Ron Paul, following the conclusion of his son’s 2016 GOP primary campaign, appeared on FBN’s Kennedy to discuss what’s next for libertarians. He urges libertarians and liberty-minded Republicans alike to “forget about the Republican primary, and for that matter Republicans and Democrats.” Paul insists libertarians have nobody to vote for among any of the remaining major-party candidates, and should instead seek out and support “an alternative party” such as the L.P. in spite of hurdles like debate exclusion.
The former Congressman also confirms that he won’t be running himself as a Libertarian presidential candidate in 2016, despite a series of positive references to the party in recent interviews. Paul was the 1988 L.P. presidential nominee, between stints in Congress where he was elected as a Republican. He remains a lifetime member of the Libertarian Party.
How short your memories are. Ron Paul endorsed Constitution Party Nominee Chuck Baldwin for President in 2008. The CP is likely an alternative party RP was referring too. The Alaska CP has already gained from several former RP supporters joining our ranks over the past couple of years. We welcome more RP supporters as the GOP continues to implode.
With the end of the Paul campaign the LP has a golden opportunity to recruit a lot of the activists who got their start in the Paul Movement. They have to convince them that it’s worth their time. They have to to convince them the LP offers better hope for what they believe in than the Republicans and they can’t paitiently wait “their turn” to run the GOP. While Rand did his best among youngsters, it wasn’t a vast majority like what Bernie got. There’s no inheritance there. They need to find a like-minded party and realize that it is a party, not an ideology. No unique ideology has “left” and “right” wings. And from there they can recruit person for the LP, especially in those places where there’s hardly any competition from the major parties. And they can shame those Republicans and Democrats by telling them if you actually voted your convictions you would be in the LP.
NN said: “I just wanted to say the reverse of what George Phillies always says and see the reaction.”
We know that. You always just come here to make trouble.
I am not a government plant. I do it for personal amusement. Abortion really isn’t that important to me. I just wanted to say the reverse of what George Phillies always says and see the reaction.
I have never cared much for the term “troll” in discussions…
i would rather discussions be interesting..
those that aren’t…. well aren’t…
I fail to see Moses Austin as interesting as that while he seems to be anti-abortion he fails to state what he would like to have happen? what he would be willing to pay for or do personally? Well besides being crude, I am not sure that works for or against him in the reproductive race of planet earth species…. of which Moses’s participation is of no interest to me.
Paul said: “It’s Nathan Norman. I don’t have time to deal with it but if any of our other editors feel like it there you go.”
I suspected that “Moses Austwin” was another troll. He/she (though I suspect it is a he) may be one of the same people who has been trolling here for years, as the Nazi troll, etc… Probably a government spook sent in to monitor and disrupt the group.
It’s Nathan Norman. I don’t have time to deal with it but if any of our other editors feel like it there you go.
http://www.lp.org/blogs/staff/ron-paul-no-one-for-libertarians-to-vote-for-in-republican-or-democratic-primaries
>That’s like begging Laurence Olivier to sign on as co-star in a Rodney Dangerfield flick.
LOL!!
Seriously, Dr. Paul is not running; he’s getting on in years and has done a yeoman’s job of promoting freedom to the sheeple for over 30 years. Say, about 1,000,000 times as much as all of us put together.
And Rand needs to concentrate on getting re-elected to the Senate from KY where there is a strong challenger.
So thank you, Drs. Ron and Rand, for promoting freedom in the belly of the beast, and thank you, Dr. Ron Paul for getting on TV (albeit a friendly forum) and reminding people that the D’s and R’s are beyond pathetic and the only place to find candidates advocating adherence to Constitutional principles is in the LP.
(Of course, the anarchists among us love the fact that Ron is really an anarchist at heart, but that doesn’t play well with the hoi polloi so we can just say Constitutional principles–sorry Lysander!–and hope to get as many Paulites joining the LP as possible.)
And yes, our candidate should be careful not to pull a Barr and piss off a spiritual leader of the movement like what happened in ’08. I am certain that won’t happen again.
