From The Hill

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he’s interested in mounting a 2016 presidential bid.

“I’m not going to deny that I’m interested,” Paul told ABC News in an interview published on Tuesday.

A bid for the Republican nomination would continue a family tradition. Paul’s father, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), has repeatedly sought the party’s nomination. The elder Paul is retiring at the end of this congressional term.

The younger Paul emphasized that he was not yet ready to announce his candidacy, but said he believed his brand of libertarianism could open up the map for Republicans.

“I think we have to go a different direction, because we’re just not winning, and we have to think about some different ideas,” said the Kentucky lawmaker, a favorite of the conservative Tea Party movement.

for full article: http://weaselzippers.us/2012/11/20/rand-paul-says-hes-eyeing-2016-presidential-bid/

 

Sen. Rand Paul Feels the Wrath of His Dad’s Base after Endorsing Romney

Fans of the “Ron Paul Revolution” were not happy with his son Sen. Rand Paul after he endorsed Mitt Romney last night on Sean Hannity’s Fox News Show.
Paul explained that although his “first choice was always my father,” he insisted that he had a lot in common with Romney, who signaled to him that he was serious about a number of government reforms.
But the backlash on Sen. Paul’s Facebook page was fierce as the vocal supporters of the Ron Paul Revolution, took to the comments section to denounce his son. As of this morning, over 2,000 comments were posted, a majority of them negative. Supporters blasted Rand Paul for “selling out” the legacy of his father to the “Republican establishment.”

A few fans approved of Rand Paul’s decision, but only 270 people “liked” his endorsement message.
Others even speculated that Rand Paul was threatened or bribed into supporting Romney, by the Bilderberg group, suggesting that it wasn’t a coincidence that his endorsement came after their conference.

Other angry fans even started a “Ron Paul Supporters Who Don’t Give A Sh*t Who Rand Endorses” Facebook page that now has 210 members.

http://campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/ron-paul-fans-attack-rand-endorsing-romney/588321

At 8PM, The Florida Polls will Close, and Romney will be Declared the Winner in the Florida Primary

      The Florida primary had more eligible registered voters than Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina combined. The biggest primary yet in the 2012 Presidential race, the polls in the Florida panhandle will close at 8:00pm EST, and Romney will be declared the victor of this round.

      Presently, 46% of the precincts have reported, and Romney leads the pack with 49% to Gingrich’s 30%. Rick Santorum comes in at 13% and Ron Paul at 7%.

       None of the candidates are hinting at dropping from the race, with Santorum and Paul already campaigning in Nevada.

GOP Leaders Need to Pay Attention to Ron Paul and Rick Santorum’s Concession Speeches

     While it is still too early to count Rick Santorum out, or Ron Paul for that matter, the GOP nomination process will focus, albeit by the media coverage, on Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney.

      But the GOP establishment, as it prepares for the Tampa convention in August, needs to be paying close attention to both Ron Paul and Rick Santorum. In the primaries this year, the delegates are being awarded not as a “winner take all”, but on the percentage basis of the candidate’s performance in the primary. If I understand it correctly, Newt Gingrich won 40% of the votes in the South Carolina primary last night, and will this have 40% of the state’s delegates.

         This is important, because it means that as Ron Paul or Rick Santorum continue to add more delegates to their column, despite the heavy odds of not having enough for the  nomination, they are “banking”  them for their “voice” on the GOP platform. Ron Paul knows that he can use his delegate count to force the “audit the Fed” issue into the GOP platform. Likewise, Rick Santorum can parlay his delegate count into his voice for the social issues and the manufacturing jobs platform he has been running on.

         So the GOP establishment needs to pay close attention as the primaries continue, and heed the words of the “non-winning” candidates, for they are not going “quietly into the night”!

Can We Find 534 More Rand Paul’s? He Returns $500k of his Unused Budget to the Treasury

Freshman Sen. Rand Paul is making good on his promise to cut federal spending. The Kentucky Republican and tea-party favorite said Thursday he’s returning $500,000 to the U.S. Treasury — money from his operating budget that his office never spent.

