The GOP's Fear of the Rise of Ron Paul

[FreakinDJ]

Congressman Ron Paul's strong third place showing in Iowa Tuesday is garnering the libertarian firebrand a newfound respect and fear amongst the GOP establishment. Coming in just 3,000 votes shy of Republican front-runner Mitt Romney and runner-up Rick Santorum, concern that Paul's supporters won't eventually warm up to the non-Ron Paul nominee or even worse, Paul could stage a third-party presidential bid and split Republican votes, is more palpable than ever.

"Our team has to be very careful in being gracious to Ron Paul and his supporters," a senior GOP operative e-mails Politico's Mike Allen. "Paul running as an independent is a total, albeit unlikely, disaster, but only a little less bad is alienating his supporters with disparaging comments to the point they stay home in November."

Though his views on foreign wars and drug legalization are anathema to the party line, some Republicans would rather tolerate his meandering diatribes than tempt a revolt by either the Texas congressman or his supporters. "Paul agrees with us 85 percent of the time," said the operative, "and his supporters are earnest conservatives and libertarians who have no reason to support Obama in 2012 unless they're stepped on by our team."

That point was driven home by former Alaska governor Sarah Palin on Fox Business last night, putting the idea of alienating Paul supporters in even starker terms. "If we marginalize these supporters who have been touched by Ron Paul and what he believed in over these years, well, then, through a third-party run of Ron Paul's or the Democrats capturing those independents and these libertarians who supported what Ron Paul's been talking about, well, then the GOP is going to lose," she told Neil Cavuto. "And then there will be no light at the end of the tunnel." She reiterated the point during a second interview on Fox News with Bret Baier.



http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2012/01/gops-fear-rise-ron-paul/46951/

[tridim]

1. IMO his third-place showing was as weak as the first and second place showings.

They are all SCREWED.

[Demeter]

2. Be afraid, be very afraid

Paul's attracting a lot of attention from all sides...thing is, he'll either sell out or be assassinated if he squeezes into office.

There are enough disaffected voters of all stripes to put him in, too.

[FreakinDJ]

8. +1000

[DeSwiss]

11. ''....or be assassinated if he squeezes into office.''

Or before he squeezes into office.

- Remember George Wallace in '72.......

K&R

[yellowcanine]

3. Hard core teabaggers are going to get on the Paul bandwagon now.

This could encourage Paul to run as an independent. At best, his supporters have nowhere to go and they bag it this time around.

[xchrom]

4. lol -- so it's not just dems who say this:

"Paul agrees with us 85 percent of the time," said the operative,"

[kentuck]

5. They dislike Ron Paul...

because he is a threat to the Military Industrial Complex. He would bring troops home from foreign countries. He would not support their wars and weapons systems. Their profits would shrink if Paul was President. That's why they cannot allow Ron Paul to lead their Party.

[CrispyQ]

6. Can't piss off the Paulers, can't piss off the Teabaggers.

Maybe the repubs should have thought twice before getting into bed with anyone & everyone just to garner votes.

A little old, but appropriate:

[FreakinDJ]

9. "getting into bed with anyone & everyone just to garner votes"

are talking the DEMs or the Repubs here ??

[CrispyQ]

10. Sadly, the repubs started it, but the dems have decided to follow. -nt

[FreakinDJ]

13. Next we'll seek to disenfranchise as many voters as possible - "Purest Only Club"

but "Oh how the policticos cry when they think they need the votes"

pretty much sums up what I'm seeing in politics here lately too

[arbusto_baboso]

7. Paul's showing has nothing to do with his actual popularity.

He's just another of the not-Mitts that Republican voters are turning to.

[arbusto_baboso]

14. The "new ronulans" are political novices who know nothing about him.

I.E., young voters.

The old core support for Paul isn't nearly as large as the numbers he got in Iowa. Something isn't adding up here.

[Uncle Joe]

16. I believe it's more than that, Paul has staked out territory distinctly seperate from the other

candidates as well.

Whether one believes him or not his anti-war and anti-drug war positions are gaining resonance with the American People, even Republicans.

The corporate media and corporate supremacist Republicans may not like his message but that's the way it is.