And who is Fred? Do I know you?
steve m
Asks
Moses Austwin,
” What have you done to prevent un-wanted pregnancies?”
— you mean besides his personality?
“The problem with Bob Barr wasn’t that Ron Paul “didn’t like” him. The problem with Bob Barr, vis a vis Ron Paul, was that Bob Barr went out of his way to be a douchenozzle when and where Ron Paul and his supporters were concerned.”
I know for a fact that Barr’s campaign manager was given the complete contact list of all RP Facebook group leaders in Penna. and, for a fact, that none were ever contacted.
The libertarians can not expect to draw from the die hard democrats or Republicans. Out effort should be to draw from the independents and the not committed democrats and republicans.
“Marc Allan Feldman
February 7, 2016 at 00:12
This is what I heard Dr. Paul say about the Libertarian Party:
‘If you have a candidate in the Libertarian Party, are they going to get into the debates which are controlled by Republicans and Democrats and they all agree on all the issues, its a joke'”
I think that Ron was saying that the way the political system operates is a joke, not that the Libertarian Party is a joke.
“This does not sound to me like a call to support the Libertarian Party. It sounds like the Libertarian Party is not to be taken seriously. Frustrated Republicans will hold their noses and vote for any Republican, telling themselves that they cannot let Hillary win.”
I disagree with your interpretation of what Ron Paul said. I think he meant that since his son Rand is no longer in the Republican primaries, that there is no longer anyone for whom it is worth casting a vote in the major party primaries, so people should forget the major party primaries and start looking at alternative parties like the Libertarian Party.
Yes, lots of frustrated Republicans will vote for whoever the Republican nominee is in November in order to stop Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders, but the people who supported Ron Paul, and Rand Paul, are not typical Republicans. A lot of them will vote for alternative parties like the Libertarian Party, or simply not vote in November. Sure, some might hold their nose and vote Republican just to try to stop the Democrats, but not all of them will do this.
Hillary Clinton will not be the nominee. It will be Bernie. This is just like 2008. Deep down Democrats just don’t like Hillary.
This is what I heard Dr. Paul say about the Libertarian Party:
“If you have a candidate in the Libertarian Party, are they going to get into the debates which are controlled by Republicans and Democrats and they all agree on all the issues, its a joke”
This does not sound to me like a call to support the Libertarian Party. It sounds like the Libertarian Party is not to be taken seriously. Frustrated Republicans will hold their noses and vote for any Republican, telling themselves that they cannot let Hillary win.
The problem with Bob Barr wasn’t that Ron Paul “didn’t like” him. The problem with Bob Barr, vis a vis Ron Paul, was that Bob Barr went out of his way to be a douchenozzle when and where Ron Paul and his supporters were concerned.
The LP should nominate a good candidate, and that candidate shouldn’t go out of his or her way to antagonize Paul fans, but whether or not Ron Paul likes that candidate shouldn’t be a consideration of any sort. It’s the Libertarian Party, not the People Ron Paul Likes Party.
“NewFederalist
February 6, 2016 at 16:48
All levity aside, these remarks by Ron Paul make getting the Libertarian national ticket right more important than ever.”
I agree. We received a plug from Ron Paul. Now let’s not screw things up like we did in 2008 by nominating a candidate for President that Ron Paul does not like.
tk, Biden is an interesting call. When Sanders met with BHO a few weeks ago, that thought crossed my mind, too. The D fix might be to pull HC, being as damaged as she is.
Nah. I’ve moved on.
Moses here’s something to really get your knickers in a twist over. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/9772233/1.7-million-human-embryos-created-for-IVF-thrown-away.html
For my predictions, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Giant_Bernard/sandbox
I’m expecting it to be either Kasich or Rubio versus Biden.
I suspect it will be Clinton v. Rubio. Tougher.
All levity aside, these remarks by Ron Paul make getting the Libertarian national ticket right more important than ever. Perhaps it is time to really try to get John Stossel or some one of his caliber to take to plunge. If we end up with Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump or even Bernie Sanders vs. Ted Cruz or some other ugly choice it is really time to step it up. No more GOP re-treads and no ultra egomaniacs like Jesse Ventura and others who are not even libertarian to begin with. Let’s get this right this year!
