Posted on 09/09/2007 5:30:35 PM PDT by traviskicks
For better or for worse — well, for worse — Ron Paul has become the Dennis Kucinich of the Republican Party.
His presidential campaign is an Ayn Rand express train rolling through a country already taken over by collectivists of various stripes. That there may be a caboose full of crazy sitting at the end of that train is enough to doom his chances.
But please, Ron, don't drop out just yet. The country might not want another Texan with nutty ideas and a political tin ear, but it may need one.
Many conservatives breathed a heavy sigh of relief when Fred Dalton Thompson confirmed Thursday that he was running for president. But while Thompson may be the best overall candidate for the Republicans, having someone like Paul in the hunt ought to generate healthy debate and more informed politics.
Unfortunately, it seems from the poll numbers that Americans like their politics devoid of straight talk. And it's not just Hillary Clinton trying to run away from her vote on the Iraq invasion.
Rudy Giuliani, running on the basis of his outstanding leadership around 9/11 (and the willingness of people to forgive earlier missteps), promises he would appoint pro-life judges, while still holding the pro-choice line. Mitt Romney is a large mass of wishy-washy whose riskiest stance so far was turning his back on soon-to-be-former-senator Larry Craig.
John McCain still speaks with conviction, but everyone seems disinterested in hearing what their cranky grandfather has to say about military strategy and the uselessness of torture.
Paul, however, is consistent with his message of defanged government and neo-isolationist policies. He talks about getting rid of the Internal Revenue Service and making sure the government leaves its citizens well enough alone.
That kind of talk ought to rally Texas conservatives, with the "get off my land" attitudes so prevalent over the past, oh, 170 years. Honestly, if all his positions are taken as a whole, it looks like the backbone of Texas conservatism. But he's barely making a dent in the polls even in his own backyard.
Because Paul still comes across as a little nuts. He doesn't fit in with the rest of the GOP, somehow. Opposition to the Patriot Act and the Iraq war just prove he's not a team player. He's putting principles above party, which is exactly how not to get ahead in Washington these days.
He's also fearless about his image. He's willing to spread his message on potentially hostile grounds such as The Colbert Report, Real Time With Bill Maher or the Republican debates.
In the Information Age, you're not likely to see many candidates take such a cavalier attitude. The current administration has taught them to seek familiar, friendly ground before saying anything that passes for substance these days. Surrounding yourself with sycophants, yes-men and screened supporters during the modern campaign is just a rehearsal for the later office.
Though Texans especially should have an appreciation for a straight-talking rogue, Paul has no realistic chance at nomination, much less election. Not even if he ran against a Clinton-Obama double bill.
But now that Thompson has (finally) formalized his plunge into presidential politics, he might think about taking some lessons from the contrarian Paul.
Thompson's running mate no matter who else joins the ticket is the ghost of Ronald Reagan. This would be the same Reagan who bucked his party by running for the 1968 and 1976 Republican nominations as the conservative alternative.
Reagan got elected in 1980 by finding a way to build a bridge between the "Religious Right" and low-tax libertarians, but he made his career with a rabble-rousing speech in support of Barry Goldwater's failed 1964 campaign.
The Republicans also seem to forget that they achieved power in 1994 by speaking their mind and promising policies that would return the country to congressional sobriety.
Thompson appears to be a fine federalist with charisma to spare. Here's hoping that he'll follow his convictions and become a strong presence and strong leader, able to convince others that his is the right path, rather than just being obstinate.
Virgil noted that "fortune favors the bold." Looking at Ron Paul, that may not be true.
But Paul's boldness could help rattle the conventional wisdom of today's Republicans and elevate the national discourse and direction. If so, he's the most important man in the race.
Even if nobody votes for him.
Ron Paul has a lot of things right that many of the current Republicrat candidates are afraid to get out of toe-step on: government independence, international police-force military, individual rights, and state vs. federal power. I would absolutely vote for his platform, I just hesitate voting for someone who comes in second in the crazy-race to Mike Gravel.
Hopefully he doesn’t run as a libertarian/independent after he drops out of the Republican primaries, I would hate for votes to be “wasted” on him. However, I do sincerely hope that the Republican machine takess a few ideas from him. People want to be protected by government, yes, but they do not want to be indentured to it, which is how the current winds seem to be blowing.
Finally, invoking Ayn Rand’s name as a muse for Ron Paul seems sac-philosophical (sacreligious).
I’ve never seen Kucinich defend Constitutional government, have you?
Do you believe Ron Paul?
He will win in the general election as either the Libertarian candidate or as an independent.
He is just using the GOP primary as a springboard for his real campaign.
In your heart you know it’s true.
To deny it is to lie.
Not only would she win, she would take all fifty states.
eh? This article is not about Kucinich, whom i doubt is any sort of constitutional defender.
I’m new posting to FR (long-time reader though) so I hope I don’t get zotted for taking an unpopular position.
I find RP’s platform to be a breath of fresh air. He really caught my attention by addressing the shell game our electeds have been playing by covering spending deficits with trade deficits. Inflation has been masked because the dollar has been well-accepted overseas, but the potential inflation is staggering. This has been a pet issue of mine for some time, and most people are not aware of the problem.
Reading through his website, many other positions make good sense as well. The main sticking point is what to do with Iraq.
I don’t want the U.S. to be perceived as weak, which would play well to various savages. It would also be to our advantage to make Iraq a good ally and to be a good ally to them. So, I’m hoping RP has a better exit strategy than simple withdrawal.
As far as positioning for a national election, I think RP could swing a lot of democrats, if he made it that far.
Ron Paul defends only his own egotistical misinterpretation of the Constitution.
Ideas?
FYI: those "ideas" were fought over, and debated long before you, or I, or even Ron Paul was born.
They don't call them the Founding Fathers for nothing, you know.
Amazingly, he wrote this without closing his sarcasm tag.
O.K., bookmarking your post.
for what it's worth.
I happen to believe Ron Paul when he said he will not run as a third party candidate.
Furthermore, I believe the Republican party doesn't need any help in losing the general election. All they will have to do is nominate some "liberal lite" RINO, and the losing will be quite fast and easy.
Aw, heck, bookmarking my own post, too!
There are plenty of Freepers who support Ron Paul, you won’t get banned for supporting him.
Ron Paul is NO Ronald Reagan!
Uh, I never said he was.
The Justice Department, and the Bush administration.
2) PRECISELY WHAT they saw as an OPPORTUNITY and PRECISELY HOW they planned to take advantage of it.
9/11, which you may recall was the topic under discussion, was the opportunity.
It was taken advantage of in myriad ways. To pick just one example, The USA PATRIOT act was not proposed in reaction to the attacks. The Reno DoJ had been asking for those powers for years, and the Republican Congress kept blocking them (As Dick Armey said of it, "One of these hotshots from the Justice Department said, 'This isn't new; we've been asking for this for a long time.' I said, 'We've been saying no for a long time.'").
You’re slinging truther BS, and you ought to be ashamed of yourself. Especially today. You and your pals disgust me to the point of puking. Especially today.
But I see that you and your nut-buddy are perfect for each other.
By the way, it was really refreshing how Bill O’Reilly sliced, diced, and minced your hero yesterday. Not that I’m a big BOR fan, mind you, but it was cool to see Elron get the b!tch-slapping he so richly deserves.
I won’t keep you, I’m sure that being 9-11 and all you have some Truther function to run off to. Scat!
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