A shocking report: Inside the Ron Paul conspiracy

Maybe you've heard rumors about an explosive newspaper expose on a major political figure that would rock the political world just as the presidential voting is about to begin.

We haven't either.

But we do know that today is when this newspaper blows the top off of the Ron Paul Conspiracy, that vast unorganized protest movement that has silently become one of the more interesting political phenomena of the current election season.

A Times reporter -- we'll call him James Rainey to protect his identity -- has managed to penetrate the Paul presidium.

In his story he recounts for the very first time the shockingly ordinary details of a movement of thousands of disparate, dissatisfied people, some of whom want an end to the Iraq war, an end to gun controls and the IRS, an end to laws banning marijuana and a return to the gold standard, whatever that means.

These Paulites believe the government has been hijacked by a bevy of big interests that threaten the freedoms of ordinary Americans. They're not going to take it anymore. Locally, they're even organizing a re-enactment of a brazenly defiant act, the BostonTea Party, except it'll be in Santa Monica and won't involve tea or white people dressed as Indians. And the protestors promise not to leave anything foreign floating in the water.

These committed partisans, bonded by their suspicion of authority and venal influences like the mainstream media that ignored them until they did something, have united behind a 72-year-old...

Air Force vet and ob-gyn from Texas who has managed to win 10 elections to the House of Representatives as a Republican with two first names and strongly libertarian leanings.

This man believes that U.S. sovereignity is threatened by many things, especially including consistently ignoring the Constitution and by a planned mystery superhighway that would unite with a ribbon of inexorable cement all three North American countries--Mexico, the United States and that other larger one on top that can only afford to have three downs in its football games.

Apparently he's not talking about I-15, which already does that.

"Rainey's" account describes how this man's followers appear to be ordinary citizens with jobs and family by day. But at night they gather openly in chat rooms and living rooms to plot how to promote a tiny unassuming man whom they call reverently Dr. Paul. With little central direction but tons of commitment, idealism and passion, Dr. Paul's followers do everything they can think of to mobilize voter support.

They patrol the internet day and night seeking Paul slights to right. They stand on windy interstate bridges holding inflammatory signs saying: RonPaul2008.com.

Even as you sleep at night some of the 1,200 Paul meet-up groups are handwriting letters to all 700,000 independent Iowa voters urging them to consider their long-shot leader. A couple of weeks ago Paulites raised $4.2 million on the internet in one day, a near-record, and a sum they intend to more than double on Dec. 16, the anniversary of that rebellious tea party. How's that for insignificance?

As one result, the ultra-lean Paul organization has been able to buy advertising in New Hampshire and to pump its poll numbers up near double-digits in some places. Rainey's story describes the commitment of one Ron Paul meet-up group in Southern California and the regular folks who drive it with their political beliefs and energies.

Few professionals -- well, to tell the truth, no one -- actually gives Paul any chance of winning the Republican nomination. But then up until Yorktown back in the 1700s, all the smart Vegas money was on the British.

--Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[Financial Responsibility]

Thank you so much for this, Mr. Malcolm (and Mr. Rainey, in advance!). Please ignore the enraged posts of people who have not read your article carefully. The subtle humor is great. The title for example: a huge fakeout!

I'm glad there are some journalists out there taking note of this interesting political phenomenon. I will be on the lookout for more of your work.

[JDP]

Great article! I love the tone of it and the truth. We are so scary lol :)

[James R]

This idea of a NAFTA superhighway is very mysterious indeed and is something only conspiracy nuts believe! Come on! A new highway connecting Mexico, the US, and Canada? Even Snopes.com rules it out (see their article!)!

There are only three fringe groups I know of that believe in this idea:

1. Ron Paul.

2. The conspiracy group known as the "Texas Department of Transportation", when they stated
"Interstate 69 is a planned 1,600-mile national highway connecting Mexico, the United States and Canada. Eight states are involved in the project. In Texas, I-69 will be developed under the Trans-Texas Corridor master plan."
http://ttc.keeptexasmoving.org/projects/i69/

3. The Texas government fringe group NBII while doing an environmental impact study on the NAFTA highway when they stated:
"The southern most portion of the proposed NAFTA Highway (I-69) will cross approximately 1,000 miles of Texas from the Mexican border to the northeastern part of the state."
http://cswgcin.nbii.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=633&&PageID=1965&mode=2&in_hi_userid=2&cached=true

Andrew, sorry to pick on you so much over that point because the rest of the article was very good and very fair! But really, this NAFTA highway thing is something that is no secret and you can follow the government links provided to see that it is very much a fact. The links provided mention "new corridors" being possible.