“Moses Austwin,”
It’s not about what questions of yours I would answer differently than you do. It’s about the question you’ve neither asked nor answered, but choose instead to beg: What characteristics define a “person” with “rights,” and why?
Which of my questions would you answer differently than I do?
“What is so hard to understand?”
Apparently all of it, based on your demonstrated inability to do so.
As per the original thread, Ron Paul is speaking this morning at UC Irvine (Orange County, CA.) I believe my region vice-chair is going, and I’m curious as to whether he’ll say anything about Rand.
I’ll find out soon enough, I’m sure.
tk: That’s like begging Laurence Olivier to sign on as co-star in a Rodney Dangerfield flick.
me: I hear that. OTOH, it’s conceivable that RP1 isn’t up for heavy national campaigning, but might want to send a parting shot to the Rs. It’d probably be a net plus for the L ticket. Maybe he could talk GJ out of his Shariaphobia and FAIR Tax fetish.
What is so hard to understand? Is a fetus human? Yes. Is it living? Yes. Does abortion end its life? Yes. Is it a voluntary act? Yes. What is the definition of murder again?
Dr. Phillies is a physicist, not a physician.
As to whether or not what he supports is “murder,” well, like I said, assertions aren’t arguments.
Presumably if you had one of the latter, you would have started making it by now. SInce you haven’t, I’d say we’re pretty much done here.
The difference is that Kevorkian kills people who want to die. Phillies supports the murder of innocents.
Dr. Phillies = Dr. Kevorkian?
I guess all the discussion about coitus and fellatio must be because Dr. Paul is an OB/GYN, right? 😉
“Moses Austwin,”
I wasn’t arguing one way or another with your position. I was just pointing out that you seem either unable or unwilling to make anything resembling coherent logical argument for that position. For example, an argument that doesn’t beg the question of whether or not the human beings you refer to are persons with rights.
Nothing personal. I always point it out when Dr. Phillies hoists himself on the other side of that petard’s blast as well.
Knapp is real. Austwin, well, open to question.
Thomas Knapp, if that is your real name, you should know that when I put my penis in another’s mouth, I am not creating a life with rights. It is a personal matter. When someone murders their child they are taking a life. It ceases to be a private matter.
That’s like begging Laurence Olivier to sign on as co-star in a Rodney Dangerfield flick.
https://www.change.org/p/dr-ron-paul-draft-ron-paul-for-vice-president-gary-johnson-s-libertarian-party-running-mate
“Well then don’t ask about my personal life.”
Well, let’s see …
If I was a pro-choice advocate, I might be tempted to note that you think the personal lives of at least 50% of the population are YOUR business, so why wouldn’t your personal life be other people’s business too?
Great to hear! I’d love to have RP run as a Libertarian, so hopefully he reconsiders.
Well then don’t ask about my personal life.
Moses,
Very good!
Now you have got it…
whether you have had sex with another man or you have had to get an abortion… none of these are any of my business.
please treat others equally.
Well I’ve gotten a blowjob but that’s not really any of your business.
Moses,
So you have done nothing?
What have I done to prevent un-wanted pregnancies?
I have refrained from engaging in coitus with females even when I wanted to.
What have you done?
Steve, I must protest your insult to nitwits around the world. They’re much smarter than this mythical Moses.
George
Moses Austwin,
” I care about HUMAN LIFE. At least I am educated enough to know it is WRONG TO KILL HUMAN BEINGS!”
I don’t believe you are educated at all.
What have you done to prevent un-wanted pregnancies?
“Thomas L. Knapp
February 5, 2016 at 23:08
Caryn,
I think the grounds for concern are narrower than your post indicates.
Just like most of Ron Paul’s presidential supporters, most of Rand Paul’s presidential supporters will bleed off into other statist alternatives — they’re floating away to Cruz and Trump and, believe it or not, Sanders, even as we speak.
