Ron Paul: In for the Long Haul by Scott Sutton

On July 15th, > the Federal Election Commission announced the 2nd-quarter fundraising > totals for each presidential candidate. In the Republican field, > Ron Paul's $2.4 million placed him: >

• 3rd > > in total receipts for the quarter >
• 4th > in total receipts to date >
• 3rd in total current assets (ahead of former front-runner John McCain, > and just $800,000 behind Mitt Romney) >

Thus far, > 47% > of the contributions > made to Ron Paul's campaign are donations > of under $200 from individuals (John McCain's 17% is the second-highest > percentage ). > This is a telling statistic, as it highlights the fact > that most other candidates rely heavily upon donations from corporate > interests and political action committees (PACs) (i.e. moneyed, influence-seeking > sources who can readily afford to contribute large sums). Since Congressman > Paul has always voted against special favors and privileges for > anyone >, special interests know they have nothing to gain by stuffing Ron Paul's > campaign coffers. As one member of my local Meetup group put it on > a home-made sign, "Ron Paul is thin because he won't let special interests > buy him lunch." >

Among > all > candidates, Dr. Paul is now > first in total donations from military personnel and veterans. While this > may come as a surprise to some, Tom Engelhardt identified the primary > reason when he asked rhetorically, " why > should (military personnel) > want to be endlessly redeployed to a lost war in a lost land?" (see > Why the US Military Loves Ron Paul >).

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On July 15th, > the Federal Election Commission announced the 2nd-quarter fundraising > totals for each presidential candidate. In the Republican field, > Ron Paul's $2.4 million placed him: >

• 3rd > in total receipts for the quarter >
• 4th > in total receipts to date >
• 3rd > in total current assets (ahead of former front-runner John McCain, > and just $800,000 behind Mitt Romney) >

Thus far, > 47% > of the contributions > made to Ron Paul's campaign are donations > of under $200 from individuals (John McCain's 17% is the second-highest > percentage). This is a telling statistic, as it highlights the fact > that most other candidates rely heavily upon donations from corporate > interests and political action committees (PACs) (i.e. moneyed, influence-seeking > sources who can readily afford to contribute large sums). Since Congressman > Paul has always voted against special favors and privileges for > anyone > , > special interests know they have nothing to gain by stuffing Ron Paul's > campaign coffers. As one member of my local Meetup group put it on > a home-made sign, "Ron Paul is thin because he won't let special interests > buy him lunch." >

Among > all > candidates, Dr. Paul is now > first > in total donations from military personnel and veterans. While this > may come as a surprise to some, Tom Engelhardt identified the primary > reason when he asked rhetorically, "why should (military personnel) > want to be endlessly redeployed to a lost war in a lost land?" (see > Why > the US Military Loves Ron Paul > ). >

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No candidacy has generated more buzz than Ron Paul's, and the following statistics prove the point:

• "Ron Paul" recently topped Technorati's search-term rankings for an unprecedented stretch – current rank #2 (Technorati is the leading authority on Internet media usage).
• RonPaul2008.com draws more traffic than any other candidate's Web site.
• On YouTube.com, the Internet's most popular video site, the Ron Paul channel has over 22,000 subscribers, which is 13,000 more than the second most popular candidate (Obama).
• And on Meetup.com, more than 25,000 people comprise 560 Ron Paul Meetup groups, which makes the Good Doctor the most popular Meetup source in the political category. The next candidate, Obama, is a distant second with 5300 members in 68 groups.

  Notes: All statistics reflect current numbers as of July 23, 2007. Also, for those who don't know, Meetup.com is the most popular Internet site for people with common interests who want to organize events and activities with one another – consequently, it's the most commonly used online resource for coordinating political activities.

Some commentators say this interest and support is illusory, perhaps even the product of a centralized Internet effort led by the Ron Paul campaign. Yet, the Paul campaign has only spent $600,000 to date, while other candidates have already burned through tens of millions. Although Paul's campaign staff is growing, it doesn't even have the resources to provide timely responses to the flood of incoming e-mails (I speak from personal experience here), much less oversee such a sustained, widespread, technologically-sophisticated endeavor.

The skeptics also ignore an obvious question – if it's so easy to jerry-rig Internet statistics, why haven't other, better-financed campaigns done the same? (Answer: It's not easy and, in many cases, it's simply impossible.) While I personally don't know of anyone who spends their time spamming online polls or repeatedly Googling their favorite candidate's name, I have no doubt such people exist in the ranks of most political movements. And given the evident enthusiasm of Ron Paul supporters, it's quite likely that a greater percentage of his backers might attempt to do such things.

That said, I believe there are more plausible reasons for Ron Paul's "online success" – most importantly, the Internet is the primary source of information about Dr. Paul. As early as last fall – two full years before the election – the conventional media and major-party establishments had already anointed the top six Republican and Democratic candidates (Giuliani, McCain, Romney, Clinton, Obama, & Edwards). Since then, countless opinion makers > have informed Americans that these six politicians complete the > list of "viable" Presidential options. In other words, > no need to look further – we've done your thinking for you. >

How and why this happened exactly is a topic for another day. (Hint – Follow the money.) The important point here is that each of the Anointed Candidates has received regular, daily coverage since that time (and, in some cases, for several years now). Although Dr. Paul has benefited from a smattering of media attention since his "blowback" exchange with Giuliani in May, people who are curious about Paul's track record and platform must turn to the Internet. The conventional media is most unlikely to begin covering Dr. Paul on a regular basis, no matter how much traction he gains.

Consequently, Ron Paul's supporters must assume the task of spreading the word. Fortunately, many of us are happy to do so, and when people first learn of Dr. Paul's track record, they typically want to know more. As regular readers of my blog know, Ron Paul challenges US foreign policy on a refreshingly honest and fundamental level – a level of inquiry wholly absent from most political forums. And Dr. Paul's forthrightness doesn't stop with foreign policy, as he applies the same intellectual rigor to issues involving civil liberties, health care, immigration, education, our fiat-money system, and so on.

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The skeptics also ignore an obvious question – if it's so easy to jerry-rig Internet statistics, why haven't other, better-financed campaigns done the same? (Answer: It's not easy and, in many cases, it's simply impossible.)

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Since then, countless opinion makers have informed Americans that these six politicians complete the list of "viable" Presidential options. In other words, no need to look further – we've done your thinking for you.

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As regular readers of my blog know, Ron Paul challenges US foreign policy on a refreshingly honest and fundamental level – a level of inquiry wholly absent from most political forums. And Dr. Paul's forthrightness doesn't stop with foreign policy, as he applies the same intellectual rigor to issues involving civil liberties, health care, immigration, education, our fiat-money system, and so on.

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While the other candidates vie for the support of the modern Republican base, Ron Paul provides the only real alternative for any traditional conservatives who remain in the party.

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Dr. Paul will appeal to those Americans who long ago abandoned politics because the big-government statism of the two major parties was hostile to their values. With recent voter turnout in presidential elections hovering around 50%, this may be a surprisingly large block of potential voters.

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