I like some of his ideas, but I don't understand (as a european) how he wants to scrap all social security? Free market on the run is not a good idea in my opinion, look at all the scandals in China. But I do like his ideas about the military.

@stratagos are you saying the gold standard is a good thing, or an example of one of his unworkable solutions?

@lopt basically he wants to start out immediately by saying if you want to opt out of social security, people should be allowed to. And he wants to transition out of federal social security, with additional revenue being used for the transition period by removing america's overseas presence. He believes that if individual states want their own ss,

They can form their own system

The gold standard is completely unworkable in today's world, as anyone who is even slightly informed about economics should know. But far be it for a politician to knowbwhat he's talking about

I know steve forbes came out a few months ago saying he thinks in five years the U.S. will be back on the gold standard. But I think paul now supports a basket of competing currencies, rather than a strict gold standard.

he has no voting bloc. White male 20 somethings will not get you elected. dream on.

He was drowned out by boos at the debate when he discussed foreign policy

I dont't think he'll win the general election, but I honestly think he could pull off an iowa upset.

The audience has also been known to boo gay soldiers in iraq and shout cheer when the death penalty record of perry is read out. Republican support lost over his foreign policy views should be made up by independents/democrqats registering republican to vote for him

I hope he does win the republican nomination so I can watch the republican coalition crumble

"The audience has also been known to boo gay soldiers in iraq and shout cheer when the death penalty record of perry is read out. Republican support lost over his foreign policy views should be made up by independents/democrqats registering republican to vote for him "

Too bad most of those people have human compassion which will be hard to reconcile with his social policy.

"But I think paul now supports a basket of competing currencies, rather than a strict gold standard."

Correct. I went and listened to him speak on Friday at LSU after working hard with my local RP chapter to get him to come down here -- he explicitly said that he wasn't pulling for a gold standard.

"But I think paul now supports a basket of competing currencies, rather than a strict gold standard"

Good luck selling that to the american electorate

@eden you got to go to the LSU speech? Sickkkk. I read about it on the dailycaller, apparently 1200 people were there.

Yeah, one of the more successful RP events, I think. I'm so glad we got to make that happen. Wonderful speech.

@SC -- given the American public's understanding of economics, that might not be too difficult. lol.

Ron Paul is setting up the infrastructure for his son to run later. This isn't so far fetched. I mean, look at how far Ron Paul has dragged the GOP in terms of fiscal policy just since 2008. The future of the Republican party is libertarianism, since the culture warriors are dying and so are the neocons. Rand has all his father's good positions with fewer of his crazy ones (like not having the looney ideas on Iran). I would be absolutely shocked if he ever was actually elected president, but I'll bet you Rand Paul will be somewhere on a GOP presidential ticket in one of the next three elections.

Since Perry's floundering and Christie is probably smart enough to stay out, it looks more and more like Romney is the inevitable nominee. Just like last time, however, I have no doubt that Ron Paul will continue to campaign right up until the convention, and this time he'll in all likelihood have a significant amount of delegates there. That means he can have influence on how the 2012 platform is written, since Team Romney will desperately want a unanimous nomination. Even if Romney loses, that my friends is the sort of groundwork for a new Republican Party that Paul's actually after.

Gary Johnson and Rand Paul are probably the real futures of the liberty movement, but I'll continue to back RP in this election because he actually has a chance right now (polling as high as Romney, ahead of everyone but Perry, who's floundering).

In my mind, if perry collapses after a few more debates, I think Paul has a legitimate chance to take Iowa as Bachmann is in a state of advanced collapse.

I think you could be right. However, Romeny's still ahead in New Hampshire and (I still don't understand this) South Carolina. Can Ron Paul's hypothetical Iowa momentum carry him further? I doubt it.

In New Hampshire, yes, without a doubt. Paul won the NH straw poll. Probably not South Carolina, though.

Straw poll, schmaw poll. Those are the primaries of primaries. Only the most committed political junkies vote in those things, and we all know what Paulistas are like. I wouldn't read a great deal into this.

Like I said, he's laying the groundwork. Hopefully in Ron Paul we have Barry Goldwater without the 1964 election.

I was thinking Paul could carry nevada as well, but the recent endorsement of perry by the governor certainly is a setback, but I think the media is overplaying the endorsement a bit.