Free Republic

Ron Paul would not pledge to rule out a third-party run for president if he did not get the Republican nod. Paul said he is running for the Republican nomination and to make such an announcement now would undermine his current campaign. However, Ron Paul hinted several times during the interview that the thought is in his mind. Paul noted that there are more registered Independents than Republicans or Democrats in the state of New Hampshire. When asked if he would pledge not to run as a third candidate Paul dodged giving a direct answer. "I pledge that I have...

Texas Rep. Ron Paul has won the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) 2012 presidential preference straw poll of 3,742 activists, the chairman of the huge annual gathering of conservative activists announced on Saturday. The poll, sponsored this year for the first time by The Washington Times, is seen as one of the earliest tests of grassroots popularity among the party’s dominant conservative wing, and Mr. Paul, who ran unsuccessfully for the nomination in 2008, has traditionally done well in the CPAC voting. The Republican lawmaker, long a favorite of the party’s libertarian wing, took 30 percent of the votes cast,...