Monday, December 19, 2011
Ron Paul Most Likely to Beat Obama in General Election
With less than a month before the Iowa caucus, GOP presidential candidate and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich has surged into the lead, but Texas Rep. Ron Paul is the only Republican candidate who could best President Obama, a new Iowa poll says.
According to the latest NBC/Marist poll, Gingrich is the first choice among 26 percent of Republican caucus-goers, followed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with 18 percent and Paul with 17 percent.
The poll represents a dramatic shift in the race. In October, Romney led the field in Iowa with 26 percent, while Gingrich only received a paltry 5 percent of the vote.
With Herman Cain’s announcement on Saturday that he would suspend his campaign, the NBC/Marist poll predicted that Gingrich’s support will increase to to 28 percent, while Romney and Paul tie at 19 percent.
“As the roller coaster picks up speed in the month leading up to the Iowa caucus, Newt Gingrich has moved into the lead car,” said Dr. Lee M. Miringoff, director of The Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, in a statement. “Hold on tight for any further twists and turns.”
However, the poll also says Paul is the candidate best suited to face Obama in an election.
Ron Paul’s “Tea Party” money bomb meets $4 million goal
Ron Paul (R-TX), a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, ended his “Tea Party” money bomb Sunday at midnight. Mr. Paul succeeded in meeting his fundraising goal of $4 million. The Paul campaign plans on using the grassroots donations for additional campaign activities in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. With the donation ticker still climbing, Mr. Paul has raised more than $4,048,000 as of 9am EDT Monday.
Ron Paul 2012 Campaign Manager John Tate urged supporters to contribute Sunday.
“The more resources we have, the more undecided voters in Iowa and New Hampshire we can contact through email, mail and TV to spread Dr. Paul’s message of liberty and free markets that has him skyrocketing in the polls in the early states,” Mr. Tate wrote.
Why a Tea Party conservative now supports Ron Paul…including his foreign policy
Ask any conservative about Ron Paul and you will usually hear the following statement: “I love him on fiscal policy but his foreign policy is naive and dangerous.” You can also throw in the obligatory “He hates Israel.” If someone had asked me about Paul from 9/12/01 through October of 2011, I’d have said the exact same things.
Something about my certitude always felt a bit uncomfortable, though, because I admired the “good parts” of Ron Paul (and later, his son Rand). Having participated in the Tea Party movement since its inception, and then witnessing the phony propaganda concocted to invalidate it, my BS meter began to pin whenever I heard (or spoke) harsh rhetoric denouncing Ron Paul. Since the contradiction bugged me, I decided to take the advice of my twenty-year-old son and read Ron Paul’s book, Revolution. This required me to consider ideas which were once unthinkable. I undertook the mission with the promise to think outside my conservative box.
After reading the book, I came away with a completely different understanding of Ron Paul and his philosophy. I’m hoping my Tea Party compatriots, fellow conservatives, and all Americans will step outside their own comfort zones to do the same. It is vital that our nation seriously consider the important constitutional concepts and defense of liberty that Ron Paul espouses.
Today, the Middle East is falling to Islamic rule like a series of dominos. The supposed “friendly Arab nations” want our troops out of their land and threaten to side with our enemies. Our soldiers are hamstrung by politically correct rules of engagement that make them sitting ducks. Our economy is collapsing under the weight of our debt (a good portion of which goes to fund our worldwide military adventures), and our effort to spread a love of liberty among Middle-Eastern nations is thwarted by the unfortunate reality that the clans and cultures do not desire our brand of freedom. We were led to believe that we could leave Iraq after they became able to defend themselves. With all that we’ve invested, there is still uncertainty about whether they are up to the job. We have never received the oil benefits that were supposed to follow from our liberation of Iraq, as we pay upwards of $4.00 a gallon at the pump!
White House drops veto threat on defense bill
The White House lifted a veto threat against a giant $662 billion defense authorization bill on Wednesday after legislators made changes in language involving detainees.
In particular, the legislators added language to make clear that nothing in the bill requiring military custody of al Qaeda suspects would interfere with the ability of civilian law enforcement to carry out terrorism investigations and interrogations in the United States.
See why the FBI director wanted changes
A statement by White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the changes mean that President Obama’s advisers will not recommend a veto.