The ones who DON’T do that are the most libertarian-leaning ones. Some of them will just abandon electoral politics completely, maybe focusing on issues activism and such. Others will at least consider the LP.”
If the Libertarian Party has a good candidate for President who does not alienate libertarians, we could attract a lot of these people to the LP, and even more if the party as a whole got its act together.
“Moses Austwin,”
This seems like an odd place to argue about abortion.
Even worse, your “arguments” against abortion being a wrong so far seem to be roughly of the same quality, or maybe even of poorer quality, as Dr. Phillies’s arguments for abortion being a right.
In fact, I wonder … is that you, George, trolling yourself?
“Stewart Flood
February 5, 2016 at 22:47
“He may not have said the LP specifically,”
If you watch the video a few times, you can see that the interviewer interrupts him and speaks over him just as he is starting to say Libertarian Party.
Or at least that’s what I heard. :)”
You are right, Stewart, Ron Paul did say Libertarian when they were talking about alternative parties.
Caryn,
I think the grounds for concern are narrower than your post indicates.
Just like most of Ron Paul’s presidential supporters, most of Rand Paul’s presidential supporters will bleed off into other statist alternatives — they’re floating away to Cruz and Trump and, believe it or not, Sanders, even as we speak.
The ones who DON’T do that are the most libertarian-leaning ones. Some of them will just abandon electoral politics completely, maybe focusing on issues activism and such. Others will at least consider the LP.
And when they get here, we’ll make them MORE LIBERTARIAN, which seems to be the LP’s chief function.
Yes, a flood of new people who are not as libertarian as the LP median are a challenge. But based on recent history, we don’t really need to worry about e.g. a non-libertarian takeover at the presidential level, because we’ve already proven ourselves perfectly capable of doing that with no need for outside assistance.
Long-term, the LP welcomes “limited government Republicans” and “constitutionalists” and so forth at the front door, and they get more and more libertarian the longer they stay, many of them eventually walking out the back door waving black flags. And that’s a good thing. It’s a win even if we never elect a president or congresscritter.
Steve. I care about HUMAN LIFE. At least I am educated enough to know it is WRONG TO KILL HUMAN BEINGS!
It is good news and bad news. If it were Ron Paul supporters flooding in I would rejoice. And a lot of Rand supporters are freakin’ awesome. But many are simply not libertarians…. there is more to being libertarian than simply liking Rand.
Moses Austwin is a nitwit.
If all the effort that had been put into fight the abortion wars had been put into educating Moses Austwin…
it would have all been wasted…
There is no fixing stupid.
“He may not have said the LP specifically,”
If you watch the video a few times, you can see that the interviewer interrupts him and speaks over him just as he is starting to say Libertarian Party.
Or at least that’s what I heard. 🙂
Insults? No. One insults himself by being pro-murder. Millions & millions of lives lost. DO YOU NOT CARE ABOUT HUMAN LIFE?
Moses go troll for minnows. You are so poor at insults it is pathetic. Give it up and go read a good book on insults.
George Phillies is pro-murder. He supports the human rights violations performed by abortionists.
Andy,
I’ve said a lot of good things about Ron Paul over the years. In fact, prior to 2007, I didn’t have anything bad to say about him at all.
Tell All Your Small Govt Libertarian Friends – Ron Paul Is An Anarchist!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcWPji8fXwU
“Thomas L. Knapp
February 5, 2016 at 19:32
This is the most positive and impressive thing I’ve ever seen from Ron Paul.”
All right, Ron! Even Tom Knapp can’t find anything bad to say here.
Well, I’ll be damned. He may not have said the LP specifically, but this is an impressive “come to Jesus” moment, so to speak, anyway. Let us all live up to this endorsement, as Libertarians.
Give it up, lANGA.
I eagerly anticipate people like George Phillies coming here to explain to us how this is yet more evidence of how Ron Paul is the devil incarnate. Come on, George, spin like a centrifuge!
Is this real? Did he actually say that? This is fantastic news. While this may not influence all of his or his son’s supporters, it can do nothing but help us at this critical point.
This is the most positive and impressive thing I’ve ever seen from Ron Paul.