The Ron Paul for President Phenomenon
Murray Sabrin
Last Wednesday, my article about Rep. Ron Paul’s chances to win the GOP presidential nomination was posted on www.lewrockwell.com. The responses from readers across the country kept me busy for two days responding to their emails. The emails to my analysis of Ron Paul’s announcement last Monday on C-SPAN that he is a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination ranged from wildly enthusiastic to outright cynicism.
A sampling of the comments below reveals that the Internet (and other spontaneous individual efforts) will play a major role in Ron Paul’s campaign during the next 9-12 months. The nominees of each party will probably be chosen by early February next year, because so many states, including New Jersey, have moved their presidential primaries up to February 5th. Thus, 2007 is looming more important than ever for all the candidates to capture the imagination of voters, as the primaries are “front loaded” in 2008. If this small sampling of responses to my article is any indication of Ron Paul’s support in America, he will be a competitive candidate, despite the current polls.
From Darel:
I'm very excited about Dr. Paul. I have never placed a bumper sticker on my Saab but for the first time I have one for Dr. Paul. To add I have an option for Billboards in the first few states and working on a great ad for Dr. Paul to help him win his nomination. Of course I'm doing all of this on my own since I have maxed out my personal contribution. Also, I own just under 100 Internet directories and in the process of adding a link to each site which deals with various topics after completed it should send over 70,000 hits a month to his site…
From Brian:
I agree with your analysis. I'm glad to learn that Dr. Paul himself was surprised at what he could raise online so quickly. The dollars needed are enormous, especially with a shortened primary season. Fortunately, we each have a fire in our belly and the truth. (Plus a sincere and articulate candidate.) I believe that some folks who’d given up on politics will 'come out of the woodwork' to rejoin the process once they hear more about him.
From Scott:
A president Ron Paul would shake Washington D.C. to its knees. Frankly, I'd be very concerned for his safety. Dr. Paul is a true champion of liberty and his election would be wonderful for this country.
From Yves:
Your article in LewRockwell.com entitled "Can Ron Paul Win?" is dead on! I've followed Ron Paul's work for quite a while now. I saw him the other night on CSPAN 2. There is no way the controlling establishment will want a Ron Paul.
From Ed:
Lord let’s do everything we can to help him...it would be a breath of fresh air.
From Granny Warriors (http://www.grannywarriors.com/):
We are also working for Paul's election. Any help you can give us will be appreciated. Please visit our website and you can see how we are working. The RV is now in the shop being repainted professionally so we can reflect Dr. Paul's campaign in a more dignified manner. It should be ready by next week and we hope to hit the road by then. We need help to pay for the fuel alone. Nothing more. We support ourselves as we are all retired but on very small fixed incomes and just cannot afford to do this ourselves any longer. Any help you can offer will be greatly appreciated.
From M.R.:
I appreciated your article very much and I do believe Congressman Paul can win. Even more important, I believe it is essential for the sake of our Republic, that he must win. My husband and I have been Ron's campaign managers for our county since 1998 when he returned to Congress the second time, until last year when he was redistricted out of our county. I have seen him win, when Democrats targeted his race to defeat him and I have seen him win when Republicans have targeted his race to defeat him. He wins when he is able to share with the voters the principles in which he believes and the passion he has for those beliefs.
From Rev. Fr. V.C.:
Thank you Dr. Sabrin for your insightful commentary on the candidacy of Dr. Paul. What was hardly conceivable three (3) years ago, can finally be fully realized with the primaries that will be held shortly. We are, of course, referring to the "blogosphere" which has erupted on the scene… A presidential run for Dr. Paul? Why call it "probable" when, with the coming of blogging, we can call it "very plausible indeed".
The naysayers who responded don’t think that a man of integrity and courage like Ron Paul would be allowed to win the GOP nomination, let alone the presidency. They, like Scott, are concerned for his safety, and what the establishment would do to him should it look like he would win the nomination. In other words, all the special interests would be lined up against him to bring him down at the end of the primary season. And if Rep. Paul should win the nomination, they would gang up to “destroy” him in the general election like the D.C. politicians tried to do to Senator Jefferson Smith in Frank Capra’s movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington starring Jimmy Stewart. If passion and integrity were the deciding factors as to who would be the GOP presidential nomination, Ron Paul would win in a landslide.
The 2008 presidential campaign will be one of the most exciting in memory. There is no incumbent or vice president running; therefore, it will be a wide open race in each party’s primary. That means, anything is possible, including long shots winning the nominations. If I were a betting man, I would bet that today’s front runners, Hillary and Obama, and Rudy and McCain, will not be the presidential nominees. But then again, I thought Howard Dean would win the Democrat party presidential nomination in 2004.
Murray Sabrin, Ph.D., is professor of finance in the Anisfield School of Business, Ramapo College of New Jersey, where he is executive director of the Center for Business and Pubic Policy.