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Originally posted by vandeleurE- Jesus . Playing both sides because he didnt understand the argument in the first place
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Despite LoungeMachine's claims, the numbers reveal Ron Paul is electable
Posted 01/25/2012 by W. E. Messamore
It has nearly become a journalistic convention to editorialize alongside any reference to Texas congressman Ron Paul that the 2012 presidential candidate is considered by many to be unelectable. Or, that other than some interesting points of view and a curiously energized following, Ron Paul’s presidential candidacy is unserious, that the Republican Party’s constitutionalist– as Mitt Romney recently called Paul in a debate– has no viable path to the White House.
Just last month for example, iconic conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh made an appearance on Fox News Channel‘s On The Record with Greta van Sustren and said, “I think right now anybody other than Ron Paul could beat Obama if the election were tomorrow.” But this claim isn’t just being repeated by talk radio hosts who stand opposite of Ron Paul in the Republican Party’s internecine battle over principles and policy, it’s being repeated by presumably objective news anchors and writers– it’s showing up as a random aside in Associated Press reports, whose authors can’t seem to bear mentioning Ron Paul’s name without editorializing that the presidential hopeful is “often dismissed as unelectable by members of his own party.”
But is Ron Paul actually unelectable? Do the facts support that claim? Whether you agree with Ron Paul’s political views or not, whether you think he should be the Republican Party’s nominee or not, his actual electability as a presidential candidate is an entirely separate question– one that can be answered by investigating the facts instead of merely repeating the same opinion ad nauseam and hoping it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, as the status quo‘s cheerleaders in the media have seemingly been doing.
As is consistently attested by poll results and even the Republican Party’s most recent primary votes in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, the facts are these: Ron Paul performs better among independents than any other Republican candidate for the presidential nomination. He also performs better among young voters under 30 than any other Republican. Ron Paul also outperforms any of the remaining Republican candidates among Democrats, liberals, moderates, and low-income voters.
Independents, people under 30, liberals, moderates, and low income voters are all key constituencies that helped Obama win his primary and the general election in 2008. It only stands to reason that the candidate with the broadest appeal to Obama’s key voters and the greatest chance of swaying their votes is the most electable candidate. Even former Florida Governor Jeb Bush realizes that the Republicans can only win the general election with a candidate who appeals to independents, which is why he recently admonished the GOP’s candidates, saying “You have to maintain your principles but have a broader appeal.”
Maintain principles while having a broader appeal? Even Ron Paul’s critics will concede that he is extremely principled. The facts, meanwhile, show that Ron Paul also has the broadest appeal to voters. That’s why it’s no surprise that Paul runs neck-and-neck with Mitt Romney and Barack Obama in hypothetical general election match ups according to the polls, another fact that disproves the constantly-repeated claim that Ron Paul is not electable. The polls show that in fact, Ron Paul is more electable than any other Republican candidate except for Mitt Romney, with whom he is tied– and both are tied against President Obama.
It’s one thing to offer substantive criticisms of Ron Paul’s candidacy and beliefs, but it’s another thing entirely to mislead voters into thinking that his chances of winning are much worse than the facts actually indicate they are. It’s up to the media to inform voters, not pick the nominee for them. The media owes Ron Paul, but more importantly, owes its audience a less misleading assessment of Ron Paul’s electability. Members of the media should set the record straight. Because of his strong appeal to independents, moderates, young voters, and low income voters, Ron Paul does as well or better than any other Republican candidate in a general election match up with President Obama. Those are facts. Like him or not, Ron Paul’s electable.Comment
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Look, Ron Paul is naive, to say the least, about his deregulate everything and the market will correct itself. Blindly trusting that Wall Street, the banks and congress will regulate themselves or that by engaging in illegal or shady practices they will eventually be caught by the public or fail because of it.
In recent times you only have to look at.....Enron, Bernie Madoff, predatory lending, credit card fraud, Bank of America and on and on!
They were able to get away with this because of Deregulation and the laissez-faire attitude that the Bush Administration had towards their criminal activity.
Did they eventually get caught? Yes, but not after destroying hardworking people's life savings, creating a housing bubble that devalued everyone's property, and damn near put us into another Depression.
Should we deregulate the safe guards that protect our food supply or the toys our kids play with? Remember it was because of Regulations that China got busted putting Lead Base Paint into our toothpaste and kid's toys.
How about businesses that pollute the environment so bad that innocent men, women and children have died or have gotten cancer?
So why in the fuck would I support someone that, by his own policy, would destroy what little safe guards we have left.Originally posted by vandeleurE- Jesus . Playing both sides because he didnt understand the argument in the first placeComment
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I don't think RP's position is to "deregulate everything"......Comment
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You'd be surprised.....
Originally posted by vandeleurE- Jesus . Playing both sides because he didnt understand the argument in the first placeComment
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THE TIME FOR ACTION IS NOW
The severe economic crisis America has experienced over the past several years, including growing inflation, rising gas prices, trillion-dollar budget deficits, immoral bailouts, and the ever-declining value of the dollar, is just the tip of the iceberg if our nation does not immediately change course.
UNHEEDED WARNINGS
As the crash approached, Ron Paul was heavily criticized by the establishment media and even many of his fellow Republicans because he would not back down from his warnings about where big government policies were leading America.
