Ron Paul defends Julian Assange

[still_one]

No doubt Paul probably irritates and annoys many Republicans and Tea Party comrades by his stand. However, Paul has always been a staunch libertarian and has never let the fact a position is politically unpopular deter him from defending it if it fits with his principles. Even people who disagree with him probably admire him for his sticking up for what he believes in the face of majority opposition. He seems to keep getting elected! When most want Assange charged for leaking classified information Paul thinks that he should get the same protections as other media. Attorney General Eric Holder says the Justice Dept. is examining whether Assange can be charged with a crime for posting the leaked documents on the line. Former GOP governor Mike Huckabee says whoever leaked the documents to Wikileaks should be tried for treason and executed if found guilty. But in an interview with Fox News Paul said the idea of even prosecuting Assange crosses the line. Paul said: "In a free society we're supposed to know the truth,""In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it." Paul went on:"This whole notion that Assange, who's an Australian, that we want to prosecute him for treason. I mean, aren't they jumping to a wild conclusion?""This is media, isn't it? I mean, why don't we prosecute The New York Times or anybody that releases this?" Huckabee wants to prosecute whoever leaked the materia for treason not Assange although Palin suggested that he be tried for treason. However Paul has a good point that if Wikileaks is guilty for receiving and distributing the material so are many newspapers. Somehow I doubt that anyone will go after them. But this is all too complicated for many in the general public it would seem and for the media too. They need a personal identifisble target for their anger. Assange has been chosen and the media has sanctioned and promoted him for the job.Paul sent a post to his Twitter account Friday morning: "Re: WikiLeaks - In a free society, we are supposed to know the truth. In a society where truth becomes treason, we are in big trouble. ""

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/7518099-ron-paul-defends-julian-assange

[ixion]

1. Assange is a hero, not a criminal...

I'm glad to hear someone from the beltway defending him.

[Goldstein1984]

2. Ron Paul has, for some time now, been winning me over with the

realization that the extremes of libertarianism are preferrable to the extremes of a security state (tyranny).

[w8liftinglady]

3. My post from yesterday-Ron Paul is Old-school Libertarian on a lot of things

love him or hate him(and when it comes to economics,freedom of cchoice,and education-I definitely do not love him)...he is right on a few things.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9681875#9683420

[Turbineguy]

4. In one of the "Yes Prime Minister" series

somebody was threatened with being charged with violating the "Official Secrets Act" by revealing that the prime minister was an idiot.

[stray cat]

5. Ron Paul I guess is also now a "hero"

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

6. Fascinating isn't it? If a person agrees with you about the issue of the day,

that person is now a hero.

Some other opinions of Ron Paul;

Paul believes young Americans should be able to opt out of the system if they would like not to pay Social Security taxes, in order to protect the system.

In 2004, he spoke in support of the Defense of Marriage Act, passed in 1996. This act allows a state to decline to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states or countries, although a state will usually recognize legal marriages performed outside of its own jurisdiction.

In the third Republican debate on June 5, 2007, Paul said about the U.S. military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy:
"I think the current policy is a decent policy. And the problem that we have with dealing with this subject is we see people as groups, as they belong to certain groups and that they derive their rights as belonging to groups. We don't get our rights because we're gays or women or minorities.

Paul calls himself "strongly pro-life" and "an unshakable foe of abortion." However, he believes regulation of medical decisions about maternal or fetal health is "best handled at the state level.

In an October 2007 interview, Paul held that climate change is not a "major problem threatening civilization." He declined to name any particular environmental heroes and affirmed no special environmental achievements other than his educating the people about free-market solutions rather than "government expenditures and special-interest politics."

In 2006, Paul joined 32 other members of Congress in opposing the renewal of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, originally passed to remove barriers to voting participation for minorities.

Paul wrote of his opposition to the Civil Rights Act of 1964:
It "not only violated the Constitution and reduced individual liberty; it also failed to achieve its stated goals of promoting racial harmony and a color-blind society.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Ron_Paul#Lower_spending_and_smaller_government

Some liberal hero...

[Bjorn Against]

7. On some issues Ron Paul is right on the money...

On other issues he is even more extreme than Sarah Palin and her ilk. There is no in between with Ron Paul, sometimes he sounds like the most sane member of Congress and other times he sounds like the most insane. I like what he says on some issues but I could never even think of supporting the guy because he is such an extremist on so many important issues like the environment, separation of church and state, abortion rights and corporate regulation.