By: Daniel Nardini
One political presidential candidate who really stands out from the rest is Republican primary candidate Ron Paul. Even though it does not look likely that he will receive the delegates or the Republican Party nomination to become this party’s presidential candidate against current U.S. President Barack Obama, he has nevertheless greatly influenced this election. What makes Ron Paul different from the other Republicans, and indeed even different from the Democrats, is his consistency, his honest political views, and his libertarian ideals of maximum freedom, individual liberty, and a largely foreign non-intervention policy. There is so much that can be said about Ron Paul that this article I write can do no justice in describing this person even generally. But I can say some of the things that have made him popular with in fact a majority of Americans.
Ron Paul was born on August 20, 1935, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from Gettysburg College in 1957, and a Doctor of Medicine degree from Duke University’s School of Medicine in 1961, he served as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Air Force from 1963-1965, and in the U.S. Air National Guard from 1965-1968. After his stint in the military, Paul and his wife Carol Wells relocated to Texas where Ron Paul started a private medical practice in obstetrics and gynecology. In 1971, Ron Paul entered politics when he heard that then U.S. President Richard Nixon had taken the United States off the gold standard. In 1976, Ron Paul won a special election for the seat of the U.S. House of Representative’s Texas 22nd District when its former incumbent Robert R. Casey was chosen by then U.S. President Gerald Ford to head the Federal Maritime Commission. Ron Paul would serve in the U.S. Congress from 1976-1977, from 1979-1985, and from 1997 to the present. Currently, Ron Paul serves in the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas’ 14th District.
Over the years, Ron Paul ran as a presidential candidate. He first ran as a presidential candidate for the Libertarian Party in the 1988 presidential election, and as a Republican Party primary candidate in 2008. At present, he is running in the primary as a Republican presidential candidate for the 2012 election. There are five things about Ron Paul that appeals to so many Americans. First, he has a “clean” political record. For many a politician these days that is rare. Second, he believes that the U.S. government has strayed from the bounds of the U.S. Constitution and that he will fight for the government to be put back into its bounds. Many Americans empathize with this because many feel that the U.S. government is eroding their freedoms. Third, he believes in fiscal responsibility and that there needs to be serious cuts in government spending along with trying to revive the private sector.
With so many Americans out of work, and concerned about the national debt and how this will impact the country’s future, Ron Paul seems like the only real voice of reason. Fourth, Ron Paul is calling for an end to military interventions that have put many American soldiers and resources into too many wars and conflicts around the world. After ten years of war in Afghanistan alone, many Americans want to see us out of these wars and the money normally spent for war used to rebuild the crumbling infrastructure of this country. Finally, Ron Paul is calling for trade and more moderate means in dealing with other countries regardless of whether they are friends or foes. This point resonates with many Americans regardless of party affiliation because many Americans feel that our current leaders are more quick to use the sword than the pen. Even if Ron Paul never becomes president, his views are resonating with a lot of people regardless of whether they are Republican, Democrat, Libertarian and Green parties. In many ways one can truly call him the all-American candidate.
The Ron Paul Phenomenon
By: Daniel Nardini
Ron Paul was born on August 20, 1935, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from Gettysburg College in 1957, and a Doctor of Medicine degree from Duke University’s School of Medicine in 1961, he served as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Air Force from 1963-1965, and in the U.S. Air National Guard from 1965-1968. After his stint in the military, Paul and his wife Carol Wells relocated to Texas where Ron Paul started a private medical practice in obstetrics and gynecology. In 1971, Ron Paul entered politics when he heard that then U.S. President Richard Nixon had taken the United States off the gold standard. In 1976, Ron Paul won a special election for the seat of the U.S. House of Representative’s Texas 22nd District when its former incumbent Robert R. Casey was chosen by then U.S. President Gerald Ford to head the Federal Maritime Commission. Ron Paul would serve in the U.S. Congress from 1976-1977, from 1979-1985, and from 1997 to the present. Currently, Ron Paul serves in the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas’ 14th District.
Over the years, Ron Paul ran as a presidential candidate. He first ran as a presidential candidate for the Libertarian Party in the 1988 presidential election, and as a Republican Party primary candidate in 2008. At present, he is running in the primary as a Republican presidential candidate for the 2012 election. There are five things about Ron Paul that appeals to so many Americans. First, he has a “clean” political record. For many a politician these days that is rare. Second, he believes that the U.S. government has strayed from the bounds of the U.S. Constitution and that he will fight for the government to be put back into its bounds. Many Americans empathize with this because many feel that the U.S. government is eroding their freedoms. Third, he believes in fiscal responsibility and that there needs to be serious cuts in government spending along with trying to revive the private sector.
With so many Americans out of work, and concerned about the national debt and how this will impact the country’s future, Ron Paul seems like the only real voice of reason. Fourth, Ron Paul is calling for an end to military interventions that have put many American soldiers and resources into too many wars and conflicts around the world. After ten years of war in Afghanistan alone, many Americans want to see us out of these wars and the money normally spent for war used to rebuild the crumbling infrastructure of this country. Finally, Ron Paul is calling for trade and more moderate means in dealing with other countries regardless of whether they are friends or foes. This point resonates with many Americans regardless of party affiliation because many Americans feel that our current leaders are more quick to use the sword than the pen. Even if Ron Paul never becomes president, his views are resonating with a lot of people regardless of whether they are Republican, Democrat, Libertarian and Green parties. In many ways one can truly call him the all-American candidate.