Surprising Ron Paul Sparks A Movement

GOP Presidential Hopeful Has Fervent Followers And A Message Whose Resonance Surprises Even Him

(CBS)  His progress has been as gradual as a tortoise on ice, but Ron Paul can no longer be dismissed as the favorite of the fringe, reports CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds.

Unlike other candidates consigned to the periphery, Paul has refused to go away. He is now in a tie for third in Iowa with supposed top-tier hopefuls.

And in live-free-or-die New Hampshire, he believes his anti-Iraq war, anti-tax, pro-freedom message with its libertarian tinge may resonate.

"People are flocking to the campaign," says Paul. "Maybe they've been starved for a campaign like this."

Paul's trip to Plymouth was promising: one woman told Reynolds that he was following the next president.

"Absolutely! No doubt," she says.

Paul's supporters are fervent - almost feverish - both on the ground and online.

He has used the Internet to drum up the bulk of an eye-popping 18 million dollars in this quarter alone from what he says are frustrated members of both parties and first-time voters. If money talks, Ron Paul is shouting.

"I am surprised," Paul says. "But I'm disappointed that I am surprised. Why shouldn't this be a popular message? Why was I pessimistic?"

He adds: "Why do we assume that everybody wants the status quo? And evidently they don't."

[random_radar]

Ron Paul...the Constitution...freedom. Ron Paul talks about freeing us from taxes, the burden of foreign war, and all the other oppressions of our tyrannical government. It''s a refreshing message.

Other candidates talk about what they plan to do to make the government more prominent in your life. The more the government does for you, the less choice you get about what you want in life. The only people who like that are the ones who aspire to nothing more than servitude in a stable. The nation is full of those kind of wage slaves.

But for those of you who are willing to take the risks and reap the benefits of being free, Ron Paul offers the best hope. Don''t worry about what will happen to the fearful gripers who embrace the welfare state. They will be better off once they get the shackles off and learn to think and act for themselves. But YOU need the fresh air of freedom.

Don''t sell yourself short or into bondage. Rise up and be great!

[jj11123]

Google: "Ron Paul 2008"!

Donate to Ron Paul 2008 NOW!!!

[denn034]

Yeah, with a Dead End sign at the end.

[sgtrds]

I propse a Paul/Nader ticket! Two fringe losers for the vote of one!

[azmka]

I''d give him a shot. Besides J. McCain I don''t like any of them.

[carpavel]

Ron will not take matching funds
Ron will not let influence be bought
Ron will not cow down to the PC media

Ron will tell the truth even to his own harm
Ron will prevail even if he loses
The message of freedom shall prevail!

Pastor Paul (former right wing neocon)

[jj11123]

Brief Overview of Congressman Paul%u2019s Record:

He has never voted to raise taxes.
He has never voted for an unbalanced budget.
He has never voted for a federal restriction on gun ownership.
He has never voted to raise congressional pay.
He has never taken a government-paid junket.
He has never voted to increase the power of the executive branch.

He voted against the Patriot Act.
He voted against regulating the Internet.
He voted against the Iraq war.

He does not participate in the lucrative congressional pension program.
He returns a portion of his annual congressional office budget to the U.S. treasury every year.

Congressman Paul introduces numerous pieces of substantive legislation each year, probably more than any single member of Congress.

[jj11123]

Google: "Ron Paul 2008"!

Donate to Ron Paul 2008 NOW!!!

[cfin5]

The "We The People" movement have always been here. And "We" haven''t had someone to stand up for us like Ron for a whole generation......"We''re" not going to sleep and let this opportunity slip away either! Folks, we can''t literally vote for a founding father, but we can vote for one of their students by voting for Ron Paul in 2008! Our Constitution is the coolest in the world!

[emeriste]

I am so enthusiastic about Ron Paul. After so many years of disappointing candidates that neither represent me or the constitution very well, finally there is a man I can believe in and vote for. Ron Paul was right about the war from the beginning, he speaks lucidly and intelligently to the voters, and he champions nothing less important than returning to the principles of the constitution. I can''t believe anyone with such a profile could be considered a fringe candidate. Arguing against eternal purposeless wars, the income tax, and government interference with our self-directed lives may be ''fringe'' according to the mainstream media, but Ron Paul is the only candidate our founding fathers would consider sane.

