WaPo: Will Rand Paul Inherit the Energy From his Father's Campaigns? (cites RPFs)

[idiom]

Will Rand inherit the energy of his father's campaign?

Answer: Not even close. The passion that drove the 2008/2012 NOBP campaigns were borne out of pure unfiltered truth to power. So far the Rand 2016 Campaign seems hell-bent on playing politics as usual and panders WAY too much to ignite the fires that spread in 2008/2012.

Will I vote for Rand? Yes. Will I dedicate as much of my time and money to his campaign that I did to Ron Paul's? Probably not. Will I be selling "Rand Paul Cured My Apathy" T-shirts? No, because no one would buy them...

Sad but true. Love the guy, but there's a difference between being a statesman and a politician. I prefer the former.

I dunno. If the dude wins Iowa and NH, the idealists will come pouring out of the woodwork.

At the moment it feels like giving up something solid, purity and idealism and righteous fury, for no tangible results. If Rand gets traction, then suddenly, maybe, all the effort in '08 and '12 wasn't for nothing.

That, that sensation right then, of justification of a decade of work, could be the biggest political movement of the century.

[Inkblots]

You need fervor to go door to door in sub zero weather.... Just saying.

It's about proper calibration. You want to slide into that sweet spot above "knocks on doors in a New Hampshire winter" and below "pelts Fox News hosts with snowballs".

[ItsTime]

To be fair, Rand 2016 =/= Ron 2012. It's almost an entirely new team; Benton's off in PACland.

This is very true. In NH he hired a Santorum staffer to run his game. Santorum got 9% of the vote and had basically zero ground game. There has only been one Ron Paul staff hire from Rand in NH.

[orenbus]

You need fervor to go door to door in sub zero weather.... Just saying.

Truth.

[fisharmor]

There was a lot more time from Goldwater to Reagan.

Ah yes, St. Reagan.

The last president to sign enduring gun control legislation into law.

The first president to unilaterally send an invasion force into sovereign land without even congressional oversight.

The president who oversaw turning on the Fed's money spigot.

The president who spent that money like it was free.

The president who sold weapons to Iran (where's that anyway, haven't heard anything about that place recently) so he could funnel money into revolutions he was fomenting in other places.

The president who is more directly responsible for the War on Drugs, and the 2 million incarcerated Americans it has resulted in, than any other president.


Nice to know getting this sort of person elected is the goal of this site.

[69360]

What is comes down to is that Rand is going to run a conventional campaign. He doesn't need people to do handmade signs and stand on street corners, he won't need a blimp. He probably won't need their money either. All he needs to do is not go so far right in the primary he loses their votes.

[LatinsforPaul]

The liberty torch has been passed...

[Anti Federalist]

To be fair, Rand 2016 =/= Ron 2012. It's almost an entirely new team; Benton's off in PACland.

True enough.

It would be nice if he reached out to "us", meaning the core of his dad's support, and asked us to join him.

Maybe he has, and I missed it.

[orenbus]

You need fervor to go door to door in sub zero weather.... Just saying.

This post got me thinking of the time I drove 7+ hours to NH to go door to door doing voter ID issue canvassing back in 2007 in sub zero temps.

There is actually still video of some of us on Youtube here, brings back good memories.

[Anti Federalist]

Well that's just silly, we all know that. Ron's campaign made mistakes. Hopefully Rand's makes less. But they didn't want volunteers or voters? Nah.

It is not silly, it's been discussed and documented many times before, and I saw it with my own eyes, the last NH campaign made it clear they wanted none of "kooky" support.

[Inkblots]

Ah yes, St. Reagan.

Nice to know getting this sort of person elected is the goal of this site.

The point was that Reagan fundamentally changed the constituency and orientation of the GOP. Rand has the potential to do the same thing, with the neocons playing the role of the Rockefeller Republicans and young, more individualistic voters in the role of the Reagan Democrats.

I don't praise Reagan for his policies, I praise him for showing entrenched interests in a major party can be displaced and overthrown.

[Deborah K]

Ah yes, St. Reagan.

The last president to sign enduring gun control legislation into law.

The first president to unilaterally send an invasion force into sovereign land without even congressional oversight.

The president who oversaw turning on the Fed's money spigot.

The president who spent that money like it was free.

The president who sold weapons to Iran (where's that anyway, haven't heard anything about that place recently) so he could funnel money into revolutions he was fomenting in other places.

The president who is more directly responsible for the War on Drugs, and the 2 million incarcerated Americans it has resulted in, than any other president.


Nice to know getting this sort of person elected is the goal of this site.

Is there a list of Presidents who haven't done shady $#@! that I'm not aware of??

[Anti Federalist]

Don't forget the South American coke trade that spawned the "crack" epidemic of the early 90's that was part of the Iran/Contra fiasco.

Oh, and supporting Saddam Hussien's army in a useless border war against Iran that got millions killed.

And death squads in Central America.

Ah yes, St. Reagan.

The last president to sign enduring gun control legislation into law.

