bobbyw24
02-05-2008, 12:51 PM
http://www.libertysentinel.org/articles/2008-1/underdog.html
'Underdog' Soars to 'Top-Tier'
By Gary R. Schor, January 2008
What makes a presidential candidate a “frontrunner?” Mitt Romney has loaned a lot of money to himself. Does that make him a frontrunner? John McCain had to borrow three million dollars last month to stay in the race. Is he still a frontrunner?
Giuliani is financed by the big money politics of the status quo, and Mike Huckabee is receiving financing from long-time Clinton allies like Stephens Inc. & Tyson Foods.
Are they frontrunners?
With more donations, more straw poll victories, and more active and enthused supporters, it seems clear now that there is a new frontrunner in the race for the Republican nomination for president. His name is Dr. Ron Paul.
Call his “the little campaign that could”. Ron Paul made history (again) on December 16th, the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, by raising over six million dollars, breaking John Kerry’s one day fundraising record set back in 2004. Kerry’s record was set the day he accepted the Democratic nomination. What makes The Tea Party numbers even that much more impressive and unprecedented is that Paul broke the record this early in the primary process. The average donation on this record setting day was an unimpressive fifty dollars; small potatoes in today’s age multimillion-dollar campaigns. But these small donations added up to big results. The Boston Tea Party fundraiser, combined with the 5th of November fundraiser, will put Ron Paul in an enviable position financially going into the early caucuses and primaries.
Paul is racking in straw poll victories at an impressive clip, even in the face of some glaring improprieties. Some of the Liberty Sentinel staff were among those who witnessed first hand how Mitt Romney “won” his victory at the Florida straw poll, even in the face of an overwhelming turnout for Paul. But why bother to call it a poll at all if attendees are allowed to vote multiple times; more accurately call it “finger calisthenics.” It was even more extreme at the California straw poll. When Ron Paul supporters showed up in mass, they simply called the election off. Even so, Paul has still won 29 straw poll victories all over the nation, and placed second or third in many more.
The one area that Ron Paul still seems to be lagging in is the media polls, conducted by the likes of Rasmussen, Gallup, and Zogby. In order to measure the significance of these polls, it is important to know how they are conducted. Many of them use miniscule samples to achieve their results. The larger the sample of a poll is, the higher the accuracy. A sample of six hundred or even a thousand people in a state like Florida, which has millions of voters, is statistically irrelevant. Also, these polls use selective qualifiers to “filter out” bad data. This process often leaves those who didn’t vote in previous Republican primaries ineligible to participate in the poll. If there is one thing for certain among Ron Paul’s supporters, it is that they come from diverse backgrounds and political ideologies. This makes disqualifying those who didn’t vote in the 2004 Republican Party primary a questionable practice where accuracy is concerned.
The campaign is finding strong support among the Republican base, but Paul also attracts libertarians, constitutionalists, Reagan Democrats, and independents. Trevor Lyman, the grassroots supporter who organized the November 5th and Boston Tea Party fundraising drives which have netted over ten million dollars in donations, has never voted before in his life.
With those numbers, it’s obvious that Mr. Lyman and people like him are a new force to be reckoned with in this election. But he still wouldn’t be considered a “likely voter” in a Gallup poll.
No campaign in recent history has motivated this level of grassroots support or encouraged this number of individuals to switch party or register for the first time. Writing his predictions down for all to see, pollster John Zogby said of Ron Paul, “He's going to do better than anyone expects. Look to Paul to climb into the double-digits in Iowa. Why? He's different, he stands out. He's against the war and he has the one in four Republicans who oppose the war all to himself. Libertarianism is hot, especially among free-market Republicans and 20-somethings. And he's an appealing sort of father figure. He's his own brand. All he needs to do is beat a couple of big names in Iowa, then New Hampshire is friendlier territory. After all, the state motto is "Live Free or Die."
Two supporters posed with signs in front of the ‘Ron Paul Blimp’ at Gainesville Regional Airport on Jan. 7. The $400,000 publicity stunt, part of the ‘Ron Paul air corps,’ was paid for by supporters independently of the campaign. The other side of the first presidential blimp in history instructs people to ‘Google Ron Paul.’
Congressman Paul is the first to admit that his grass roots campaign has achieved much of his success. “It's not a top-down organization, its sort of bottom up. All we have done at the campaign is provide the message and the message turns out to be popular."
His grassroots organization has paid for billboards, radio and television air time, and produced their own commercials. Supporters have even launched the first presidential blimp, the “Ron Paul Blimp,” which soon to be hovering at a bowl game near you.
The Internet is facilitating a rebirth of grassroots political activism that is sure to have repercussions well beyond the 2008 election. Whether or not his supporters prevail on Election Day, one thing is certain - Ron Paul is quixotic no more.
▪ 'Underdog' Soars to 'Top-Tier'
▪ 'Florida Hometown Democracy' Misleading
▪ Property Tax Reform Amendment Explained
▪ Ocala elementary student arrested for steak knife
▪ Judicial Watch: 10 Most Corrupt Politicians
▪ Sentinel Interviews pres. candidate Ron Paul
▪ Clinton record reveals doubts of change
▪ The Wisdom of Reagan applied to today
▪ Editorials
▪ Gainesville candidate Armando Grundy
▪ Marion Forms Tax Payer Action Group
▪ Solid gold silver surge
▪ Patrick Henry Speech
▪ Letters to the Editor
▪ Under Construction
'Underdog' Soars to 'Top-Tier'
By Gary R. Schor, January 2008
What makes a presidential candidate a “frontrunner?” Mitt Romney has loaned a lot of money to himself. Does that make him a frontrunner? John McCain had to borrow three million dollars last month to stay in the race. Is he still a frontrunner?