[emeriste]

I am so enthusiastic about Ron Paul. After so many years of disappointing candidates that neither represent me or the constitution very well, finally there is a man I can believe in and vote for. Ron Paul was right about the war from the beginning, he speaks lucidly and intelligently to the voters, and he champions nothing less important than returning to the principles of the constitution. I can''t believe anyone with such a profile could be considered a fringe candidate. Arguing against eternal purposeless wars, the income tax, and government interference with our self-directed lives may be ''fringe'' according to the mainstream media, but Ron Paul is the only candidate our founding fathers would consider sane.

[fairandbal]

Lovely, just lovely. A lunatic like Ron Paul gets free favorable air time with no hint of exposing who he really is by the ''free'' press. At the same time relentless baseless hit pieces all week against Hillary.

We need a more fair press folks, this one''s destroying our democracy!!!! This ''free'' press favors the GOP all the way!!!

[emeriste]

I am so enthusiastic about Ron Paul. After so many years of disappointing candidates that neither represent me or the constitution very well, finally there is a man I can believe in and vote for. Ron Paul was right about the war from the beginning, he speaks lucidly and intelligently to the voters, and he champions nothing less important than returning to the principles of the constitution. I can''t believe anyone with such a profile could be considered a fringe candidate. Arguing against eternal purposeless wars, the income tax, and government interference with our self-directed lives may be ''fringe'' according to the mainstream media, but Ron Paul is the only candidate our founding fathers would consider sane.

[ajtdonahue]

When will CBS do a story on who is being polled?

The pollsters call people who voted in the last election cycle PRIMARIES. Those are considered ''likely voters''. President Bush ran unopposed in 2004, so only 6% of hard core Bush/War fans voted in the primaries. Ron Paul is going to have a hard time converting that 6%. There are still 94% of registered Republicans out there who are not being polled.

Ron Paul has raised $18.5 million this quarter. In 2003, when the economy was much better, the top campaign fundraiser was Howard Dean. He raised $15.9 million. Wesley Clark raised $10.3 million and John Kerry raised $5.2 million.

The MSM is going to act shocked when Dr. Paul starts winning primaries...but they know.

[ajtdonahue]

Hey Pelostilaho,

Please, break the story right here. Who are the Nazi''s running Dr. Paul''s campaign through out the country? Let''s get those names out in the open.

[kellyafische]

I will be interested to see Ron Paul take the Presidency. Really, the people are the majority and they have been following the minority since high school. The top of the class always reflected whose daddy owned what in what religion.

My big beef is that the top of the class always gets the best seat in the house, giving the majority slave class low life crumbs.

I always vote for Jesus Christ. I always will.

But until he rules the earth, Daniel 2:44, it would be nice to have a refreshing change.

Once change would be homeschool for everyone. Every mom deserves to be teacher and mom of their children 24/7.

Home is where the love is. Love is what makes people get along.

I hope we see more of Ron Paul and homeschoolers and a free life. This slave class low income for the majority is done and over.

[icymudpuppy]

30yrs old, Iraq Veteran. I have seen first hand the excesses of our military industrial complex in Iraq, and the monetary waste it wreaks in our economy. I have seen how the corporate control of our foreign policy has made us hated. They don''t hate freedom. They don''t hate gambling. They don''t hate ***. They hate intervention in their domestic affairs by a foreign power. I see the devaluation of the dollar, the stripping of civil liberties in the name of security, and the imposition of federal power over local jurisdiction. I see our borders unsecured, and our roads/bridges falling while we borrow trillions from Foreigners to pay for UN mandated police actions. All this in the face of the ideals of limited government, personal liberty, and humble foreign trade/diplomacy espoused by our founders which made this country a beacon of freedom to the world. I urge you all to consider what kind of country your children/grandchildren/nieces/nephews will inherit if you continue to listen to the corporate candidates of both parties. Read the books "1984" or "Farenheit 451" for an idea of what that country may look like.

J.R. Thompson.
1LT(OCS), US ARMY.

[jsklx500]

Dont worry fellow Paul supporters, I am a black man and I am certainly not buying into these smear tactics! Most of the voters in my predominantly black community support Dr. Paul because he is fair, honest, and most importantly he sees every American citizen as an individual. That is the key to ending racism. We are all individuals and should be treated differently because of religion, gender, sexuality, or race. GO RON PAUL!!!!

[cfin5]

Hey Pelostilaho,

Please, break the story right here. Who are the Nazi''''s running Dr. Paul''''s campaign through out the country? Let''''s get those names out in the open.


