Tea Party Against Ron Paul

[cawacko]

I find this a little difficult to comprehend. They are upset he wouldn't vote for earmarks for his district after Hurricane Ike and he voted against Afghanistan and the Iraq Wars? Interesting.


Even GOP conservative Ron Paul draws Tea Party opposition

Even anti-government icon Ron Paul can't escape the conservative "Tea Party" fervor stretching across the county.

Paul, the Gulf Coast congressman whose 2008 presidential run excited libertarians nationwide, even though he didn't get much traction overall, is considered by many to be the "father of the Tea Parties." But he has three opponents in the March Republican primary – more than he has faced in his past six primary campaigns combined.

All three have ties to the anti-tax Tea Party movement. And while Paul remains the odds-on favorite to win re-election in his district, the crowded primary highlights the potential conflict between Tea Party activists and a GOP hoping to ride their wave to electoral success this fall.

"The Tea Parties have awakened a lot of everyday people here and across America," said Tim Graney, one of Paul's opponents. "And Ron Paul is worried about getting swept up in the anti-incumbent wave as if he is some exception."


Not in lockstep

It is hard to know where Paul fits into the Tea Party landscape. Paul supporters say he launched the movement in 2007 when he raised $6 million in a one-day, Web-based fundraiser on the 234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party. His call for limited government and ending the Federal Reserve also resonates loudly in the Tea Party movement.

"Dr. Paul is proud to play a small role in getting this phenomenon going," said his campaign spokesman, Jesse Benton.

That phenomenon has also propelled Paul's protégés – including his son Rand, who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky, and former Paul campaign volunteer Debra Medina, who is surging in the Texas GOP primary race for governor.

But the movement has clearly moved beyond Paul's dedicated core of supporters, a fact the congressman has seemingly acknowledged. He plans to attend a Tea Party-sponsored candidate forum in Katy this month, but he has distanced himself from the Tea Parties in recent interviews because of the antagonistic tone of some rallies.

"He has a very good relationship with the Tea Parties," Benton said. "But it is very important that these rallies maintain a certain level of decorum and respect."

Paul's opponents don't dispute that last point. But both Graney and Gerald Wall said they were inspired to run by their Tea Party involvement, and all three challengers are trying to tap into the movement's passion and enthusiasm.

"The Republican Party left its principles," Wall said. "And these Tea Parties are filled with people who want to take back our party."

John Gay, Paul's third opponent, said he has attended several Tea Parties and related meetings. Both Wall, a machine supervisor, and Graney, a former small-business owner, have helped organize local rallies.

Tea Party associations aside, many of the challengers' criticisms echo concerns of Paul's past opponents: that he is too focused on his national ambitions; that his views are too extreme; that he doesn't support the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; that he votes "no" on everything, including federal aid for his district after Hurricane Ike.

"The word I keep hearing is 'ineffective,' " said Gay, a school business administrator. "This district is not really being represented as it could be."


'Attack dogs'

Paul's campaign aides scoffed at those charges. Benton, Paul's spokesman, acknowledged that the vote against hurricane aid was difficult, but he said Paul couldn't set aside his belief in fiscal conservatism.

But Paul is buoyed by the advantages of longtime incumbency and an ability to raise significant campaign cash, and Benton said the campaign wasn't worried about the competition. Paul has more than $1.9 million in the bank, while none of his opponents has more than a few thousand dollars, according to their most recent campaign finance disclosures. Three Democrats are vying to take on the Republican winner in the fall, but the district is overwhelmingly Republican.

"We are not taking these challengers very seriously," Benton said. "But we would never take any votes of the 14th District for granted."

And Paul – who understands a thing or two about grass-roots politics – took a more defensive stance last month in a letter to his supporters. Paul wrote that his opponents had "turned their attack dogs loose on me" and cautioned that the anti-Washington sentiment could take him out as well.

"While I think this development is a good thing," he wrote, "I am going to have to work hard to ensure I am not caught up in the same wave and swept out of office before our job is done."

