Free Republic

Sen. John McCain, taking a victory lap as the presumptive Republican nominee, happily poked fun at his only remaining opponent. Asked during an appearance on "The Daily Show" last week which of the two Democratic nominees he preferred to run against in the general election, McCain quipped, "Ron Paul." But Paul might get the last laugh during McCain's coronation at the party's convention in early September. McCain's nomination may be certain, but he finds himself pressured by different wings of the conservative movement -- from the libertarians and the anti-war activists, to social conservatives and evangelical voters.

In a message to supporters sent just before 11 p.m. Friday night, Representative Ron Paul, a long-shot G.O.P. candidate from Texas, basically conceded that he’s not going to win the party’s nomination. That said, he’s scaling back his campaign — but not entirely. He said: With Romney gone, the chances of a brokered convention are nearly zero. But that does not affect my determination to fight on, in every caucus and primary remaining, and at the convention for our ideas, with just as many delegates as I can get. But with so many primaries and caucuses now over, we do...

Considering the GOP debate was held in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, it was surprising to see the two leading candidates fall miserably short of his charisma. In the Florida Primary, Mike Huckabee fell behind both Romney and McCain by a whopping 20%, but you would never have guessed that listening to him tonight. Not only was he far more eloquent and grounded in presenting his arguments, he's consistently shown to be the candidate with the best sense of humor. I was embarrassed, in fact, listening to Romney and McCain's squabbling, and the applause Ron Paul received when chastising them...

Well, one poll shows he could do just that and finish in a 3-way tie with Huckabee and Giuliani for the 3rd spot. That would be huge. The reason? Independents love him in New Hampshire. Maybe even more than they loved him in Iowa. From Zogby: McCain opens up his lead, though Romney had a good day. But the 3-day average favors McCain. He leads big among Independents, though Paul is beginning to draw some of the Indies’ support and is now polling double digits again in the North – taking votes away from McCain. Paul does very well among...

Cindy Sheehan along with Stormfront Leader Jamie Kelso (in the Ron Paul t-shirt) at a Ron Paul rally in Ft. Worth.

(At Spanish Language Debate) He just walked into the lion's den by saying we ought to both talk and trade with Castro's Cuba. Loud boos followed. He then said our policies propped up the likes of Fidel and Hugo Chavez. More boos. And then there was a third round as he finished his statement. Needless to say, the Ron Paul post-debate party won't be at the Versailles over on Calle Ocho (though the ropa vieja and plantains are superb).

Like noxious bugs swarming over a crumbling tenement, followers of Ron Paul have invaded the blogosphere. Their target is anyone who dares to criticize their hero. Bloggers have dealt with them in various ways. Some have tried banning them outright. Others allow readers to engage them in back-and-forth debates that can easily take a thread to several hundred responses. I used to find the Paulites annoying, but recently I had a revelation: Far from being scorned, Paul’s rabid fans should be welcomed and encouraged. We should do everything we can to make certain they keep pushing their man, sending him...

Who do you want to be the Republican Presidential nominee? Rudy Giuliani Mike Huckabee Duncan Hunter John McCain Ron Paul Mitt Romney Tom Tancredo Fred Thompson

Let's start with Wednesday night's CNN/YouTube debate. I'll have to admit. This is the most entertaining debate format of the season. While many of the questions are dumb, I like that the candidates are uneasy and having to roll with the punches. Here's a wrapup of the Republican version on Wednesday. But the biggest disappointment for me was that the guys at Red State Update didn't make the cut this time. Back in the summer, they were the hit of the Democratic Debate with a question about Al Gore. (see Joe Legge's Blog) But this time, they're questions were too...

This guy is becoming even more of an idiot than I thought. It's ok to want out of Iraq, but it's another thing to lie about it in order to get votes. He was properly smacked by McCain for his comments. To which Ron Paul supporters tried to boo McCain, but were drowned out with cheers for McCain as McCain schooled Paul on the facts of Vietnam. I will post video as soon as I have it, and the latest numbers of a decline in violence in Iraq. Which Paul says is because the Brits are pulling out of Basra....

I chose this topic for a guest DUFU with some degree of trepidation. Any mention of "Ron Paul" anywhere on the Internet tends to bring out the Paulbots. But there is material to work with here: Confusion and kookiness in DUmmieland! Pied Piper Pitt takes on the Paulbearers--and the Paulbamboozled--in this THREAD titled, "I haven't been on DU much, so this might be off base...but...Ron Paul? Say freakin' what?!" BTW, Pitt will use this thread to a) reveal some personal news of note and b) get in some digs at one of the Democrat favorites in DUmmieland. So let's...