Posted by ajtdonahue at 07:31 PM : Dec 21, 200-----------------Really! It''s gotta be a koolaid side effect. He/she needs constitutional help fast! :)

[heart4wisdom]

Thank you CBS for a very nice story on Ron Paul.

I am so excited for Americans to get their country back!

go Ron Paul!!!

The thing about Ron Paul is that he stands for the constitution, and the constitution means you have the freedom to choose for youself what type of life you want to live. Weather it be the type of school you choose for your children, or the type of markets you''re going to support (or which ones will help support you), Ron Paul is about freedom and restoring the constitution that our government has violated. If you care about your rights then vote for Ron Paul in the primaries.

[fairandbal]

I just love all of the paid Ron Paul staff members writing blog entries like the ones i''m reading here on CBS. Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it. That''s really American isn''t it!!??

[arthall33]

Ron Paul is the only candidate in either party that stands for what is best for this country for this generation and the next....whether it is popular or not.......What kind of parents are you who saddle their kids and grand kids with a 65 trillion dollar debt, by voting in politicians that have no clue on how to run this country.....this is your last chance...vote for Ron Paul or you and your children could be standing in bread lines...

[emeriste]

I am so enthusiastic about Ron Paul. After so many years of disappointing candidates that neither represent me or the constitution very well, finally there is a man I can believe in and vote for. Ron Paul was right about the war from the beginning, he speaks lucidly and intelligently to the voters, and he champions nothing less important than returning to the principles of the constitution. I can''t believe anyone with such a profile could be considered a fringe candidate. Arguing against eternal purposeless wars, the income tax, and government interference with our self-directed lives may be ''fringe'' according to the mainstream media, but Ron Paul is the only candidate our founding fathers would consider sane.

[ajtdonahue]

fairandbal says:

"I just love all of the paid Ron Paul staff members writing blog entries like the ones i''''m reading here on CBS. Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it. That''''s really American isn''''t it!!??"

Uh, I sell cars for a living, and I have donated over $500.00 to Dr. Paul''s campaign and never seen a paycheck. Are the rest of you guys getting paid? Dang it all.

Of course, if fairandbal wanted to prove that conspiracy theory it would not be hard. Ron Paul runs a transparent campaign you could see what his paid staffers are up to.

Hey fairandbal, is Hillary for or against driver''s licenses for illegal immigrants this week?

[kellyafische]

Paid presidential hopeful bloggers... Hm...slander...How American! I was a 40 something mom with grandchildren, college grad, out of work, wrecked by the latest banks scandals and other destructive humans out there...before I typed my message...now falsely accused and bashed again. Are Americans always nasty? REally, really powerful people pull their neighbor out of the ditch and take them to an inn and make sure they are brought back to 100%. It is a weak person who has to stoop to nastieness on any comment opportunity. Pessimistic Ron Paul said he was? Why? Because this country has been living in the dark ages of barbaric attacks on one another. Like the other presidential hopefuls...Hillary Clinton comes to mind. Wouldn''t it be wonderful to hear positive things about a positive message. WHAT IS REALLY WREAKING HAVOC HERE IS THE FEAR, YES FEAR...THAT SOMEONE IS GOING TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND THAT IS SCAREY! WHAT WILL HAPPEN? HOW WILL THIS TURN OUT? Scared people get defensive and then attack. TRULY POWERFUL PEOPLE SIT BACK AND LET IT HAPPEN. THAT IS ALSO FAITH. If someone is taking a positive approach why be afraid? Stop attacking. Let us see what this man can do. We all need better than what we have, and until Jesus Christ rules the earth as king, Daniel 2:44, no one is going to be perfect.

[suzy313]

Fairandbal, what an absurd comment. is it so *** hard to believe that we blog because we are fired up. I certainly haven''t been paid. I do this because I am no longer apathetic. Thanks to Ron Paul and the hope for America that his message brings.

[bkeys72]

"I just love all of the paid Ron Paul staff members writing blog entries like the ones i''''m reading here on CBS. Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it."

I don''t receive a dime from the Paul campaign. I work two jobs and struggle to take care of a 7 year-old daughter. I support Dr. Paul because the federal government has gotten too big and too inept and it''s confiscating a good portion of my paychecks that I can use for daycare and gas for my car.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
If it

[illuminatusp]

to: fairandbal, who said:

"I just love all of the paid Ron Paul staff members writing blog entries like the ones i''''m reading here on CBS. Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it. That''''s really American isn''''t it!!??"

