What Was Congressman Paul's Best Presidential Debate for 2008?

[Theocrat]

In light of Dylan Ratigan's plea (http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?286435-Video-Dylan-Ratigan-wants-Ron-Paul-to-be-in-debates-says-he-s-the-best-GOP-candidate) for Congressman Paul to be involved in the 2012 Presidential debates, it got me wondering about Dr. Paul's run of debates back in 2008. As excited as I was back then to see him make fools of the competition, I must say that the one debate where I thought Congressman Paul shined in all his brilliance was the CNBC debate (10/09/2007):


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMfLo0fuQq0

So, what about you? Post your favorite debate of Dr. Paul's where you thought he did his best. This will be truly nostalgic, as well!

[ItsTime]

I can't remember which one it was, one of the Fox ones when he said we should take our marching orders from the constitution.

[AZKing]

This is one of my favorite clips. It's the Huck-McCain-Romney-Paul debate in the Reagan Library. He was really on fire. Of course, I think he won all of the debates in 2008 so it's hard to choose just one.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhAokoMgSDc&feature=related

[Theocrat]

I can't remember which one it was, one of the Fox ones when he said we should take our marching orders from the constitution.

It was this one:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BB3NrSpRGE

[BuddyRey]

I thought all of Ron's debate performances were fantastic, but two in particular really jump out in my memory for the impact they had, both on my perception of Ron and on the wider public's perception as well:

1. The very first minutes of the Iowa debate. I remember it aired at a very unusual time (10 in the morning EST, if I remember correctly), and I was pretty groggy at the time. But when a home viewer asked what should be done about the Iraq War, and Ron said, "just come home. We just marched in and we can just come home", it felt (and sounded) like a thunderclap shook the entire arena.

2. One of the FOX News debates (I think it was in South Carolina). Chris Wallace snidely suggested that Ron Paul's position entailed "taking our marching orders from Al Qaeda" and Ron hit back with "NO! I'm saying we should take our marching orders from our Constitution!"

That line had so much power, it actually jolted me about five feet forward from the the living room sofa and into a Rick Flair-style victory dance. My mom and I both started cheering at the top of our lungs. Ron continued, "We should not go to war...we should not go to war when it's an aggressive war. This is an aggressive invasion! We've committed the invasion of this war, and it's illegal under International Law. That's where I take my 'marching orders' from...not from any enemy!!!"

The crowd erupted into applause. Some folks here on RPF's said they heard a lot of booing going on, but we later learned that the FOX News Jumbotron (or whatever it's called) was fixed on Rudy Giuliani giving that mocking scowl of his.

[JasonC]

I can't pick just one... they're each special in their own way...

[cswake]

New Hampshire debate January 5, 2008 *by far*. The only one where the moderator and other candidates weren't mocking and ridiculing him, he comes across as knowledgeable and "electable", plus he is sitting in the middle rather than on the edges:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyDlneYT1wQ

[KramerDSP]

I'm partial to his headshake after McCain's Hitler analogy.

[JoshLowry]

This was my first Ron Paul video.

Still one of my favorites. Hits on a lot of issues.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peBGJwE9NXo

[cswake]

^ That or him calling out Romney on actually reading the Constitution were the best single moments.

[VegasPatriot]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrZL3t6F3d0&feature=channel_video_title


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCffrf7ePkI&feature=channel_video_title


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsHjq4PeKx4&feature=channel_video_title

[heavenlyboy34]

I thought all of Ron's debate performances were fantastic, but two in particular really jump out in my memory for the impact they had, both on my perception of Ron and on the wider public's perception as well:

1. The very first minutes of the Iowa debate. I remember it aired at a very unusual time (10 in the morning EST, if I remember correctly), and I was pretty groggy at the time. But when a home viewer asked what should be done about the Iraq War, and Ron said, "just come home. We just marched in and we can just come home", it felt (and sounded) like a thunderclap shook the entire arena.

2. One of the FOX News debates (I think it was in South Carolina). Chris Wallace snidely suggested that Ron Paul's position entailed "taking our marching orders from Al Qaeda" and Ron hit back with "NO! I'm saying we should take our marching orders from our Constitution!"

That line had so much power, it actually jolted me about five feet forward from the the living room sofa and into a Rick Flair-style victory dance. My mom and I both started cheering at the top of our lungs. Ron continued, "We should not go to war...we should not go to war when it's an aggressive war. This is an aggressive invasion! We've committed the invasion of this war, and it's illegal under International Law. That's where I take my 'marching orders' from...not from any enemy!!!"

The crowd erupted into applause. Some folks here on RPF's said they heard a lot of booing going on, but we later learned that the FOX News Jumbotron (or whatever it's called) was fixed on Rudy Giuliani giving that mocking scowl of his.

Those were the most epic points that I can recall ^^

[cswake]

And just for the sake of including this, since this was awesome in its own right:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ur8F_c5PQg

[Johnnymac]

This is one of my favorite clips. It's the Huck-McCain-Romney-Paul debate in the Reagan Library. He was really on fire. Of course, I think he won all of the debates in 2008 so it's hard to choose just one.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhAokoMgSDc&feature=related

im surprised he didnt win the gop after this he fucking kicked ass

[VegasPatriot]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfCeGhAFJEE&feature=channel_video_title

[Eleventh Star]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--hs0fSiJrg&feature=related

4:15 onward is inspiring, no matter what your politics are. The most graceful yet informative answer I've ever seen from in response to a dirty trick. No other candidate had to deal with moderators trying to publicly humiliate them and Ron's character in this respect is just as much reason to support him as his policies.

[Michael Landon]

The thing I noticed most about when Ron was speaking in the debates was that he wasn't so much "campaigning" for himself for president as he was "educating" the listeners. He taught and suggested to people to learn about the issues, it was like listening to a teacher and not a politician. I love Ron Paul.

- ML

[kylejack]

The later the better. I think in the early debates he was considered a cute fringe novelty, not a serious candidate. He never got considered as serious by the moderators, but they did take notice of the money he was raising and he started getting more time to speak. I think they also noticed how much excitement he could create by challenging typical Republican viewpoints, and that his views had a certain following, even if he couldn't win.

[doodle]

Allof them were very educational but those in which he smacked down McCain with the sheer force of his arguments were especially entertaining.

[kylejack]

This always reminds me of the good old days: http://ronpaulsaysno.ytmnd.com/

[Badger Paul]

I'm partial to his Iowa debate before the Straw Poll.

Just come home America.

[TheNcredibleEgg]

I must say that the one debate where I thought Congressman Paul shined in all his brilliance was the CNBC debate (10/09/2007):




Truely awe-inspiring to go back and watch that performance. (I never saw it live.)

The thing that really impressed me most was the graphic in the background about the stock all-time highs that day in 2007. For Ron Paul to stand up against, basically everyone, and say it like it is - that the economy was completely a mirage - just defies words of praise.

[Theocrat]

Truely awe-inspiring to go back and watch that performance. (I never saw it live.)

The thing that really impressed me most was the graphic in the background about the stock all-time highs that day in 2007. For Ron Paul to stand up against, basically everyone, and say it like it is - that the economy was completely a mirage - just defies words of praise.

My favorite line of his during that debate was, "As long as we live beyond our means, we are destined to live beneath our means." I felt like I was in church, shouting "Amen!" about a sermon or something. [lol]