As expected, the Ron Paul delegates made their statement today at the GOP National Convention.
Mitt Romney supporters shouted the Paul supporters down with chants of “USA! USA! USA!”
Kelly Clarkson endorses Ron Paul – steps in firestorm
First American Idol Kelly Clarkson stepped in a firestorm today when she tweeted her support for Ron Paul.
That tweet generated tons of comments on both WhoSay and Twitter, many insulting her while accusing Paul of racism and homophobia.
Kelly later posted, “I am really sorry if I have offended anyone. Obviously that was not my intent. I do not support racism. I support gay rights, straight rights, women’s rights, men’s rights, white/black/purple/orange rights. I like Ron Paul because he believes in less government and letting the people (all of us) make the decisions and mold our country. That is all. Out of all of the Republican nominees, he’s my favorite.”
In the past few weeks, excerpts from Ron Paul’s 1990s newsletters have revealed racist and homophobic statements sent in his name. He denied having ever writing the articles.
Read more at USAtoday.com
Ron Paul: Everything is Unconstitutional
If it wasn’t in the original original Constitution, Ron Paul wants it gone.
Departments of Energy, Education, Labor, Agriculture… You name it, Ron Paul wants it gone.
Ron Paul’s newsletters come back to haunt him
From the NY Times: Emerging as a real Republican contender in Iowa, Representative Ron Paul of Texas is receiving new focus for decades-old unbylined columns in his political newsletters that included racist, anti-gay and anti-Israel passages that he has since disavowed.
A 1992 passage from the Ron Paul Political Report about the Los Angeles riots read, “Order was only restored in L.A. when it came time for the blacks to pick up their welfare checks.”
A passage in another newsletter asserted that people with AIDS should not be allowed to eat in restaurants because “AIDS can be transmitted by saliva.”
In 1990 one of his publications criticized Ronald Reagan for having gone along with the creation of the federal holiday honoring the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which it called “Hate Whitey Day.”
The passages were plucked from a variety of newsletters that Mr. Paul’s consulting business published during his years out of Congress, all of them featuring his name: Ron Paul Political Report, Ron Paul’s Freedom Report, Ron Paul Survival Report and Ron Paul Investment Letter.
Mr. Paul did not respond to an interview request, but repudiated the writings in 2008. Likening himself to a major news publisher, he said he did not vet every article that was featured in his newsletters. “I absolutely, honestly do not know who wrote those things,” Mr. Paul said in an interview on CNN at the time, adding that he did not monitor the publications closely because he was busy with a medical practice and “speeches around the country.”
On Monday, his deputy campaign manager, Dimitri Kesari, reiterated that Mr. Paul “did not write, edit or authorize” the language.
“He totally disavows what was said and disagrees with it totally,” Mr. Kesari said. “The only responsibility he takes is for not paying closer attention.”
Ron Paul on The Tonight Show
While appearing Friday on The Tonight Show, Paul basically insulted every other Republican candidate, save for former Utah governor John Huntsman.
Paul said Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann hates Muslims, and indirectly said Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum hates both Muslims and gays.
Note – the clip above is audio only.
Ron Paul: Newt Gingrich no friend of the Tea Party
One of Ron Paul’s chief supporters – his son, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul – said Friday that Newt Gingrich stood opposed to tea party values.
“I got elected with a lot of the tea party support and the tea party movement,” Sen. Paul said on CNN “Newsroom.”
“The tea party was a lot about people unhappy with Republicans voting for bank bailouts. We thought they sold out our limited government views when they voted to send taxpayer money to big banks. Unfortunately, Newt Gingrich was right there with them being paid by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It goes against everything that the tea party stands for.”
The assault on Gingrich comes as Ron Paul, a three-time presidential candidate and Texas congressman, aired a blistering television ad in Iowa and New Hampshire that slams Gingrich for “serial hypocrisy,” saying the former House speaker had cashed in after leaving Congress by becoming a lobbyist.
Jon Huntsman and Ron Paul say “no” to the Donald
Via CNN: Texas Rep. Ron Paul and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman will both skip the debate to be moderated by real estate mogul Donald Trump, citing concerns about the seriousness of the event.
In a campaign statement released Saturday, Paul’s campaign called the debate a distraction from the real issues of the campaign.
“The selection of a reality television personality to host a presidential debate that voters nationwide will be watching is beneath the office of the Presidency and flies in the face of that office’s history and dignity,” Jesse Benton, Ron Paul’s national campaign chairman, said in a statement.
He added, “Mr. Trump’s participation as moderator will distract from questions and answers concerning important issues such as the national economy, crushing federal government debt, the role of the federal government, foreign policy, and the like. To be sure, Mr. Trump’s participation will contribute to an unwanted circus-like atmosphere.”
In an “I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I” moment, Trump slammed Paul as a non-electable candidate.
“As I said in the past and will reiterate again, Ron Paul has a zero chance of winning either the nomination or the Presidency,” Trump said in a statement to CNN. “My poll numbers were substantially higher than any of his poll numbers, at any time, and when I decided not to run, due to the equal time provisions concerning my hit show The Apprentice, I was leading the Republican field.”
Trump also took a swipe at Huntsman as “inconsequential”:
“Few people take Ron Paul seriously and many of his views and presentation make him a clown-like candidate,” Trump said. “I am glad he and Jon Huntsman, who has inconsequential poll numbers or a chance of winning, will not be attending the debate and wasting the time of the viewers who are trying very hard to make a very important decision.”
Huntsman’s campaign said Friday the former Utah governor wouldn’t be making an appearance at the event.
“We have declined to participate in the ‘Presidential Apprentice’ Debate with The Donald,” Huntsman spokesman Tim Miller said in a statement. “The Republican Party deserves a serious discussion of the issues so voters can choose a leader they trust to defeat President Obama and turn our economy around.”
On Friday, the conservative online publication Newsmax announced they were sponsoring the Trump-moderated debate on December 27. It will be held in Des Moines, Iowa, just days before the state holds its first-in-the-nation caucus.
Ron Paul – “We Don’t Need FEMA”
Via CNN: As Hurricane Irene barrels along the U.S. East Coast, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas said the nation would be much better off without the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“I live on the Gulf Coast. We put up with hurricanes all the time,” the GOP presidential candidate told an NBC News reporter Friday at a New Hampshire campaign event. “There’s no magic about FEMA. More and more people are starting to recognize that.”
Paul has long been a critic of the agency, which he calls a “great contributor to deficit financing.”
Citing the Galveston hurricane in 1900 that obliterated much of the Texas coast, the libertarian-leaning congressman said Americans were able to rebuild their cities and put up a seawall without the federal government’s help.
“FEMA is not a good friend of most people in Texas,” Paul said. “All they do is come in and tell you what to do and can’t do. You can’t get in your houses. And they hinder the local people, and they hinder volunteers from going in.”
The agency received wide criticism in 2005 after failing to respond in a timely, organized manner to the vast destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina.