, Pelosi, Reid and Chavez on the war. Not “conservatives”...

[PlainOleAmerican]

Nobody is hurting Ron Paul’s campaign like Ron Paul supporters are...

[FreeInWV]

I’m not a Paul supporter, but he has his merits. He has a grassroots. I’ve already seen his signs. He has a strong internet presence.

I don’t agree with all of his positions, but I agree with many of them. For one, he speaks far more about the constitution and limited government than any of the other candidates. They could care less.

The other candidates fear him because he raises topics that do not wish to discuss or support. Things like the constitutionality or necessity of the Patriot Act or cutting foreign spending. Perhaps, they should take a long hard look at Ron Paul and figure out what makes him so popular. Maybe they could learn something.

[laotzu]

The dims prepared this meal...

Too many of us are bellying up to the trough.

[Oberon]

Paulistinians

Now that right there...that's a truly great piece of propaganda. It's catchy, it's punchy, it makes the point (that the association is false just makes it so much sweeter), and best of all IT'S ONLY ONE WORD LONG!

You should take a bow...Goebbels would give you a gold star.

[ovrtaxt]

That’s true, as long as the war is the main issue.

There are a lot of conservatives who find his views on the Constitution Goldwater-esque, myself included. But I’m a Hunter guy.

[rlmorel]

"...The dims love it when we eat our own...."

Ron Paul and his supporters are not "our own".

Anyone who draws any support from the scum at MoveOn and Code Pink (whether real or contrived) is not "our own".

[rightwingintelligentsia]

I wish the Paulestinians were as principled and ethical as they claim Ron Paul to be.

[Oberon]

Y'all buncha Republican party-above-all-else neocons could make the whole Ron Paul phenomenon dry up and blow away overnight, if you wanted to. It would be simple. You just have to

RUN A CANDIDATE WHO WILL ACTUALLY PURSUE A CONSERVATIVE AGENDA.

You know, stuff like balancing the budget, eliminating useless Federal agencies, restoring federalism, shoring up individual rights, cutting taxes...But I'm not holding my breath.

In the meantime, it's nice to have at least one candidate who thinks the constitution means what it says.

[ovrtaxt]

exactly.

[Martins kid]

Surre you are not a Ron Paul supporter.... RIIIIGHT. they always start with Lets look at this logical point Paul has made. If you read this entire article (and I recommend the entire article) you will see that the author believes that Paul picks and chooses only the parts of the Constituiton that he wants to enforce. Not a good plan.

[David Isaac]

Your have, pretty much, the same views as I. When I read the article, I could see the sense, in a Goldwater conservative way, in a lot ot Ron Paul’s “sins”

I think I am starting to get a grasp on this conservative/neo-conservative thing.

[mnehring]

Don't be fooled.. Paul is no Conservative.

Ron Paul's Voting Record (ya, ya, I know, there is an excuse for all of these, state's rights are more important than stopping abortion and fixing the border, Ronnie is making a statement, or everyone else was voting against it and he was just playing the game, yadda, yadda, yadda)

Here are some more ‘Conservative(sic)’ votes by Paul:

Voted NO on federal crime to harm fetus while committing other crimes.

Voted NO on forbidding human cloning for reproduction & medical research.

Voted NO on barring transporting minors to get an abortion.

Voted YES on funding for alternative sentencing instead of more prisons.

Voted NO on more prosecution and sentencing for juvenile crime.

Voted NO on military border patrols to battle drugs & terrorism.

Voted NO on allowing school prayer during the War on Terror.

Voted NO on allowing vouchers in DC schools.

Voted NO on passage of the Bush Administration national energy policy.

Voted NO on implementing Bush-Cheney national energy policy.

Voted YES on barring website promoting Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump.

Voted NO on speeding up approval of forest thinning projects.

Voted NO on reforming the UN by restricting US funding.

Voted NO on requiring lobbyist disclosure of bundled donations.

Voted NO on prohibiting lawsuits about obesity against food providers.

Voted NO on prohibiting product misuse lawsuits on gun manufacturers

Voted NO on prohibiting suing gunmakers & sellers for gun misuse.

Voted NO on decreasing gun waiting period from 3 days to 1.

Voted NO on emergency $78B for war in Iraq & Afghanistan.

Voted NO on $266 billion Defense Appropriations bill.

Voted YES on more immigrant visas for skilled workers.

Voted YES on providing $70 million for Section 8 Housing vouchers.

Voted NO on promoting work and marriage among TANF recipients.

Voted NO on treating religious organizations equally for tax breaks.

Let's also not forget Paul's Pork Projects (that he voted for before he voted against when he calls them unconstitutional but he is just playing the game when he submits them because everyone else does it.. yadda yadda yadda..)

[Clint N. Suhks]

Better watch out, a RuPaulette has already announced that the use of that term makes you a Nazi.

[Martins kid]

OoooOooo - I think we’ve hit a nerve here.
Good morning Paul-bots.
Have some coffee and read the article BEFORE posting - okay?

[David Isaac]

Ping to post 32, which I took too long composing. There are still a few who remember Goldwater.

[mnehring]

The RuPaulettes are hurting RuPaul’s campaign more than helping it.

I never would have examined Paul's record so closely if it wasn't for the Paulbearers. Once you scratch the surface, it isn't a pretty site beneath.

[rightwingintelligentsia]

LOL! (See tagline)

[rlmorel]

I was having a discussion last night with my brother, and the subject of my sister came up who is a nearly fanatical supporter of Ron Paul. She is a lost person, and the fact that she came to rest in the lap of Ron Paul and Code Pink illustrates that point.

When I told my brother that I have had a lot of interaction with Ron Paul supporters in this forum, and that it was fruitless trying to pursue a discussion of nearly any issue, he blurted out:

“HAVE YOU EVER READ THE CONSTITUTION?”

This made me laugh, as I recognized one of the talking points...I said “Oh, so you have spoken to them as well?”

[Martins kid]

I found these paragraphs quite interesting -

“Now try explaining why any Republicans support him? When you are through studying the views of his supporters, you will find that they have two common values, a strong anti-war isolationist view of world events and a deep love of their money.

At the end of the day, Ron Paul supporters on both sides of the political aisle are driven by only two beliefs and one motivating factor. They are anti-war because they are anti-tax. They do not look beyond the agenda to reduce or eliminate taxes to see the consequences of the decisions they make. They would bring the war on terror abroad right to our own doorstep to save a few tax dollars and that allows Ron Paul to appeal to anti-war voters from the far left and the far right.”