[TheOneLaw]

And a tinfoil hat salute, sir!

Just ignore the noob comments which reflect poorly on their sources,
your article is indeed a treasure worth printing out and framing.

Welcome to the rEVOLution

[Francesco (Ivory Coast)]

DEEP respect for the courage of the LA Times,

I am speechless and moved... I hope this puts some healthy peer pressures on colleagues in MSM to wake the *beep* up

Thank you thank you thank you

The world is picking up on Ron Paul... ladies and gentlemen, I am one of 6.4 billion people outside your country watching (and participating in any way I can), with joy and amazement...

let us make it happen...

italians4ronpaul.blogspot.com

Francesco

[1951Patriot]

Kudos to Andrew Malcolm for finally blowing the cover off this bazaar group of nutcakes. I guess only the insiders in this Ron Paul "revolution" knew all along this was really about Liberty and preserving the future of America as the U.S. Constitution envisioned it. Now everybody can see what wacko element of society is really behind all this politically radical "fringe" ideology that seems to be growing by the second. Perhaps these Paulites are even a genuine threat to the status quo of America's well entrenched one party political process.
Liberty? Prosperity? Peace? Who needs that weak crap when we can have endless expensive acts of war without actually declaring war and an economic system designed from the ground up by a group of special banking geniuses for the purpose of economic enslavement of the masses and a government that usurps American citizen's rights so that corrupt politicians can operate in secrecy for the benefit of the special interest groups with the big political contributions.
Everybody knows Alexander Hamilton was right when he said the common citizen is too ignorant and dull to make important political decisions that rightfully should be made by a ruling class of elite.

[sean]

Merry Christmas from the LA Times!

This east coast Lobsterman suddenly has a craving for fish tacos. Beautiful article. I keep inviting friends and family to join the revolution. A candidate that everyone can get behind, and for the right reasons. The American people have found each other, and at least for today the LA Times has given us a voice.

[Althusius]

Gov Rick Perry vetoed the Texas Legislature's bill to put a (2) yr moratorium on the NAFTA Superhighway. Yeah, the one that you say does not exist.

[Beeradgeezzee]

Can we all say spin master L.A. Times. Half way through I had to make sure I wasn't reading The Spoof maybe thats there source. Classic

[Ben]

"the BostonTea Party, except it'll be in Santa Monica and won't involve tea or white people dressed as Indians. And the protesters promise not to leave anything foreign floating in the water."

That was a racist comment, which managed at the same time to put down a pivotal event in American history. I didn't bother reading any more. For shame.

[Jefferson]

Unfortunately it took segregationist Governor Wallace to reveal the truth that "there's not a dime's worth of difference between" Republicans and Democrats. The Democrats willingly went along with the War in Iraq, suspension of Habeas Corpus, detaining protesters, banning books like "America Deceived' from Amazon, stealing private lands (Kelo decision), warrant-less wiretapping and refusing to investigate 9/11 properly. They are both guilty of treason.
Support Dr. Ron Paul and save this great nation.
Last link (before Google Books bends to gov't Will and drops the title):
http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_detail.asp?&isbn=0-595-38523-0

[Darryl Schmitz]

Wow, Andrew... That's one helluva "teaser". It floated right to the top of the Google news search! :) Well-done!
James' article was also very well-written.

[John]

Very encouraging to see that Ron Paul's message is spanning the country. I am a "regular" citizen living in Maine, wife, kid, dog, yard that needs raking, and his campaign has resonated with me from the first time I learned of the man and his viewpoints. I can only hope that this groundswell of support can translate into votes. I was someone who "wasted" their vote on Perot in the past, this time I'm not just voting for the better alternative, but a candidate who I truly believe can return dignity and honor to the Presidency. Spread the word!

[Brian]

Thank you Andrew for putting up a great article for Dr. Paul. The slant and bias of the TV media is awful and you put forth a very balanced and enlightening article. Thanks!

[busdrivermike]

If Rudy or Hillary are my choices, I might as well hold my nose and vote for Ron Paul as an independant. I will not have to clench as tight for him as I would either of the other two.

[Alexia]

Viva le R3VOLUTION!

[David]

Ron Paul wants to rewrite the Constitution as a Libertarian document, strip the courts of legal power, bankrupt the country and shelter us from the world. Those are just a few of his favorite things. The guy is a complete nutbag; I'd have to move out of my beloved country if he won, to protect myself.

[Diana J.]