When those warnings came true, however, our President and leaders in Congress didn’t let the crisis “go to waste” and used it as an excuse to expand government intervention and power on an unprecedented level.
Excessive spending, artificial credit, and market manipulation crashed our economy, and no one should be surprised that these same policies continue to prolong the suffering for millions of Americans.
We need a President who is not afraid to make the tough decisions necessary to restore America’s economy and guarantee future prosperity.
REAL SOLUTIONS
As President, Ron Paul will lead the way out of this crisis by:
* Vetoing any unbalanced budget Congress sends to his desk.
* Refusing to further raise the debt ceiling so politicians can no longer spend recklessly.
* Fighting to fully audit (and then end) the Federal Reserve System, which has enabled the over 95% reduction of what our dollar can buy and continues to create money out of thin air to finance future debt.
* Legalizing sound money, so the government is forced to get serious about the dollar’s value.
* Ending the corporate stranglehold on the White House.
* Driving down gas prices by allowing offshore drilling, abolishing highway motor fuel taxes, increasing the mileage reimbursement rates, and offering tax credits to individuals and businesses for the use and production of natural gas vehicles.
* Eliminating the income, capital gains, and death taxes to ensure you keep more of your hard-earned money and are able to pass on your legacy to your family without government interference.
* Opposing all unfunded mandates and unnecessary regulations on small businesses and entrepreneurs.
These are just a few of the steps we can take to put America back in place as the world’s leading economy. Taking a stand for these principles has often been a lonely fight in Congress for Ron Paul, but, now more than ever, our nation needs a President who will champion sound money, responsible spending, lower taxes, and free market enterprise.Comment
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True that RP wants less regulation, and many would agree with that common sense approach. I read the article on your link (below) and don't see where RP takes the position to "deregulate everything".
The Moral Hazard of Regulation
by Ron Paul
Since the bailout bill passed, I have been frequently disturbed to hear “experts” wrongly blaming the free market for our recent economic problems and calling for more regulation. In fact, further regulation can only make things worse.
It is important to understand that regulators are not omniscient. It is not feasible for them to anticipate every possible thing that could go wrong with whatever industry or activity they are regulating. They are making their best guesses when formulating rules. It is often difficult for those being regulated to understand the many complex rules they are expected to follow. Very wealthy corporations hire attorneys who may discover a myriad of loopholes to exploit and render the spirit of the regulations null and void. For this reason, heavy regulation favors big business against those small businesses who cannot afford high-priced attorneys.
The other problem is the trust that people blindly put in regulations, and the moral hazard this creates. Too many people trust government regulators so completely that they abdicate their own common sense to these government bureaucrats. They trust that if something violates no law, it must be safe. How many scams have “It’s perfectly legal” as a hypnotic selling point, luring in the gullible?
Many people did not understand the financial house of cards that are derivatives, but since they were legal and promised a great return, people invested. It is much the same in any area rife with government involvement. Many feel that just because their children are getting good grades at a government school, they are getting a good education. After all, they are passing the government-mandated litmus test. But, this does not guarantee educational excellence. Neither is it always the case that a child who does NOT achieve good marks in school is going to be unsuccessful in life.
Is your drinking water safe, just because the government says it is? Is the internet going to magically become safer for your children if the government approves regulations on it? I would caution any parent against believing this would be the case. Nothing should take the place of your own common sense and due diligence.
These principles explain why the free market works so much better than a centrally planned economy. With central planning, everything shifts from one’s own judgment about safety, wisdom and relative benefits of a behavior, to the discretion of government bureaucrats. The question then becomes “what can I get away with,” and there will always be advantages for those who can afford lawyers to find the loopholes. The result then is that bad behavior, that would quickly fail under the free market, is propped up, protected and perpetuated, and sometimes good behavior is actually discouraged.
Regulation can actually benefit big business and corporate greed, while simultaneously killing small businesses that are the backbone of our now faltering economy. This is why I get so upset every time someone claims regulation can resolve the crisis that we are in. Rather, it will only exacerbate it.Comment
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There's a reason this country has been going into a toilet spiral for the last 30 years. And that is the systematic destruction of every regulation put in place to prevent another depression, beginning with the BCE return to the White House in 1981, and continuing ever since.
It's a proven FAILURE, yet Ron Paul thinks that removing even the few remaining regulations would solve the problem. Three decades of evidence proves just the opposite is true. And 4 decades of evidence before that proves how strong this country was, when capitalism WAS properly regulated.
The Libertarian fairy tale of "the free market deciding everything" cannot possibly happen, because only under regulation can a free market even exist.
Four or Five huge multinational corporations controlling every industry on the planet is not a "free market".Eat Us And Smile
Cenk For America 2024!!
Justice Democrats
"If the American people had ever known the truth about what we (the BCE) have done to this nation, we would be chased down in the streets and lynched." - Poppy Bush, 1992Comment
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I said it before.....I agree with a lot of what Paul says and it's pretty common sense stuff.
It's just the things I disagree with and how he'll go about those things that outweigh the good stuff.Originally posted by vandeleurE- Jesus . Playing both sides because he didnt understand the argument in the first placeComment
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I understand and think that's a fair position. We've just been trying the same BS with different names (Repubs and Dems) for so long. And it just doesn't work. Maybe a little more freedom, less spending on foreign and domestic, and reducing some debt is worth a shot? That would be hope and change I could support.....Comment
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