AS THE HOPELESS but energetic presidential campaign of Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, builds momentum in name recognition, fundraising and cross-ideology appeal, some conservatives are beginning to attack him in earnest. A GOP consultant condemns Paul's "increasingly leftish" positions. Syndicated columnist Mona Charen calls Paul "too cozy with kooks and conspiracy theorists." Film critic and talk-radio host Michael Medved looks over Paul's supporters and finds "an imposing collection of neo-Nazis, white supremacists, Holocaust deniers, 9/11 'truthers' and other paranoid and discredited conspiracists." For the most part, these allegations strike me as overblown and unfair. But, for argument's sake, let's say they're...

Apparently, America's greatest patriot was on Loonwaffle/Trooferville's favorite radio show today with the King Nutbar himself, although I'm not sure if anyone grabbed audio. If you want to listen to the rebroadcast stream, go here. I don't feel like it. Have fun.

More than 600 people came out Tuesday afternoon for a rally held by presidential hopeful Ron Paul. Paul, the Texas representative who's gaining attention for his online and grassroots support, spoke to the crowd about ending the war in Iraq, limiting government regulation and gaining economic stability. "We don't need to sacrifice," Paul said, drawing applause from the audience. "What we need is freedom to make our own decisions."

State field director predicts second, even first in Iowa It seems like when we're young, we like to break a few rules.  Staying out a little too late, sneaking a drink before that official legal age, or backing a candidate who's outside the established mold (YEEEEEAH!) Several of those dynamics were on display Saturday at Olive Court, a notoriously wild tailgate spot three blocks from Iowa City's Kinnick Stadium.  It was here, just a year ago, that John Kerry was infamously photographed with a beer bong.  And into the anarchy marched the Ron Paul revolution. Ron Paul wasn't imbibing...

The meeting of Ron Paul activists was well under way when organizer Steven Talcott Smith offered the kind of basic advice you probably wouldn't hear at a gathering of any other Republican presidential candidate's supporters. "By the way," Smith told the Internet-driven "meet-up" of about 40 people at a library west of Boynton Beach, "by the end of this year everybody in this room should plan to be a Republican." Florida's Jan. 29 Republican primary is, not surprisingly, limited to registered GOP voters. But a Republican pedigree or a familiarity with the elections process cannot be taken for granted with...

The ardent supporters of Rep. Ron Paul, the iconoclastic Texas libertarian whose campaign for the presidency is threatening to upend the battle for the Republican nomination, got word yesterday of a new source of outrage and motivation: reports of a federal raid on a company that was selling thousands of coins marked with the craggy visage of their hero. Federal agents on Thursday raided the Evansville, Ind., headquarters of the National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve Act and Internal Revenue Code (Norfed), an organization of "sound money" advocates that for the past decade has been selling a...

One issue voters. Confused, emotional one issue voters. And they come from all stripes of politics. Let's have a look. The Neo nazi groups/conspiracy theorists - Ron says he will end aid to Israel. They've latched on to that one. Most of them don't want the government to function, good or bad because it keeps them in check. Not quite anarchists, but close. The Leftie Anti war crowd, not really pacifists, but bohemian cowards promoting anarchy. Paul says he'll end the war and be nice to everyone no matter how they've tried to kill us. The Conservative who really would...

Ron Paul breaks into the light as freedom warrior By David M. Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, November 11, 2007 DES MOINES -- It used to be easy to portray Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul as a quixotic champion of a hopeless cause. But Don Quixote never raised $4.2 million in a single day. The parody of someone tilting at windmills hardly fits now that Paul is raising serious amounts of campaign cash. He's using it to fortify grassroots efforts in the important early caucus state of Iowa and to buy TV ads in New Hampshire and other key battleground states. The...

Ron Paul Political Report Volume I Number 1 Page 3 In Congress today, unquestlonlng support for Israel is true bipartisan foreign policy. Conservative Senator Jesse Helms (R-Nc) was once a critic of aid to Israel. In 1983, the Israell lobby set out to forge an alliance between the evangelical right and Jews and knew Helms would be the best place to start. As a result, in 1984 Israeli PACs and associated wealthy buslnessmen helped bankroll Helms' reelection. campaign. Once Helms was back in office, he was flown to Israel. At the Wailing wall, Helms described the revelatlon that God wanted...