Not surprising to me that he won the Louisiana strew poll. Not after hearing Ron Paul on C-Span. He has an ideology that he believes in. Obvious moral clarity. Passion for the political fight. Not a wimp in any way. Guts, sense of mission, willingness to take unpopular stands and defend them forcefully. Willingness to take on the establishment. Champion of free speech. Etc Of course, except for his stands on free speech, he is wrong about nearly everything else, but in his rise there is an object lesson for the Republican Party which, it seems as of late June 2011, the party seems unable to grasp. You've gotta believe in something with higher purpose than money and tax cuts for the rich. Paul believes in tax cuts for the rich also, but that is down on his list of top issues. He preaches neo-isolationism, he represents a return to America First-ism of the later 30s. That constituency has never disappeared, except for the WWII era. Paul's passion if the key. The other candidates lack any. Well, I think this is not true for Michelle Bachman, and she came in 3rd in the poll. But the others are all modern versions of Bob Dole, play it safe, keep it close to the vest, waffle, suck up to special interests, hedge all bets, and above all, BE TIMID. This was only a straw poll. Proves nothing, and it is early. But this just may be an indication of things to come. Billy -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Christian Post > _Politics_ (http://www.christianpost.com/politics/) |Sat, Jun. 18 2011 08:27 PM EDT Ron Paul Wins Republican Straw Poll in New Orleans By _Nathan Black_ (http://www.christianpost.com/author/nathan-black/) | Christian Post
Ron Paul emerged as the big winner of the Southern Republican _Leadership_ (http://www.christianpost.com/topics/leadership/) Conference's straw poll. Coming in second was Jon Huntsman. The surprising poll results were revealed Saturday as several Republican presidential hopefuls made their way to New Orleans to appeal to southern conservatives. Paul (R-Texas) won nearly 40 percent of the vote while Huntsman, former governor of _Utah_ (http://www.christianpost.com/region/utah/) , nabbed nearly a quarter of the vote. "This win is just the latest indicator of how the majority of American opinion is turning in Ron Paul’s direction,” Jesse Benton, chairman of Paul's campaign, said in a statement. “The American people want and deserve someone who will tell them the truth, tell them what needs to be done, and who has an untouchable record of consistency to back it up.” Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) placed third in the poll with 12 percent of the vote. Businessman Herman Cain and former _Massachusetts_ (http://www.christianpost.com/region/massachusetts/) Gov. Mitt Romney followed, respectively. Paul, who previously ran for president as a Libertarian, spoke at the leadership conference on Friday where he was enthusiastically received. During his nearly 40-minute speech, the _Texas_ (http://www.christianpost.com/region/texas/) congressman focused mainly on the economy, saying the U.S. has been in a "severe slump" for a decade now. Despite a population growth of 30 million people, no new net jobs were added, he said. "We're slipping and sliding. It's always been moderated by more handouts, more entitlements," he said. "We have lost our way," Paul asserted. "We care less about freedom than we do about the government taking care of us from cradle to grave." Paul, who says his long-espoused message for limited government and greater liberties is now resonating with the country, reminded the crowd that economic growth in the U.S. came with the advancement of freedom over the past couple hundred years. "A free society is ... the most productive society," he said. Commenting on the popularity of Paul, Heritage Foundation Vice President of Government Studies Michael Franc admitted earlier that there is a newfound appeal for the libertarian emphasis on limited government. And that view appeals to a certain extent to Christians who value the freedom to _worship_ (http://www.christianpost.com/topics/worship/) without government interference, he noted. But that doesn't mean Christian social conservatives would flock to Paul. Franc noted that Christians may not be keen on libertarian purist views. Paul is considered a libertarian purist. Huntsman was scheduled to be in New Orleans but canceled due to illness. -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
