Posted on 05/07/2007 7:18:11 PM PDT by 11th_VA
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, who barely registers in public opinion polls of the Republican presidential field, won last Thursday night's debate.
That was the unmistakable conclusion of the online poll posted by debate sponsor MSNBC, which registered Paul with higher positive ratings and lower negative numbers than any of the other nine candidates on the stage.
In ABC's post-debate Internet survey showed an even clearer victory for Paul, with the congressman taking more than 9,400 of 11,000 votes as of 12:30 p.m. Monday. (Rudy Giuliani is the next ranked candidate, with barely 150 votes.)
So are the polls missing a Paul boomlet? Is the famously contrarian ob-gyn -- a libertarian nicknamed "Dr. No" because of his propensity to vote against anything he believes contradicts the Constitution's original intent -- poised to surge into contention in the GOP field?
Not likely. What's more likely, based on Web traffic over the past week, is that Paul supporters have mastered the art of "viral marketing," using Internet savvy and blog postings to create at least the perception of momentum for his long-shot presidential bid.
The Ron Paul Effect
Since online polls aren't scientific -- people choose to take them, and many people vote multiple times -- doing well in them doesn't necessarily mean a campaign is on the move.
But Internet buzz can have a carry-over effect, said Peter Greenberger, an online strategist at New Media Strategies and a former Democratic political operative.
"It's evidence of something -- either passionate supporters, active supporters, or just one very savvy supporter who's able to vote several thousand times," Greenberger said. "If it leads to one or two stories in the mainstream media, that could lead to a bounce online, and could lead to some fundraising successes."
With strong support among libertarians who are unhappy with the top-tier Republican contenders, Paul has a robust online presence.
His MySpace profile boasts nearly 12,000 "friends." Today, his name ranks in the Top 10 among blog search terms at Technorati.com, behind Paris Hilton but ahead of Mario Lopez.
After Thursday night's debate, the comment sections of several major news organizations -- including ABC's -- were inundated with pro-Paul messages.
Viewers raved about Paul's commitment to abolishing the IRS, his steadfast opposition to a national ID card, and a forthright tone that bloggers said set him apart from the other candidates onstage.
In The Paul campaign did not immediately respond to a phone call and e-mail message seeking comment.
That's nuts. It is two or three savvy supporters voting several thousand times.
The “Are you kidding me?” look he gave the other candidates when they raised their hands about evolution was priceless.
Sadly, he has a snowball’s chance in hell. But maybe he’ll remind the GOP elite that the Consitution matters.
He’s the only one who really understands what the role of Government ought to be.
Four years ago, it was the “Howard Dean Effect”. Same stuff, different election.
No offense to Ron Paul, he is from my state and he at least has the courage of his convictions — so very rare among our politicians.
But Ron Paul is not presidential material. Neither was Howard Dean.
Ron Paul is an anti war nut.
This is DUmmies, Kos Kidz, and HUFFPOs voting after tuning into Keith Olbermann.
I don't give it a prayer, but I am a staunch supporter.
I'd think that a high percentage of the voters on MSNBC were not Republican and will not vote in the Republican primary.
Heck, they don't have anything else to do........besides, it's constitutional......
Heh heh heh.......
His comments about wanting to castrate Libby with his teeth makes him a looney.
I think it’s interesting that Mr Constitution doesn’t see a problem with locking Lewis Libby up for lying about a crime that was never committed.
Sounds like democrats were busy voting on that poll. Drudge’s site showed that people thought Romney won the debate.
Oddly, I’m getting conflicting messages on this point. One person on his staff affirmed he did not believe in evolution after the debate, but a more closely placed person on the staff then contradicted that. I suspect this is one of those cases where the definition of “evolution” plays a big role.
That said, the slide in belief in evolution over the last generation among the general public gives the three who expressed disbelief a political advantage. (I’m thinking of the Gallup polls, for example, going from 42% to 52% over the last 25 years in support of the position that humans were created in the recent past.) With a minority of the public now expressing a belief in evolution (whether theistic or atheistic), these three split up the majority, while around 15 other majority candidates can vie for the minority of the public on this subject. Dr. Paul may want to make a correction quickly, if he made a mistake in the debate, to recover on this point.
LOL !!! They're tying up the C-SPAN phones as well !!!
Like that matters to the Republican Party any more.
agreed
But I predict Ron Paul will finish no better than 5th in Iowa or New Hampshire...and I’m being generous.
I would be glad to be a staunch supporter, but people who want us to lose wars don’t deserve to even visit the Oval Office, much less be President.