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...1.4bf50f3.html

[DonQuixote]

Originally Posted by cawacko

I find this a little difficult to comprehend. They are upset he wouldn't vote for earmarks for his district after Hurricane Ike and he voted against Afghanistan and the Iraq Wars? Interesting.


Even GOP conservative Ron Paul draws Tea Party opposition

Even anti-government icon Ron Paul can't escape the conservative "Tea Party" fervor stretching across the county.

Paul, the Gulf Coast congressman whose 2008 presidential run excited libertarians nationwide, even though he didn't get much traction overall, is considered by many to be the "father of the Tea Parties." But he has three opponents in the March Republican primary – more than he has faced in his past six primary campaigns combined.

All three have ties to the anti-tax Tea Party movement. And while Paul remains the odds-on favorite to win re-election in his district, the crowded primary highlights the potential conflict between Tea Party activists and a GOP hoping to ride their wave to electoral success this fall.

"The Tea Parties have awakened a lot of everyday people here and across America," said Tim Graney, one of Paul's opponents. "And Ron Paul is worried about getting swept up in the anti-incumbent wave as if he is some exception."


Not in lockstep

It is hard to know where Paul fits into the Tea Party landscape. Paul supporters say he launched the movement in 2007 when he raised $6 million in a one-day, Web-based fundraiser on the 234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party. His call for limited government and ending the Federal Reserve also resonates loudly in the Tea Party movement.

"Dr. Paul is proud to play a small role in getting this phenomenon going," said his campaign spokesman, Jesse Benton.

That phenomenon has also propelled Paul's protégés – including his son Rand, who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky, and former Paul campaign volunteer Debra Medina, who is surging in the Texas GOP primary race for governor.

But the movement has clearly moved beyond Paul's dedicated core of supporters, a fact the congressman has seemingly acknowledged. He plans to attend a Tea Party-sponsored candidate forum in Katy this month, but he has distanced himself from the Tea Parties in recent interviews because of the antagonistic tone of some rallies.

"He has a very good relationship with the Tea Parties," Benton said. "But it is very important that these rallies maintain a certain level of decorum and respect."

Paul's opponents don't dispute that last point. But both Graney and Gerald Wall said they were inspired to run by their Tea Party involvement, and all three challengers are trying to tap into the movement's passion and enthusiasm.

"The Republican Party left its principles," Wall said. "And these Tea Parties are filled with people who want to take back our party."

John Gay, Paul's third opponent, said he has attended several Tea Parties and related meetings. Both Wall, a machine supervisor, and Graney, a former small-business owner, have helped organize local rallies.

Tea Party associations aside, many of the challengers' criticisms echo concerns of Paul's past opponents: that he is too focused on his national ambitions; that his views are too extreme; that he doesn't support the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; that he votes "no" on everything, including federal aid for his district after Hurricane Ike.

"The word I keep hearing is 'ineffective,' " said Gay, a school business administrator. "This district is not really being represented as it could be."


'Attack dogs'

Paul's campaign aides scoffed at those charges. Benton, Paul's spokesman, acknowledged that the vote against hurricane aid was difficult, but he said Paul couldn't set aside his belief in fiscal conservatism.

But Paul is buoyed by the advantages of longtime incumbency and an ability to raise significant campaign cash, and Benton said the campaign wasn't worried about the competition. Paul has more than $1.9 million in the bank, while none of his opponents has more than a few thousand dollars, according to their most recent campaign finance disclosures. Three Democrats are vying to take on the Republican winner in the fall, but the district is overwhelmingly Republican.

"We are not taking these challengers very seriously," Benton said. "But we would never take any votes of the 14th District for granted."

And Paul – who understands a thing or two about grass-roots politics – took a more defensive stance last month in a letter to his supporters. Paul wrote that his opponents had "turned their attack dogs loose on me" and cautioned that the anti-Washington sentiment could take him out as well.

"While I think this development is a good thing," he wrote, "I am going to have to work hard to ensure I am not caught up in the same wave and swept out of office before our job is done."

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...1.4bf50f3.html

good of them