The Ron Paul phenomenon

Ron Paul with supporters (DickClarkMises/Wikimedia)

Ron Paul is beginning to frighten me.

To be totally accurate, it isn’t just Dr. Paul that frightens me, but his followers do as well.  The relationship between Ron Paul and his followers seems to be almost unique in modern American politics.  Dr. Paul’s followers, often referred to as “Paulestinians” by talk show host Michael Medved (listen to Medved on Atlanta’s AM-920 WGKA), are fiercely loyal to their candidate, which explains why Paul often wins straw polls.  These contests are not normal elections, but consist of activists who often have to pay or go out of their way to take part.  Paul’s supporters, while small in number, are fully dedicated to Paul’s success.

Ron Paul is in the Republican Party, but is not of it.

Read this article on Examiner.com:

http://www.examiner.com/elections-2012-in-atlanta/the-ron-paul-phenomenon

Meet the candidates: Ron Paul

Rep. Ron Paul (US Congress)

Judging by the number of “Ron Paul for President” signs in the Atlanta area in 2008, Congressman Ron Paul had some of the most loyal and motivated supporters of any candidate in the 2008 presidential primaries. Sadly for Rep. Paul and his supporters, that devotion did not translate into widespread appeal. Rep. Paul finished fourth in the Georgia primary with only 2.9 percent of the vote. It wasn’t much better in other states. Paul failed to win a single primary, although he did finish second a number of times.

Now Ron Paul is running for president again. After four years of Barack Obama’s record-setting spending, Paul’s message of fiscal restraint may be more attractive to recession-weary Americans. Nevertheless, a RealClearPolitics average of polls from April and May 2011 shows Paul in sixth place with 7.9 percent. He trails Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Donald Trump, Sarah Palin, and Newt Gingrich respectively. He leads Herman Cain, Michelle Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty, and Mitch Daniels. Paul might get a slight bump from the recent withdrawals of Huckabee, Trump, and Daniels.

Continue reading on Examiner.com Meet the candidates: Ron Paul – Atlanta Elections 2012 | Examiner.com
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