Dr. Ron Paul, 2012?

[bobover3]

Paul can still be a spoiler.

Remember how Ross Perot handed the Presidency to Clinton in 1992 and how Ralph Nader helped Bush in 2000?

I don't know Paul's plan - is he just running to be heard? - but he could extort a price for his silence.

[Riverwind]

I don't think Paul is a factor, if he is it hurts Romney.

River

[moi621]

The smart Romney finds points in common to emphasize with Dr. Paul if he agrees.
The smart Romney might even reaccess some point toward Dr. Paul such as illegal immigration.
Similar to NIXON, the smart Romney is not an ideologue.
(ref. "Only NIXON could go to China)

<ta-da> <bow> <thunderous approving applause> <bow>

Romney will obtain the nomination regardless. Will he obtain a very solid Paulist party wing?


Moi

[moi621]

How much influence at the convention?

http://news.yahoo.com/paul-wins-majo...174422402.html
Paul wins majority of delegates from Maine GOP

". . In votes leading to the close of the two-day Maine convention, Paul supporters were elected to 21 of the 24 delegate spots from Maine to the GOP national convention in Tampa, Fla. The 24th delegate's seat goes to party Chairman Charles Webster, who has remained uncommitted throughout the process. ."

Will Romney buy into Dr. Paul's attitude toward, "the Fed"? Sound money.
What common ground can Romney establish or yield to the Paulist?

Moi
The Game is Played for 9 Innings.
Someone please tell the other teams.

[Dave]

How much influence at the convention?

http://news.yahoo.com/paul-wins-majo...174422402.html
Paul wins majority of delegates from Maine GOP

". . In votes leading to the close of the two-day Maine convention, Paul supporters were elected to 21 of the 24 delegate spots from Maine to the GOP national convention in Tampa, Fla. The 24th delegate's seat goes to party Chairman Charles Webster, who has remained uncommitted throughout the process. ."

Will Romney buy into Dr. Paul's attitude toward, "the Fed"? Sound money.
What common ground can Romney establish or yield to the Paulist?

Moi
The Game is Played for 9 Innings.
Someone please tell the other teams.

He is playing a dangerous game.

Delegates to the Republican National Convention are committed to vote for the winner of the primary only on the first ballot.
I repeat, only on the first ballot.

If Ron Paul gets them to change that vote on the first ballot, there will be a mass revolt of the party elders and the RNC will collapse into chaos.
That would be a disaster.

If the delegates switch on a second or subsequent ballot, and throw Ron Paul the nomination. I think the RNC will revolt just as bad and once again, that would create a split in the party that nothing wold repair.

A very dangerous game.

[moi621]

He is playing a dangerous game.

Delegates to the Republican National Convention are committed to vote for the winner of the primary only on the first ballot.
I repeat, only on the first ballot.

If Ron Paul gets them to change that vote on the first ballot, there will be a mass revolt of the party elders and the RNC will collapse into chaos.
That would be a disaster.

If the delegates switch on a second or subsequent ballot, and throw Ron Paul the nomination. I think the RNC will revolt just as bad and once again, that would create a split in the party that nothing wold repair.

A very dangerous game.

I do not imagine Ron Paul, M.D. winning the nomination or being on the ticket.
I believe what he wants is influence on the Romney White House.
What would Romney yield? They are way far apart on illegal immigration. Maybe Romney could claim Dr. Paul delivered a new outlook, Dr. Paul's outlook.
Maine was a convention and not a primary BTW.
Doesn't every State have its' own rules on delegates obligation to vote as committed on the first ballot?

Moi

[Dave]

...
Doesn't every State have its' own rules on delegates obligation to vote as committed on the first ballot?
...

There are problems with both party's primaries...
1) States set the rules and not the national party. The National Party enforces the rules but all that means is that the National PArty can deny seating to a state. The chances of a big state or a swing state being punished is miniscule to nonexistent. Which party would dare to piss off Florida or Ohio? Right now, no one knows how many delegates Florida will have at the convention because they scheduled their voting date too early and the punishment is to lose delegates. What national party would deny seating a major state or a swing state if all of its delegates were elected under the banner of one candidate when the people of the state voted for another candidate? That can happen if the election is a beauty contest and the state convention is where electors are voted upon.

2) States only elect a portion of their delegates in the primary thanks to the rules. There are party apparatchiks and officials and honorary former officials. Those people can vote for who they want. Four years ago in the Democratic Primary between Obama and Clinton, these were called superdelegates. When Republican Party decided that it needed a long primary season and an open set of primaries with proportional delegate representation (And not winner take all) they copied the faults of the system the Democrats use. And in all honesty, those oddities may not be faults.

3) the requirement that a delegate to a party convention vote for the "candidate" from that state has been violated. Not often but there have been maybe a handful or two instances of delegates defying their electors. Electors are bound only by their word and they may cast a protest vote.

What Ron Paul is going to do with all these delegates is a mystery to me.
What Romney is going to do with Ron Paul is an even greater mystery.

Now you know why I'm laying low in May because the Republican convention is in late August.

[gareth19]

I do not imagine Ron Paul, M.D. winning the nomination or being on the ticket.
I believe what he wants is influence on the Romney White House.
What would Romney yield? They are way far apart on illegal immigration. Maybe Romney could claim Dr. Paul delivered a new outlook, Dr. Paul's outlook.
Maine was a convention and not a primary BTW.
Doesn't every State have its' own rules on delegates obligation to vote as committed on the first ballot?