After seeing the clip after asking “who does not believe in evolution.” I shot off this email to the Ron Paul campaign:
On 5/4/07, Ron Shank wrote:
Dear Ron Paul team:
Does Ron Paul believe in evolution? I didn’t see his hand raised in the debate when asked “who does not believe in evolution.”
Thanks for your quick reply.
Thank you,
Ron Shank
They quickly replied.
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Re: Didn’t see his hand
Date: Fri, 4 May 2007 16:15:06 -0400
From: Ron Paul 2008 Presidential Campaign Committee
To: Ron Shank
Ron,
Ron Paul did not raise his hand during that question, it was Tancredo, Huckabee & Brownback who raised their hands. Dr. Paul is physician and believes in evolution.
http://www.shanktified.com/archives/ron-paul-campaign-on-evolution/
Losertarians don't care about the GOP.
Ron Paul is a LIBERTARIAN that lacks the INTELLECTUAL HONESTY and INTELLECTUAL HONESTY to run as such.
Rather, he takes the COWARDS’ WAY and runs as a REPUBLICAN in a very CONSERVATIVE DISTRICT.
HE KNOWS DEFEAT, WERE HE TO BE HONEST.
Personally, I would rather vote for a slime-ball like NICK LAMPSON than RON PAUL. At the very least, LAMPSON has the integrity to be a ANTI-AMERICA, PRO al-Qaeda Cheerleader.
Ron Paul doesn’t.
Hey, it could happen ...
Koskids having fun
See my new tagline
Ya just never know. LOL
They chose a murderer Barabas over the Son of God. The point is..... wear a hat so nobody will notice!
The man is a silly caricature.
Mr. .01%
And he deserves it.
Take care of the serious institutional problems, the rest will take care of themselves.
Heck, his comment that Libby shouldn't be pardoned because of Iraq was already loopy enough!
Writing for Antiwar.com makes him not just a loony, but an idiot as well.
I find that very interesting, too. Just one more way he presents us his most heartfelt principle: "The Constitution is a suicide pact."
He's not offering much for those who put their stock in celebrity.
He also has appeared on the Alex Jones radio show several times. In case you were wondering, Jones is a 9/11 “Truth” nutcase.
Take a Dramamine and read some DU for a while. They are certainly not the ones supporting Ron Paul.
You can't defeat an enemy by giving him the battle, FRiend. Additionally, I simply don't trust Dr. Paul's war position because I've caught him in lies before, and in contradictory actions, such as voting for a 2001 war resolution that has all the problems he attaches to the Iraq war resolution. Why would someone use untruths to buttress a position they believe in wholeheartedly?
Not after the way they ignored their promises about smaller government, we don't.
From what I’ve read from him over the years I belive he’s a “God created evolution” type of guy. Really, he’s a doctor and deals with biology everyday; it would be odd for him to belive in YEC.
What Paul supporters need to understand is that even rock-ribbed conservatives like me couldn’t care less about him because he wants to lose the war in Iraq. As long as that’s his position, I care about the rest of his policies about as much as I care about what color scarf Nancy Pelosi is wearing.
That's what the people who find it unacceptably inconvenient seem to want us to think.
You miss the point, tac. America is not so far gone that they only vote on celebrity. There is a staunch core of Americans who would vote enthusiastically for a solid Constitutionalist candidate; Reagan proved that. The reason Ron Paul draws virtually no support is that he is loopy and currently believes we will benefit from losing a war to Al Qaida.
They should be--he has all the same positions on the war on terror. If he agreed with me as closely on the war as he agrees with them, I'd be supporting him.
You have got to be kidding me. Please tell me he did not buy into that claptrap.
Do you have a source for that?
A guy who wants to lose a war with Al Qaida and think he's following the Constitution is an idiot. Paul doesn't deserve the respect you're giving him, especially since he doesn't feel bound to tell the truth when he's telling us why the war is unconstitutional.
This is DUmmies, Kos Kidz, and HUFFPOs voting after tuning into Keith Olbermann.
Well said and "spot on".
Who, among the current crop of candidates will look at a piece of legislation crossing his desk for approval will ask "Is this a legitimate exercise of Constitution powers, as originally granted and intended?" before he will ask "Is it popular?"?
“Viewers raved about Paul’s commitment to abolishing the IRS, his steadfast opposition to a national ID card, and a forthright tone that bloggers said set him apart from the other candidates onstage.”
Yeah those things he said couldn’t possibly attract voters. It’s an enigma. /s
Do you have a source or quote from him stating that it is his objective to lose the war, or do you just have a difference of opinion on how Al Qaida needs to be fought?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.