Posted on 12/24/2011 6:52:00 AM PST by Kaslin
This piece was co-authored by Ford O'Connell
It’s time to have a frank conversation about “the one,” and we are not talking about President Barack Obama.
The latest round of polling coming out of the Hawkeye State suggests that Texas Congressman Ron Paul could indeed win the 2012 Iowa caucuses.
In 2008, long-shot candidate Gov. Mike Huckabee scored a surprise win in Iowa, but his candidacy was serious and he was a governor. That year, eventual nominee Sen. John McCain essentially skipped Iowa, finishing fourth and marginalizing Iowa’s political impact.
Should Rep. Ron Paul, who first ran for president in 1988, win Iowa, it may be the last time the state has the honor of being the first state to hold a vote every four years.
We know Iowa GOP caucus-goers are frustrated with the status quo in Washington and are extremely concerned about the future direction of this great nation, but casting a vote this January for candidate Paul is beyond unwise for three reasons.
First, Ron Paul will not defeat President Obama in 2012. The most recent general election polling may suggest that Rep. Paul is within striking distance of Obama, but the president will score an easy victory next November if Paul is indeed his opponent. While conservatives and some establishment Republicans rightly cheer as Paul professes smaller government and fiscal accountability, his outrageous positions on U.S. foreign policy, particularly given the meteoric rise of China and continued saber-rattling by Iran and North Korea on the international scene, will cause most general election voters to double down on Obama before they pull the lever in Paul’s favor.
Let us also not forget that should Paul actually be the nominee, his decades-old incendiary (although unbylined) newsletters — once Team Obama highlights them — will likely damage the Republican brand for years to come. Simply put, if Paul is the Republican nominee, President Obama will be assured four more years in the White House, and Americans just cannot afford that.
Second, Ron Paul will not win the 2012 GOP presidential nomination, so there is no need to give him momentum. We know the field is large and there are several viable choices to be the Republican Party’s standard-bearer next year, but giving Paul a victory in Iowa can only serve to hinder the eventual Republican nominee’s chances in the general election.
In the past, Paul has not demonstrated himself to be a team player, and with our new primary rules, Paul could wreck havoc all the way to the convention in Tampa. This counterproductive behavior was on display in 2008, when he refused to endorse then-nominee McCain and proceeded to hold a protest near the national convention. If Paul accumulates enough delegates in 2012, he could cause some real problems for the eventual nominee and the party at the convention. Regardless of which candidate not named Paul ultimately wins the nomination, every potential GOP voter needs to be unified if Obama is to be defeated in 2012.
Third, voters must not embolden Ron Paul to make a third-party presidential run. Many of Ron Paul’s most ardent supporters display a mania for him that transcends policy and becomes idolatry. There is no need to give Paul’s supporters any reason to think that Paul will fare better in a three-way general election than in a two-candidate race. According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News national poll, a third-party bid by Paul would almost certainly doom the eventual Republican nominee’s chances of capturing the White House in 2012, as he would draw many more votes from the Republican nominee than from President Obama. It also doesn’t help that Paul has yet to publicly rule out a third-party run.
Congressman Paul is extremely dangerous and his candidacy for president should not be taken lightly. He cannot be allowed to gain momentum in Iowa, either within the Republican field or in preparation for a third-party general election run. Our country’s future literally hangs in the balance. Helping Paul win a victory in Iowa will not only be a wasted vote, but it will likely challenge the party’s wisdom of permitting the Hawkeye State to hold the first nominating contest in the future.
Your vote only matters if we say it does
Paul's candidacy is going to skew all the primaries, keeping the GOP voters milling around in confusion, keeping them divided.....because they will have no idea if their personal favorites have had a fair shot.
Paul's cult members stack caucuses, some are bussed in, they are like lemmings who will troop to the cauci or the polls through fire and brimstone to vote for their leader.
The liberal media doesn't go after Paul because he is valuable to their agenda.
A case may be made that Paul is both dangerous AND a kook. At any rate, his twisted ego has prevented him from gracefully bowing out of his Kool-Aid Krusade as he should have done a long time ago.
His twisted ego also raises the possibility of a third-party run. If Trump does the same, it could really hurt the GOP presidential nominee. Obabaloney is undoubtedly is licking his chops over this scenario.
Leni
Ok, I watched the ad and found it to be quite misleading. First, the fact that a number of self-identified people claiming to be military gave to RPaul does not provide any significant information relevent to whether RPaul is an ardent defender of the Constitution.
Second, if you go to the source of the data, you’ll find that RPaul raised approximately $12.6M of which only $65K came from those who self-identified themeselves as a member of one of the services. When you look at the geographical data, you find that none of the top 10 contribution areas have any relationship to military.
Also, this data is based upon self-identification. IOW, anyone can claim to be military.
But this is only typical of RPaul who says a lot of things but usual does another.
BTW, I bet RPaul also leads among Muslim donors to Republican candidates and I’m sure he’s by far the largest recipient of contributions from Stormfront.
Oh, come on. There are a lot of things to criticize Ron Paul on, but this is ridiculous.
He does resemble the far left on foreign policy, in some ways (although they probably want a considerable U.N. presence), but on almost every other issue, he's the exact opposite of the far left. You think the far left wants sound money, $1 trillion in cuts, and dismantling much of the federal government?
That sucks! I was a delegate to the 2000 state convention, and we had ballots for nominating our presidential candidate, but since "everyone knew who the nominee would be", they didn't even ask for those ballots to be written, let alone be collected.
I have had many dissappointments with the Republican party over the years.
Reluctantly working with them again this time, in hopes that they get it right, but my patience is wearing thin.
Ron Paul is a nut case but a spoiler.
First, Ron Paul will not defeat President Obama in 2012.
I would not assume any candidate could defeat Obama in 2012.
This is all the result of the GOP establishment forcing Sarah Palin out of the race. IMO.
Please read my post #67 relating a similar personal experience.
Not even if he gets the most votes?
It’s getting worse, not better.
Nice screen name. It suits your post.
Would counting those votes have really changed anything or just made you feel better? Honestly?
Convince everyone Ron Paul is a crazy, racist, senile old man. All his supporters are dirty hippies that are all on drugs and are anti-Semite wackos.
Get the word out that voters in Iowa should vote for anyone they want, EXCEPT FOR Ron Paul. If they vote for him, the state will be a disgrace and the rest of America will hate Iowa forever.
If he wins, it will not even matter! The Republican leaders will ignore him and his crazy anti-American supporters and focus on the second and third place candidates.
Make sure that all media reporting includes the following: "There is no way Ron Paul will be the nominee. Remember you will be informed at the proper time who to support. (Remember McCain was broke around the NH primary and that didn't matter, it was his turn. You all did well supporting the Maverick.)
Drugs, never once forget Drugs, Ron Paul wants your children to use them! He want to flood the streets with released addicts and pushers along with TONS of cocaine. He really does love Heroin.
Remember, Your vote will only matter when you vote for who we choose, we know what is best for you! Relax, the Republicans have it all under control!
Kooks for Paul!
Go, Kooks!
Yay, Kooks!
Ron Paul is being used to get any discussion of constitution restoration labeled “crazy talk”. And it’s working.
Really? Gay military? A free sample rock and crackpipe for every pothead? An impotent military? A nuclear iran? shariah for the family who preys together? Open borders? No pesky Israel? Dilda has two mommies and maybe two poppies? on and on ad nauseum. He is the left’s DREAM candidate.
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