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Paul’s foreign policy energizes backers: Candidate’s views draw fans, fury
The Boston Globe ^ | December 24, 2011 | Tracy Jan

Posted on 12/23/2011 10:01:56 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

DOWS, Iowa - He has set himself apart from the rest of the Republican field as the candidate who believes the United States should shed its role as the world’s policeman and focus instead on its internal economic problems. Representative Ron Paul of Texas says he would cut a trillion dollars out of the federal budget his first year as president, in part by ending all foreign wars and foreign aid, including to Israel.

Many conservatives characterize Paul’s foreign policy stance as extremist, isolationist, and anti-Israel, calling it a weakness that caps his support. Nearly half of those polled by ABC News and the Washington Post said it is a major reason to reject him. But with less than two weeks to go before Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses, those views have not stopped - and may have helped - Paul in his emergence as a real threat to front-runners Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney.

During last week’s debate in Sioux City, the Air Force veteran criticized what he considers undue concern in Washington over the possibility of Iran developing a nuclear weapon. “It’s another Iraq coming,’’ he said. “There’s war propaganda going on. . . . The greatest danger is that we will have a president that will overreact and we will soon bomb Iran.’’

Paul has also laid some of the blame for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on US foreign policy and advocated normalized relations with Cuba.

Paul’s anti-establishment policies resonate with a deep well of grassroots supporters who include a vocal segment of the Christian_right here in Iowa who do not believe in nation building at the point of a sword - even when it comes to protecting Israel - as well as college students who have lived much of their lives knowing only a nation at war....

(Excerpt) Read more at bostonglobe.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial
KEYWORDS: 2012; bostonglobe; evangelicals; iowa; paulestinians; peacecreeps; ronpaul; ronulans; wot
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Did they bring back the draft while I was asleep last night? If not, why do college students care about us being in the Middle East? No one is forcing them into uniform.
1 posted on 12/23/2011 10:02:02 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

The only people that support this nut job are fellow nut jobs.


2 posted on 12/23/2011 10:10:47 PM PST by doc1019 (Romney will never get my vote!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

They’re tacking advantage of pauls notoriety. These whores don’t miss a trick.


3 posted on 12/23/2011 10:12:09 PM PST by TwoSwords
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Not that we’d ever want their lazy millenial asses in uniform.


4 posted on 12/23/2011 10:34:56 PM PST by Old Sarge (RIP FReeper Skyraider (1930-2011) - You Are Missed)
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To: Old Sarge
A lot of them wouldn't pass a physical, background check, security clearance or get through even today's watered-down basic training.
5 posted on 12/23/2011 10:53:29 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (You can't invade the US. There'd be a rifle behind every blade of grass.~Admiral Yamamoto)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
"Did they bring back the draft while I was asleep last night? If not, why do college students care about us being in the Middle East? No one is forcing them into uniform."

I don't think it's just a fear of being drafted. I think more and more people are beginning to question our foreign policy, and the wisdom and morality of being in perpetual war, especially when we are trillions in debt.

6 posted on 12/23/2011 11:03:51 PM PST by incindiary
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Maybe they read George Washington’s Farewell Address.


7 posted on 12/23/2011 11:23:26 PM PST by TexasKamaAina
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To: TexasKamaAina
More likely they read High Times.


8 posted on 12/23/2011 11:48:19 PM PST by Bratch
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To: Bratch

Or Stormfront.


9 posted on 12/23/2011 11:50:07 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (You can't invade the US. There'd be a rifle behind every blade of grass.~Admiral Yamamoto)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Anyone who can do even minimal mathematical reckoning can see that either we take Paul’s view of military adventurism, or it will be forced upon us soon enough.

We’re broke. Full stop. Period.

I think younger people are waking up faster now, seeing as how many of them are getting a rude awakening to how a) their economic prospects are increasingly dim (with high youth unemployment as older workers stay in their jobs or the jobs simply dry up), and b) lots of them are in deep debt due to student loans that they cannot discharge in bankruptcy. Many kids are on the leading edge of the US debt implosion... they’re the first to experience the debt avalanche.

So when Paul comes along and says that he’s going to bring troops home, cut off all foreign aid and slash over a trillion bucks of spending out of the budget.... that starts sounding like savage common sense to many young people.


10 posted on 12/23/2011 11:51:41 PM PST by NVDave
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To: NVDave

3 seconds on Ron Paul’s facebook page would destroy these myths. The average “young” Ron Paul supporter is Godless, which leads to all the rest of their opinions. They have no patriotic love for their country. Many of them have also bought into the NWO-illuminati-Alex Jones propaganda, which is by nature utterly anti-American and anti-Israel. Plenty of truthers. Almost all of them have the same psychological traits that would make them good communist useful idiots as well.

The only thing Paul has going for him is his domestic policy and his principles. Everything else makes him vile. OTOH, Newt and Romney are also vile. What to do?


11 posted on 12/24/2011 12:33:36 AM PST by Apollo5600
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To: Apollo5600

As I’ve said on an earlier thread wherein Freepers are getting their panties in a wad about Paul, the GOP establishment has seen to it that there is never a “none of these fools” option on any primary ballot.

There comes a point where the voters are going to tell the “establishment” to shove it as far up their rectums as they can reach. Methinks that this is the election where that is now going to happen.

Frankly, I now believe that if the GOP immolates themselves in this election (and the aftermath when Obama wins, and I do think that Obama will win re-election), it could be the best thing to happen for the country. We don’t need a bunch of hard-core socialists (the Democrats) and a bunch of pantywaists and pansies providing an echo (the GOP establishment). The voters would like something resembling a choice, and that’s now only going to happen if one of the parties implodes and dies. There has never been a more dire need for a choice of “None of these morons” on ballots than in this election.


