Iowa Grassroots Activists: Ron Paul Would Beat Mitt Romney & Win Iowa Caucuses
Things are looking grim for Mittens Romneycare and the Cocktail Party GOP Establishment in Iowa.
GOP Frontrunner Ron Paul beats Mittens Romneycare in this 15th edition of the Iowa 2012 Power Rankings, which has the top tier candidates listed as:
- Ron Paul
- Mittens Romneycare
- Herman Cain
- Rick “I Heart Illegals” Perry
- Rick Santorum
In a story published at IowaIndependent.com, a panel of politicos that included grassroots activists, state political reporters, consultants, and various political wonks has concluded that GOP Frontrunner Ron Paul would win the Iowa Caucuses if they were held today (today being October 17, 2011, when the story was published.)
The author of the story seems less than thrilled with this outcome, which I get used to, as a Ron Paul voter.
The Texas congressman surges to the top of our rankings for the first time, but not without caution. “If the caucuses were held today, [Paul] would win because he’s the only candidate with an excited base and an excellent organization,” a panelist noted.
“However, the caucuses being held January 3 could hurt him because a lot of his young voters will still be on Christmas break.”
The panelists have given props to the Paul organization for some time, and there is no denying that the Texan has a core group of supporters that are incredibly loyal and excited. The question, at least for our panelists, has always been if there were enough supporters to compete against a candidate that drew large swaths of social conservatives (i.e., Huckabee in 2008).
A couple of very interesting observations.
First of all, I thought Barack Hussein Obama owned the youth vote. Hasn’t the Democrat-Controlled Media told us for years that only greedy old rich people vote GOP?
Ron Paul at the Univ. of Iowa
Not according to University of Iowa senior John Twillman, chairman of the College Republicans. Last week, 1,000 college kids skipped Homecoming to attend a standing-room-only Ron Paul rally at the University of Iowa.
Twillman, who attends appearances by all Republican presidential candidates, noted,
“I think the Paul supporters — at least those I’ve seen — are much more passionate. They definitely have seen what almost four years of Barack Obama has done, and I think they will be more involved. I think they can see the real-life impacts of the policies that the President makes … So, I really think that college kids and young people in general will continue to support Ron Paul even more so than last time. I think they are already organized and I think they will get even more so and really turn out people for the caucus.”
Here’s the other interesting point.
“The biggest problem Romney has had in Iowa is the group of social conservatives that find him uniquely undesirable,” wrote a panelist. “Whether that is because of his religion or for other reasons, it doesn’t really matter because these are individuals who won’t simply not support him, but individuals who will actively pursue a strategy to prevent him from exiting Iowa with a victory. In the past that has meant some supporting a candidate they otherwise would not, just because they see an opportunity to elevate someone ahead of Romney.”
The grassroots can’t stand Mittens Romneycare. We (the grassroots) know it. The Cocktail Party GOP knows it. The Democrat-controlled media knows it. This is the first report I’ve seen that there are people actually working against Mittens on the ground in Iowa.
I know most of the people reading this are not libertarians. Most don’t believe that Ron Paul can win the nomination. But I would like to point out that candidates like Ron Paul keep the conversation focused where it is supposed to be (if you call yourself a conservative or Tea Party voter). If it weren’t for Ron Paul, would Cocktail Party GOP candidates be talking about throwing out the entire tax code? Would they be talking about the deficits? Would they be talking about the gold standard or sound money? Would they be talking about the Constitution or the 10th Amendment? Would they be talking about the Federal Reserve?
Of course not.
If you’re a conservative or Tea Party voter, you don’t have to vote for Ron Paul. But it’s better for all of us if he stays in the race if only to keep RINOs like Romneycare and Perry focused on what’s important.
© 2011, Kathleen Gee. All rights reserved.
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I said four years ago that we owed Dr. Paul a huge thanks because he did bring up important issues the others failed to address. Now, four years later, the other candidates are beginning to give voice to what Dr. Paul has been saying for years.
You are bang on Kathleen. Dr. Paul is driving these debates.
My two cents: Agree that Dr. Paul is a very good, smart man and that he has opened up discussion among candidates. I agree wholeheartedly with his call for personal responsibility, but fear that many of his followers erroneously equate being libertarian with being libertine (to do as one pleases without accountability or consequence.) In a perfect world, where people acted perfectly according to Dr. Paul's libertarian ideology, he could perhaps be a great leader. Unfortunately, the one thing I do know is that people never act perfectly. So long as the world is populated by we many imperfect people, IMO, Dr. Paul's ideas are bound to be distorted and subverted such that they likely would be rendered at best unworkable or at worst disastrous.
Hi cjwk,
Unfortunately, as others have said, the worst thing about GOP Frontrunner Ron Paul, for many conservatives, is the weirdo fringe who claim to be his supporters. (I personally think most of these people are paid Romney operatives.)
I agree with Ron Paul–there will always be irresponsible people in the world. That is a given. But the libertarian view is that those of us who are responsible shouldn’t be left holding the bag for those who aren’t, thanks to Uncle Sugar big government handout programs. It is government programs that divorce behavior from consequences–just look at the Pee Party pro-test to see the perfect example of this.
The Democrat Party promised these nitwits a consequence-free lifestyle. More of that is what I fear, not more individual responsibility, Constitutional government and freedom, which is what Ron Paul offers.
I love Ron Paul and Michelle Bachmann for their courage in being true Tea Party Patriots where and when it counts-in Congress! They have the record that proves they are conservative and Tea Party in action not just in words. I also really like Newt for his experience and intellect and Rick Santorum (who I hated when I was an indoctrinated liberal democrat while he was my Senator) is looking presidential to me as well. As for Herman Cain; What a great man. He is the role model young Americans of every race desparately need, but his 999 plan is in trouble and he makes mistakes when he is giving interviews.
He needs time to learn how to survive in the world of plotics.
Roomney and Perry make me sad for the republican party.
Considering what our interventionist (Bring Democracy to the Muslim World) foreign policy has done Ron Paul's ideas are beginning to make sense to me. Islam is the only form of government Muslims will choose. Only an iron fisted dictator can suppress the Global Government that is Islam. The Western World used to know that. But dangerous Fabian Socialist on both the left and the right thought they could remold the world into something so unworkable that it is just rediculous. The result has been dead Christains, less freedom and far more dangerous conditions for females in the Muslim world and Isreal in peril. We really messed up the world and I fear that the next generation will have a united Muslim Brotherhood that dominates the entire middle east and most of Africa, to deal with along with a rebirth of the Soviet Union as Putin watches the wanna be Communist Morons at OWS.
Could no intervention be any worse?
The more the media tells me GOP Frontrunner Ron Paul can't win, the more inclined I am to vote for him.