Moi

Romney's campaign is being supported by the evil Stalinist Karl Rove; he is aiming a la Bush 2000 for the bigot vote, so Paul's deep appeal to the moron vote is irrelevant to the Romney strategy. As a vulture capitalist, Romney would see no advantage to Paul's imbecilic views on the gold standard and certainly wouldn't want to turn the economy over to Vladimir Putin as Paul has unwittingly advocated. As a war-monger who has pledged to keep fighting in Afghanistan, Romney would have no interest Paul's isolationist neo-Ostrich views on foreign affairs which would call for withdrawl and the immediate cessation of payments to military contractors whose obscene profits Romney supports.

The likelihood of Romney adopting any of Paul's views is about as great as the probability of Romney supporting gay marriage, equal pay for women, and free choice.

[moi621]

Then Romney loses.
The Paulist are solid like the Jewish vote.
No concessions regardless of convention strength would equal loosing that "swing" vote.
Gingrich, Bachmann, Perry, etc. supporters are more likely to band wagon with Romney then unsatisfied Paulist.

Moi

[Riverwind]

Ron Paul is and has ever been a non factor, he has his 5% its loud and vocal but only 5%. On the other hand, Romney seems to change his mind depending on who he is talking to so who knows what he will say or do. Kinda gives you that warm fuzzy feeling doesn't it?

River

[moi621]

The GOP Convention should have some good theater.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/...ry?id=16395794
". . . May 21, 2012 . . .
When Ron Paul's campaign stated last week that Mitt Romney's delegate lead was insurmountable, Paul's staff insisted they would continue competing for delegates and cited Minnesota as their next target.
This past weekend, Paul accomplished that goal, winning 12 of 13 delegates at the state GOP convention. . ."

Moi


This is about good theater. Spare me the, 'he can't win' uploads.
Besides, Paulism will prevail.

[Dave]

>>POLITICO has a big story...
>>Three pages long. Page one is below.
>>
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0512/76505.html

By MAGGIE HABERMAN and EMILY SCHULTHEIS | 5/19/12 6:59 AM EDT

Ron Paul started what his supporters call a revolution. Now, that revolution is threatening to march on without him.

Despite suspending active campaigning this week in upcoming primary states, Paul went to Minnesota on Friday night to deliver a speech before the state’s Republican convention as it chooses its delegates to the national one in Tampa this summer. The Minnesota meeting is just one in a string of state party conventions that have seen the Texas congressman’s backers infiltrate their top ranks and nab delegates.

In what amounts to public pleading with his passionate supporters, Paul’s campaign has made clear that he wants them to tamp down the rhetoric, and to be respectful of Mitt Romney at the national convention in August when Romney is crowned the GOP nominee. That isn’t sitting well with some Paulites, who have made their anger clear on message boards and in videos over the past week.

The question for Paul now is whether the movement he sparked will overtake him.

Since Paul effectively declared the end of his campaign, missives posted on the fan page DailyPaul.com have been brutal about Paul national campaign Chairman Jesse Benton, who declared, to some supporters’ disgust, that the retiring congressman simply can’t mathematically secure the GOP nomination. Benton has pleaded for “decorum” from Paul’s notoriously raucous backers, who drowned out Dick Cheney with boos at CPAC in 2010 and greeted Josh Romney with similar disdain at the Arizona convention last weekend.

“Jesse acknowledges we have stealth Ron Paul supporters among the Romney delegates,” wrote one supporter on the DailyPaul.com, whose cyber-handle is Bob-45. “He knows delegates can abstain or may even be unbound. This chops the legs off the Ron Paul campaign at a critical juncture. I no longer have any confidence in Jesse Benton; and, if Ron Paul keeps him after this, I will have lost a great deal of confidence in Ron Paul.”

Adam Kokesh, a radio host and head of Veterans for Ron Paul, went further in a web video this week, first reported by BuzzFeed, in which he said, “It’s been extremely disappointing to see that the official campaign — Jesse Benton, John Tate — have failed to contest this with the Republican Party. We didn’t come here to play nice.”

Kokesh, who the campaign was once close to but says it’s split from, urges Paulites to convince delegates to flip at the national convention.

But a more likely form of protest is likely to come from Paulites like Ashley Ryan, a Maine committee-woman elect who will be a national convention delegate. She says she believes that Paul can still win the GOP nomination.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1vYknhlYl

[Riverwind]

By the time the Republicans have their convention everything will be scripted right down to how long to stand and clap for each and every speaker. The republicans may be many things but one thing they have never been is exciting or put on a show that every single word was not scripted before hand, look at the crowd, they will be older white mostly men and they beileve in their black hearts that they represent all of America, at least the America they want.

Boring.

Paul, will only have a word it they decide to let him and even that will be scripted.

River

[Dave]

Normally I would agree but I don't think there is anything normal about this election season...

[moi621]

From this point, call it good political theater.
Going all the way to the convention to push one's agenda is the ole fashion way of doing it.
I don't think all those Dr. Paul delegates are going to take kindly to being scripted.
Good theater is a minimal hope for any party's convention in the 21st Century.

Moi