12 posted on 12/24/2011 2:37:52 AM PST by NVDave
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

He wants to take the US from the world’s policeman to the world’s catamite. He’s so dumb he thinks the founding Fathers never protected US interests in the world and didn’t believe in stopping our enemies.


13 posted on 12/24/2011 5:18:55 AM PST by elhombrelibre ("I'd rather be ruled by the Tea Party than the Democratic Party." Norman Podhoretz)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Paul isn’t a Republican or a Conservative; he’s his own weird brand of dumbed down Ayn Rand libertarianism with a Henry Wallace/George McGovern foreign policy. His biggest appeal is to pot heads, conspiracy nuts, anti-establishment loons, and America haters. His policies on spending are a welcome relief, but his constant defending of those who attack America, like he did with bin Laden, prove he’s a fool or a tool. His newsletter and its racist gibberish further show he’s completely willing to associate with unsavory kooks. His praise of the little creepy spy who is on trial for treason prove beyond a doubt that Run Paul is indifferent to the security of the American people.


14 posted on 12/24/2011 5:28:57 AM PST by elhombrelibre ("I'd rather be ruled by the Tea Party than the Democratic Party." Norman Podhoretz)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Ron Paul accused our troops in the Gulf War of atrocities.

Ron Paul blamed US foreign policy for the deaths of 3000 Americans on 9/11

Ron Paul praised Bradley Manning for stealing secrets.

Ron Paul attacks Republicans far more than he attacks President Obama

Ron Paul is an evil fraud.


15 posted on 12/24/2011 5:37:33 AM PST by Erik Latranyi
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To: Apollo5600

Hey Paul bot

Are you. 9-11 nutter like Ron

Do you blame the U s for 9-11 like Ron
Do you like millions in earmarks for Ronny’s pals like his
134.000,000 requested in 2009 by Mr Phony small govt
Do you hate Jews and Israel like Ron !

This phony 32 yr DC insider is vile hate filled
Pork King


16 posted on 12/24/2011 5:59:09 AM PST by ncalburt (NO MORE WIMPS need to apply to fight the Soros Funded Puppet !)
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To: Apollo5600

My comment was meant for all the Paul bots that you speak off on Facebook who troll here !
These leftist and Code Pink operatives posing as libertarians are working with the obama axelrod media to turn the GOP primary into
A joke !


17 posted on 12/24/2011 6:20:58 AM PST by ncalburt (NO MORE WIMPS need to apply to fight the Soros Funded Puppet !)
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To: TexasKamaAina
Maybe they read George Washington’s Farewell Address.>

Yup. Very wise man that George Washington.

While my research thus far leads me to believe that Ron Paul is naive regarding the most basic motivation of Jihadis, consider the following:

GW kept reminding us that 'Islam is a religion of 'peace'. Never mentioned that Islam is a total political system and peace is achieved when there is a world wide caliphate under Sharia.

Ultimately Paul's foreign policy would be better for both Israel and Christianity.

While Israel would get no foreign aid, neither would its enemies:
2011 Interview

Newsmax: What should our relationship be with Israel?
Ron Paul:
We should be their friend and their trading partner. They are a democracy and we share many values with them. But we should not be their master. We should not dictate where their borders will be nor should we have veto power over their foreign policy.
... Stop and consider America’s policy: We give $3 billion a year to Israel in loans; and we give $12 billion or more in assistance to Israel’s self-declared enemies. Some of these are countries that say they will drive Israel into the sea.
... We should share intelligence for mutually agreed-upon goals. We should honor our pledge to refuse any arms sales that would undermine Israel’s qualitative military edge in the region.

As a result of nation building, promoting 'democracy' in the middle east, and PC immigration:

Iraq's Christians Near Extinction

Per Pamela Geller "US policy regarding the refugee resettlement program would shock most Americans if they only knew. The UN picks who becomes US refugees. Christians are being refused refugee status and face persecution and many times certain death for their religious beliefs under the sharia, while whole Muslim communities are entering the US by the tens of thousands per month despite the fact that they face no religious persecution"

FYI Paul would stop funding the UN.
18 posted on 12/24/2011 6:34:28 AM PST by algernonpj (He who pays the piper . . .)
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To: elhombrelibre
He wants to take the US from the world’s policeman to the world’s catamite.

We are already being used and abused by all our friends. When have our allies ever helped us?

Paul wants to take care of ourselves first. Then, when it is in our interest, help other countries. Or even help for humanitarian reasons. Charity begins at home. There is a reason to put the oxygen mask on yourself before you put one on your baby. If you pass out, you cannot help the baby or anyone.

I will vote for Ron Paul as I always do. I don't believe in throwing my vote away on someone whose policies I don't like, just because he can win. What is the point of him winning if I don't like what he says he will do?

I watch the House most of the time they are in sesson.

19 posted on 12/24/2011 10:29:01 AM PST by carenot (We'd rather hold on to the myth than fight for the reality)
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To: NVDave

I am very very near to writing in Palin for president. Whatever you think of her is not the point, but that if Romney or Gingrich is the establishment GOP nominee, I may finally do what I have been telling other NOT to do, and just throw away my vote. I think I lack the courage to do it once in the booth, but I am sooooooo tempted.

Also, I wish the Tea Party would convert to an actual political party with conservative, small government candidates.

NO MORE RINOS. If the GOP is going to crash and burn, better sooner than later.


20 posted on 12/27/2011 8:26:51 PM PST by Freedom_Is_Not_Free (We be fooked.)
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