The first president to unilaterally send an invasion force into sovereign land without even congressional oversight.

The president who oversaw turning on the Fed's money spigot.

The president who spent that money like it was free.

The president who sold weapons to Iran (where's that anyway, haven't heard anything about that place recently) so he could funnel money into revolutions he was fomenting in other places.

The president who is more directly responsible for the War on Drugs, and the 2 million incarcerated Americans it has resulted in, than any other president.


Nice to know getting this sort of person elected is the goal of this site.

[Anti Federalist]

What is comes down to is that Rand is going to run a conventional campaign. He doesn't need people to do handmade signs and stand on street corners, he won't need a blimp. He probably won't need their money either. All he needs to do is not go so far right in the primary he loses their votes.

Exactly my point.

So, we'll see how the pros do this time around.

[acptulsa]

Is there a list of Presidents who haven't done shady $#@! that I'm not aware of??

Oh, I figure Calvin Coolidge will get some company on that list one of these centuries.

[Henry Rogue]

Bastiat's The Law, you're famous!

Hopefully people will be curious enough to search his name. Good thing it wasn't Rogue.

[Inkblots]

Oh, I figure Calvin Coolidge will get some company on that list one of these centuries.

Grover Cleveland was almost as good. In a lot of ways, better, because he didn't benefit from a post-WWI desire for nonintervention - he was fighting the imperialists all through his two non-consecutive terms.

[GunnyFreedom]

Ah yes, St. Reagan.

The last president to sign enduring gun control legislation into law.

The first president to unilaterally send an invasion force into sovereign land without even congressional oversight.

The president who oversaw turning on the Fed's money spigot.

The president who spent that money like it was free.

The president who sold weapons to Iran (where's that anyway, haven't heard anything about that place recently) so he could funnel money into revolutions he was fomenting in other places.

The president who is more directly responsible for the War on Drugs, and the 2 million incarcerated Americans it has resulted in, than any other president.


Nice to know getting this sort of person elected is the goal of this site.

Nice logic fail.

Rand :: Ron
Reagan :: Goldwater

DOES NOT IMPLY that Rand will be beholden to the same policy errors as Reagan.

[eleganz]

This is a silly, when Rand announces all of the smart/pragmatic libertarians will be on board, as the campaign goes by all of the movement followers will also come on board, only some of the extreme fringe might stay out, which is probably a good thing anyways.

I do know a couple of regional leadership type activists who are not as excited but they'll still vote and support.

[fisharmor]

What is comes down to is that Rand is going to run a conventional campaign. He doesn't need people to do handmade signs and stand on street corners, he won't need a blimp. He probably won't need their money either. All he needs to do is not go so far right in the primary he loses their votes.

but the thing is, if you're running a conventional campaign, you don't even need the votes of the Liberty crowd. And if you don't need their votes, then you don't need to follow through on what they want after you are elected.

[Krugminator2]

The president who oversaw turning on the Fed's money spigot.

All of your criticisms are valid. But Reagan was also the right President for the time. Reagan took office with double digit inflation. His plan to cut tax rates dramatically and have a tight monetary was exactly the right policy at the right time. And history has shown that. Jimmy Carter and liberal economists thought his plan was nuts.


Volcker, with Reagan's forceful blessing, took draconian measures to beat inflation that he was not able to take under Carter . It sent Reagan's approval rating into the 20's. It is easy to armchair quarterback now. It took a lot of guts. Reagan's economic plan is what created that playing field that lead to the greatest wealth creation in world history.

[Vanguard101]

No. Rand's campaign will have far more energy

[William Tell]

This conversation is unnecessary. Rand is not Reagan.

[69360]

Exactly my point.

So, we'll see how the pros do this time around.

I don't think he is going to win this time. Maybe next. I'm voting for him still.

but the thing is, if you're running a conventional campaign, you don't even need the votes of the Liberty crowd. And if you don't need their votes, then you don't need to follow through on what they want after you are elected.

He needs their votes to win. He will need the vast majority of people who voted Ron, plus new voters to pull this off.

[francisco]

Bastiat's The Law, you're famous!

And I and a lot of others are jealous!

[puppetmaster]

I will push like I did for his father.

[William Tell]

but the thing is, if you're running a conventional campaign, you don't even need the votes of the Liberty crowd. And if you don't need their votes, then you don't need to follow through on what they want after you are elected.

Liberty lovers are his core base, you need your core base. You expand from there. Just like how Ron did so well in Iowa.

[Theocrat]

Hopefully, Rand Paul can inherit the same energy from his father's campaign as this:

[Deborah K]

And nonsense. I'm sure Rand is plenty glad to have passionate Alex Jones type supporters fueling his campaign. He doesn't have to endorse back.

Tell that to the likes of Matt Collins.

[invisible]

Yea I found it amusing too, just caught me by surprise that he decided to end the article that way almost like he was a poster on RPF purposely trying to throw a jab at someone.

You know, I was thinking that very same thing! And we were probably thinking of that very same poster, too. Wonder who that could have been, lol?