Let''s get one thing straight. I am not now, nor have I ever been paid ONE RED CENT to do ANY work for Ron Paul. Moreover, I have NEVER been asked to do ONE THING for the campaign.

Even more than that... I have donated almost a thousand dollars of my very hard earned money over the last 4 months, (I''m a server) and have spent even more money on t-shirts, bumper stickers and business cards ( to hand out to people...out of my own pocket [not paid for by the campaign in any way]), and also spent money on supplies to make signs for when I go meet up with other Ron Paul supporters to do sign wavings.

There are HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of people out there doing the EXACT same thing I just spoke about and NOT ONE of them are getting paid. If I''m not mistaken, there are less than 100 paid people on the whole campaign staff.

Show me ONE OTHER condidate who has supporters willing to spend money like this. Romney? Giuliani? Hillary?
Not likely.

All I have to say about fairandbal is...Frank Luntz. If you don''t know who he is...google him. He does a lot of commentary for FOX these days...debates..so on..talk about Fair and Balanced...ha

[brettrix]

There must be something wrong with Ron Paul - why is he so honest and why does he keep talking about the problems we face as a nation. Why is he the only candidate that can run on a campaign that will end racism? why did it take so long for us to find him?

[cfin5]

I just love all of the paid Ron Paul staff members writing blog entries like the ones i''''m reading here on CBS. Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it. That''''s really American isn''''t it!!??

Posted by fairandbal at 07:47 PM : Dec 21, 2007-------------I''m no paid blogger here, or anywhere, at anytime. I''m exercising my 1st. Amendment responsibilities happily from my appreciation for being an American. A "one night voting booth stand" just won''t do anymore. I want to have my say loooooooong before I push the submit button in the voting booth. And the likes of Ron Paul and his constitutional voting record cools me out man!

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[sgtrds]

Propping up your candidate by making it sound like he has a big cheering section, but getting paid to do it. That''''s really American isn''''t it!!??

Posted by fairandbal at 07:47 PM : Dec 21, 2007

I doubt many are getting paid, but what bothers me is that some of them over post to an obnoxious level and in parts of this blog that have nothing whatsoever to do with Ron Paul or many evenpolitics at all. The only thing I can figure is that some of these supposed Ron Paul supporters actually hate him and are being obnoxious as*ses to try to pis*s people off about him....and it''s sure working. There''s nothing wrong with his supporters being enthusiastic about him (though personally I don''t think he stands a snowballs chance in hell), but they don''t have to be a jerk about it and many of them are by spamming this blog.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[sgtrds]

It would seem this montyfloyd is the type I''m talking about. Yes everyone cuts and pastes sometime and sometimes most of us will even do a re-post to make a point, but some of these Paul supporters re-post the same thing over and over and over as many as 50 or even 100 or more times! that''s not supporting your candidate, that''s being an obnoxious as*s.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[ajtdonahue]

Hey Pelostilaho is back,

And is calling us all stupid for supporting Dr. Paul.

Hmm...what did you just state?

The founding fathers did not envision slavery.

Hmm...gee, and here I grew up learning that slavery was around until the 1860''s. How many slaves did Thomas Jefferson have?

Your other points are too rediculous to even address.

Where did you study history? I want to make sure I don''t send my kids there.

[gv_ranch]

The Ron Paul supporters I''ve met aren''t fringe characters by any stretch of the imagination. Who supports him? I''d like to introduce myself.

I grew up in Seattle, not particularly religious, in a family of 5 kids. I attended public schools, then I held a full-time job while going to community college, followed by a university BA.

I spent 1 year studying in England then moved to SE Asia for 3 years and got an MA from a university there. I am bilingual as a result, and my wife of 11 years was born in Asia and moved here in 1996. We both support Ron Paul.

We have three kids and we own a home in the Bellevue WA area. We''re avid travelers. On a professional level I own a small business that employs 6 people, all of whom earn a decent income.

I''ve met several Ron Paul supporters in the area, and there exists a great deal of diversity in terms of demographics, but all have a sharp understanding of the platform Ron Paul represents.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[montyfloyd]

I just want to thank CBS News and Katie for the very nice piece they did on Ron Paul this evening.
We Paul supporters are starved for attention, but not for ourselves, for Dr. Paul.
The message he speaks, stirs many of us with great passion.
At this time in the campaign, I would rather see a positive report once in a while than some of the inane stories that have been planted, every day.
Thank you once again from a proud American.