The half million dollars represents about 16 percent of Paul’s annual budget. He contended no senator had returned as much to taxpayers, though at least two senators disputed that claim. An aide to Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) said his office returned $636,036 in unspent money to the Treasury in Fiscal Year 2010 and another $503,161 in 2011.

“I ran to stop the reckless spending. And I ran to end the damaging process of elected officials acting as errand boys, competing to see who could bring back the biggest check and the most amount of pork,” Paul said at a news conference in Louisville, where he presented taxpayers with a massive mock check for $500,000.

“I hope this sets an example for the rest of government — at all levels,” he added. “We can carry out our duties in a fiscally responsible way. Government can be both smart and efficient. We are proving that — and trying to convince the rest of Washington.”

http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-congress/2012/01/rand-paul-returns-k-in-office-budget-to-treasury-110637.html

It’s A Long Road to Tampa and the Nomination, But If Mitt is to get it, Who Should be the VP Nominee?

 Although I despise the idea of the media telling us that Mitt Romney is the most electable candidate to unseat King Barack, if Mitt is to get the nomination in Tampa in August, who should he put on the ticket with him.

       Mrs. James believes that Romney has made a promise to Gov. Chris Christie. We both think this would be a colossal mistake.

       Of course, almost all of the pundits have annointed Florida’s junior Senator, Marco Rubio, to take the VP slot. A Tea Party favorite, and a Hispanic, Rubio could be a major force for a Romney ticket.

       Then there is the idea of Virginia’s Governor Bob McDonnell.

       While I cannot see Romney asking Ron Paul to be on his ticket, there is something intriguing in the idea of putting Rand Paul on the ticket. Could he bring over many of the supporters of his father?

       Lastly, there is the idea of a Kennedy-Johnson team: Just as there was no big friendship between John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, the same could be said of Romney and Rick Perry….. but it could be an interesting ticket.

Within Minutes of the Closing of the NH Polls, Mitt Romney is Declared the Winner

     Mitt Romney has taken both Iowa and now New Hampshire.

      Ron Paul has garnered the second spot, and Jon Hunstman will draw the third spot.

      Romney’s troops are already acknowledging that the January 21st primary in South Carolina will be a battleground. Candidates such as Rick Perry and Rick Santorum believe they have a great appeal to the voters in the Palmetto State.

 

First Votes of the 2012 POTUS Campaign to be Cast in 48 Hours

     As the people of Iowa go to their caucus meetings in about 48 hours, the first votes of the 2012 Presidential Campaign primary season will be cast. According to the polls reported by the Des Moines Register, Gov. Mitt Romeny leads the GOP field, with Rep. Dr. Ron Paul in second (within the margin of error), and Rick Santorum surging ahead of Newt Gingrich into the third slot.

      The talking heads today have said that the storylines on Wednesday will be “who is Santirum”, not becuase of a win, but because of where he will actually place in the caucus’. And he will become the newest target.

        So how do you see the Iowa Caucus, NH Primary, SC Primary, and Florida Primary playing out?

Could Ron Paul Win the GOP Nomination?

As the debate in Iowa begins, and Ron Paul is surging in the polls in Iowa, could he possibly take the GOP nomination in Tampa next year?:

Ron Paul has a 7.5 percent likelihood of winning the Republican nomination, based on data from prediction markets. That puts him in 3^rd place, behind Mitt Romney at 47.7 percent and Newt Gingrich at 33.7 percent, but ahead  of Jon Huntsman at 5.4 percent.

Real Clear Politics has Paul at 9.3 percentage points in its latest aggregated poll trend for the Republican primary. Among active candidates, that puts him 3^rd behind Gingrich at 33.3 percentage points and Romney at 22.0 percentage points. The prediction markets and polls paint a picture of the race for the Republican nomination that contrasts with many indicators talked about on the internet.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/signal/ron-paul-could-win-105810338.html

…”a little civil disobedience won’t hurt.”