Thank you Andrew for your insightful column. Now, go back to school and research "the gold standard". Read about inflation. Study the stock market and don't forget to check out the many foreclosures throughout middle class America.
I love these feeble attempts from "journalists" trying to make Dr. Paul seem like a paranoid nerd, they always backfire and actually highlight just how intelligent Dr. Paul is. Although you did a good job of highlighting Dr. Paul's intelligence, Rudy Guilliani and Sean Hannity have you beat. Keep up the good work. By the way, I'm a business owner and mother who doesn't have the time to stand on "windy interstate bridges" but, I do donate. I've met many people from all walks of life who after hearing what Dr. Paul has to say, realize that they do not have to choose from what "Fox fair and balanced" and CNN decides. Have you ever seen such loyalty to a candidate before?

[Kyle D]

I don't understand this article. It seems like a poor rhetorical attempt to discredit Mr. Paul by appealing to its readers' immediate reactions on what might be called "common-sense government and politics." The only attempt at a logical argument that I found was the point about the I-15 highway.

I'm starting to believe that most Paulites are mocked as idealists when actually they are being disparaged for applying logic to the realm of politics, a realm that is traditionally ruled not by reason but by emotion. Cheers to you and your supporters, Mr. Paul. I may not agree with all of your views, but I laud the fact that you and other like-minded individuals attempt to bring some amount of credibility to the political battlefront.

[bruno amato]

Andrew...Great article! I'm a 46 year old SAG actor, and US Navy veteran. I haven't voted since 1980, when I voted for Ronald Reagan, and never donated to a campaign, but I have contributed and will continue,and I will definitely be voting for Ron Paul....He is the most sincere honest politician I have ever seen. He "gets it"! These other Republicans still push this ridiculous Iraq war. they didn't learn their lesson from the last election. All these other politicians will say ANYTHING and do ANYTHING for votes, even if it means making our country less safe. I really believe Ron Paul can win it all. Stay tuned and keep watching. Hopefully we can even get you to participate in our own little tea party on December 16th....I have a strong feeling Dr. Paul raises 10 million on that day!!!!

[J]

Hi...ummm, yeah, good article but could we do this again without the sensationalism of - "explosive newspaper expose on a major political figure that would rock the political world just as the presidential voting is about to begin."

I mean his "conspiracy" followers are "the regular folks who drive it with their political beliefs and energies." And that is driving a candidate into possible contention. I mean, I guess that could be a conspiracy...but wouldn't Gulliani's hiring of an the NYPD to escort his mistress and her family/friends around town be just a tad more?

Perspective, please?

[S. McCandless]

The NASCO 'superhighway' project is a typical lobbying group attempting to use tax money, eminent domain, and bureacratic authority to promote certain business interests at the expense of the taxed and those who lose their land. Their website dresses it all up as "public-private" partnership (gee, I never realized I was an equal partner in a relationship in which my wealth is taken from me involuntarily). It is amazing that people who point out this 'conspiracy' are labelled as crazy and paranoid when all one need do is read what NASCO people say. Consider similar 'public-private' partnerships going on in every state. As Paul said in the debate, this is a conspiracy of ideas not of some single group plotting somewhere. It is just a symptom of the way the political system operates at this time. All of the separate groups going after their own quasi-fascist projects don't need to hide what they are doing because most people either seem unaware of it or accept it as a positive thing. Individual sovereignty is lost whenever one of these projects is enacted because they involve involuntary transfers of property and property rights. National sovereignty is lost whenever a bureacracy of any sort is set up which operates like the WTO. If the NASCO and WTO people want prosperity it is very simple: real free trade. This requires no supranational agency. Such agencies are set up for the benefit of private interests.

[Doug Ward]

Thank you for the wonderful Ron Paul article. I especially like the Gandhi quote at the end. I hope everyone will donate to the Dec 16th Tea Party 07. Then the campaign will have everyones attention.

[Texan]

To those living in Texas, the "mystery superhighway" mentioned in the article is no mystery. It's already being built at the state level, not the federal. and most of it is rammed through state legislative bodies all up and down the midwest as turnpikes and toll roads. Any competent reporter or idiot with access to GoogleNews would know this and have no problem reporting it. It doesn't even require a lexisnexis search. What really makes me sick is how many commenters are congratulating the author over what a fine piece of journalism this is.

[aman]

What a ridiculous article. The writer should read something about the Bretton Woods system which existed until 1973 and then was replaced by Bretton Woods II and a move away from the gold standard. A writer on the LA times knows nothing about the Gold standard and he is still writing for the media? Anyone who had any doubts about the state of journalism here is the proof.

Read something and educate yourself in history and economics before you write again Andrew.