[icymudpuppy]

"After all, Paul supporters and Hillary-Obama ones have much more in common than Paul has with the Republican party. First, they DON''''T support the troops, second, they DON''''T support the just war on Islamonazi terrorism,"

In case you were unaware, Obama and Paul receive more donations from military personnel than any other candidates. So, if they don''t support the soldiers, why do the soldiers support them? Also, as I mentioned in a previous post, Islamo-Nazi-Fascism as you like to call it doesn''t exist. There is nothing National Socialist Corporate about the extreme Fundamentalist Islamic movement. Terrorism is a tactic, not a belief, used by professional and amateur soldiers of all nations and movements, even ours. Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorism is very much blowback from over 100 years of British and American interference and occupation of Islamic Holy land, which they see as Christian Imperialism.

J.R. Thompson
1LT (OCS) US ARMY
Iraq Veteran.

[THE_PUMA]

I''m not paid, not a nazi or white supremesist or whatever. I am a science teacher from Michigan. I support Ron Paul for President of the United States because I am tired of being embarrassed of my country''s leaders.

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
-Ghandi

[coolprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL
RonPaul2008.com

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more torture prisons
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more erosion of Social Security to pay for militarization
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT (globalist trade cartels)
-- No more North American Union (loss of U.S. sovereignty)
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more national ID cards (Real ID Act)
-- No more government invasion of your privacy
-- No more federal Laws which force you to take unwanted injections
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more unlimited federal government

"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human liberty; it is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves."
- William Pitt

"The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home."
- James Madison

"Wars are poor chisels for carving-out peaceful tomorrows."
- Martin Luther King Jr

[coolprophet]

RON PAUL IS THE NEW WAY
What we need is a President who will show us the way. Not the old way. Not the same way, but a NEW way. Think about this for a minute. What if we pulled all of our troops out of South Korea? They''ve been there for 50+ years. What if we quit worrying about Iran, but instead, realized that its having a nuclear weapon will not mean the end of the world? What if we pulled all of our troops out of the Middle-East, and brought them all home? What if we realistically addressed the National Debt, and paid attention to REALLY DOING SOMETHING about stopping illegal immigration? These are the ideas of Presidential candidate, Ron Paul. He''s a ten term Congressman and a physician who has delivered over 4,000 babies. He''s an intellectual who''s published four books, three of which are devoted entirely to sound economics and one to foreign policy. He was raised on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania as a pious Lutheran, but now he attends a Baptist church. Paul is given to mulling things over morally. Whenever he recollects the helicopter pilots he treated as an Air Force Flight Surgeon (Captain) during the Vietnam War, a war which he now says was "totally unnecessary and illegal," he laments, "They were gung-ho. I''ve often thought about how many of those people never came back." Candidates with the high level of personal integrity and proven track record of adherence to The Constitution, Congressman Paul has always demonstrated only come around once in a lifetime, if we''re lucky.

[freegirl1]

Ron Paul is not going away! We love him and everything he stands for. Get big govt out of our lives, let the state handle some of the issues. It is easier to manage a small group at a time rather than just take on a whole country or world for that matter. Has anyone else ever managed something? It''s just common sense.

Ron Paul 2008

[coolprophet]

i like fringe i guess you dont like the sound of this

[ajtdonahue]

I like to blog in support for Dr. Paul. I don''t see a lot of the multiple blogging SgtRDS is talking about.

SgtRDS - I find it curious that you seem to be around when ever people are reposting 50 to 100 times.

Why are you following Dr. Paul so closely if his supporters anger you so?

I have an idea. If you stop going to Dr. Paul blogs you won''t have to get so frustrated. Don''t get me wrong, I like the debate but wouldn''t it be better time spent blogging for your own candidate...and less frustrating.

What statistics are you using to determine Dr. Paul''s chances?

[poopusbuttus]

It would seem this montyfloyd is the type I''''m talking about. Yes everyone cuts and pastes sometime and sometimes most of us will even do a re-post to make a point, but some of these Paul supporters re-post the same thing over and over and over as many as 50 or even 100 or more times! that''''s not supporting your candidate, that''''s being an obnoxious as*s.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by SgtRDS


I hate to admit it, but, perhaps this will be the first, and quite honestly, the last time I ever agree with SGTRDS.

Ron Paul lovers are idiots. The IRS is not going away, we are not pulling our troops from everywhere in the world, we are not abolishing the WTO, we are not pulling our troops out of Iraq, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc........

Oh, by the way, SGTRDS is still a dummy....