Giuliani is financed by the big money politics of the status quo, and Mike Huckabee is receiving financing from long-time Clinton allies like Stephens Inc. & Tyson Foods.
Are they frontrunners?
With more donations, more straw poll victories, and more active and enthused supporters, it seems clear now that there is a new frontrunner in the race for the Republican nomination for president. His name is Dr. Ron Paul.
Call his “the little campaign that could”. Ron Paul made history (again) on December 16th, the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, by raising over six million dollars, breaking John Kerry’s one day fundraising record set back in 2004. Kerry’s record was set the day he accepted the Democratic nomination. What makes The Tea Party numbers even that much more impressive and unprecedented is that Paul broke the record this early in the primary process. The average donation on this record setting day was an unimpressive fifty dollars; small potatoes in today’s age multimillion-dollar campaigns. But these small donations added up to big results. The Boston Tea Party fundraiser, combined with the 5th of November fundraiser, will put Ron Paul in an enviable position financially going into the early caucuses and primaries.
Paul is racking in straw poll victories at an impressive clip, even in the face of some glaring improprieties. Some of the Liberty Sentinel staff were among those who witnessed first hand how Mitt Romney “won” his victory at the Florida straw poll, even in the face of an overwhelming turnout for Paul. But why bother to call it a poll at all if attendees are allowed to vote multiple times; more accurately call it “finger calisthenics.” It was even more extreme at the California straw poll. When Ron Paul supporters showed up in mass, they simply called the election off. Even so, Paul has still won 29 straw poll victories all over the nation, and placed second or third in many more.
The one area that Ron Paul still seems to be lagging in is the media polls, conducted by the likes of Rasmussen, Gallup, and Zogby. In order to measure the significance of these polls, it is important to know how they are conducted. Many of them use miniscule samples to achieve their results. The larger the sample of a poll is, the higher the accuracy. A sample of six hundred or even a thousand people in a state like Florida, which has millions of voters, is statistically irrelevant. Also, these polls use selective qualifiers to “filter out” bad data. This process often leaves those who didn’t vote in previous Republican primaries ineligible to participate in the poll. If there is one thing for certain among Ron Paul’s supporters, it is that they come from diverse backgrounds and political ideologies. This makes disqualifying those who didn’t vote in the 2004 Republican Party primary a questionable practice where accuracy is concerned.
The campaign is finding strong support among the Republican base, but Paul also attracts libertarians, constitutionalists, Reagan Democrats, and independents. Trevor Lyman, the grassroots supporter who organized the November 5th and Boston Tea Party fundraising drives which have netted over ten million dollars in donations, has never voted before in his life.
With those numbers, it’s obvious that Mr. Lyman and people like him are a new force to be reckoned with in this election. But he still wouldn’t be considered a “likely voter” in a Gallup poll.
No campaign in recent history has motivated this level of grassroots support or encouraged this number of individuals to switch party or register for the first time. Writing his predictions down for all to see, pollster John Zogby said of Ron Paul, “He's going to do better than anyone expects. Look to Paul to climb into the double-digits in Iowa. Why? He's different, he stands out. He's against the war and he has the one in four Republicans who oppose the war all to himself. Libertarianism is hot, especially among free-market Republicans and 20-somethings. And he's an appealing sort of father figure. He's his own brand. All he needs to do is beat a couple of big names in Iowa, then New Hampshire is friendlier territory. After all, the state motto is "Live Free or Die."
Two supporters posed with signs in front of the ‘Ron Paul Blimp’ at Gainesville Regional Airport on Jan. 7. The $400,000 publicity stunt, part of the ‘Ron Paul air corps,’ was paid for by supporters independently of the campaign. The other side of the first presidential blimp in history instructs people to ‘Google Ron Paul.’
Congressman Paul is the first to admit that his grass roots campaign has achieved much of his success. “It's not a top-down organization, its sort of bottom up. All we have done at the campaign is provide the message and the message turns out to be popular."
His grassroots organization has paid for billboards, radio and television air time, and produced their own commercials. Supporters have even launched the first presidential blimp, the “Ron Paul Blimp,” which soon to be hovering at a bowl game near you.
The Internet is facilitating a rebirth of grassroots political activism that is sure to have repercussions well beyond the 2008 election. Whether or not his supporters prevail on Election Day, one thing is certain - Ron Paul is quixotic no more.
▪ 'Underdog' Soars to 'Top-Tier'
▪ 'Florida Hometown Democracy' Misleading
▪ Property Tax Reform Amendment Explained
▪ Ocala elementary student arrested for steak knife
▪ Judicial Watch: 10 Most Corrupt Politicians
▪ Sentinel Interviews pres. candidate Ron Paul
▪ Clinton record reveals doubts of change
▪ The Wisdom of Reagan applied to today
▪ Editorials
▪ Gainesville candidate Armando Grundy
▪ Marion Forms Tax Payer Action Group
▪ Solid gold silver surge
▪ Patrick Henry Speech
▪ Letters to the Editor
▪ Under Construction