Hey, Ron Paul folks, Rudy Giuliani pays tribute to your guy

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who has been on the, uh, naughty list of all loyal, dedicated, fervent and vocal supporters of Rep. Ron Paul since he appeared to scoff at the Texan during one of the early Republican debates last year, gave a formal tip of the hat to the good doctor during his Florida concession speech last night.

As one result of that debate incident, which involved Giuliani taking offense at Paul's suggestion that Americans were at least partly responsible for 9/11 by their occupation and offensive actions against Arab countries, some Paulunteers have hounded many of Giuliani's public appearances with chants and sign-waving throngs. And they have often filled the comment section of The Ticket with scores of denunciations of the man who successfully turned life in New York City around.

These thousands have also reveled in the several times that Paul drew more primary or caucus votes than Giuliani in early states where the New Yorker did not seriously compete, starting with....

Iowa. Many will no doubt delight now in the expected end to Giuliani's campaign later today followed by his anticipated endorsement of Sen. John McCain. Ron Paul, on the other hand, has the endorsement of THE Jane Roe, is working on Tom McClintock. and has launched an eight-state ad blitz including California.

But Tuesday night as he was preparing to bow out, as first reported on the Ticket Monday noon, Giuliani gave a gracious concession speech in which he listed all of his Republican competitors and called them good men.

He added Ron Paul on the end, smiling, and said after all the debates he'd go back to his hotel room and watch television and how every time, according to the texted tallies, Ron Paul won all the debates, much, he did not say, thanks to the determined voting of his many busy-fingered followers. "Ron Paul won every debate!" Giuliani said.

Alas for Paul's followers, who have given many millions to his campaign treasury,--nearly $3.8 million so far this month, according to his website -- Ron Paul, a 72-year-old, 10-term House member who ran for president previously on the Libertarian ticket in 1988, did not win in Florida. In fact, Paul came in fifth, dead-last, well behind even Giuliani and Mike Huckabee.

In fact, the former ob-gyn received only about 3% of the vote, way less than 100,000 votes, which was about what pre-election polls measured as his support in the Sunshine State and what Paul supporters will argue was caused by a mainstream media conspiracy to run those fraudulent polls, to under-report Paul's support and to minimize his chances.

Under Florida winner-take-all rules, McCain now takes the state's 57 delegate votes at next summer's Republican National Convention in St. Paul.

So tonight's Republican debate at the Reagan Library near Simi Valley, co-sponsored by The Times and live-streamed here on this website at 5 p.m. Pacific, will likely have only four surviving Republicans -- McCain, Paul, Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney. Paul will be the strict constitutionalist who opposes the Iraq war and proposes to slash the federal government. Chances are, he will be given less time to speak than the other three.

On CNN last evening Wolf Blitzer went way out on a limb about the future of the Republican race going into Super Tuesday, Feb. 5. He boldly predicted that the results next week were "anybody's guess."

And you can take that to the bank.

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo: Richard Sheinwald / Bloomberg News

Comments

[Kevin]

I'm from Europe and I can see that this is glaringly biased against Ron Paul. It's as if the writer could not stop adding verbs and adjectives to make Ron Paul's campaign appear stultified, with assumptions of what the Ron Paul supporters would say of the Florida results.

Why not mention that Ron Paul had abandoned campaigning in Florida, prefering to visit other states instead? Why not mention that Rudy got less than Ron Paul's 3% in many of the earlier states where he did not make an effort?

This has been the ploy of the MSM: portray RP as unelectible so even those who agree with him feel they are "wasting their vote" if they vote RP - a ridiculous mode of thinking to say the least...

Maine is next. Ron Paul is expected to do well there. But don't expect much coverage from the MSM.

[andre]

Thank you, Andrew. I have to say that it is true - There is blatent censoring;
Google 'Ron Paul -exclusion,censoring, unfair' and there you will see the evidence. You Tube also have video clips of this. Whether one is a Paul advocate or not, people should be concerned that this practice is going on.
Which candidate gets to be censored the election after next? This is not right especially when we are supposed to be instilling the virtues of democracy elsewhere in the world. Unless you have access to the internet you will NOT see fair appraisals of ALL the candidates. So to make up here is a website where the internet trawling has been done for your readers:
www.whattheysayaboutronpaul.com :)

[David]

You forgot to mention Dr. Paul's 2nd place showing in the last two primaries in Nevada and Louisiana.

[Kent]

Andrew,

You know as well as the rest of us that Rudy's comments were a backhanded compliment. You know as well as I that he was talking about that tiny handful of crazy Ron Paul spammers, wink wink, nudge nudge.

And he seemed to mention Ron as an afterthought -- probably because, even at his concession speech, he looked out into the audience and saw a bunch of Ron Paul signs.

Anyway, I'm thrilled to see Benito Giuliani crushed and broken. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy...

[mark]

There is self-fulfilling prophecy that won't allow a candiate with less name recognition to become recognizable through MSM channels. Now there are sensible arguments to be made in support of that, namely that channel airtime is a scarce good, that media companies are there to serve their customers (who might not be supporters of candidate A) or that reporting conflicts with the interests of a media company's shareholders. That's all fair. What is not fair is to say that this system is balanced (fair or not), that it increases citizens' participation in democracy, that young people can become more interested in politics with this system, or maybe more important, that in the end this system will create a better government.

I'm happy to see that technological advances make a campaign like the one of Ron Paul possible. Without internet sites like Youtube or Meetup, this was never possible, as it would have been to hard to self-organize or spread a message in a cost effective way. Who would have thought that Ron Paul would even come this far a year ago? Certainly not a large part of the media, which has never shown to have an affinity for or an understanding of libertarianism. I doubt that will change. I also doubt that they will fail to pick up the fundamental changes that are going on right now in society. Not that I care, as these changes make these media outlets more irrelevant each day.

[Kevin Houston]

And then there were 4...

This isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. And Ron Paul is a long-haul runner.

I am not so much interested in Rudy Giuliani praising Ron Paul, as I am in whether or not he completed his homework assignment. Did Rudy ever read those books that Ron Paul suggested?

If Rudy doesn't drop out before tonight's debate, may I suggest the headline of the debate report read something along the lines of: "John, Paul, Mike and Ringo." (ah, if only Ron Paul had run in 2000 when a certain 'George' was running, the headlines would have just written themselves...)

But seriously, I think Paul should watch his back in tonight's debate. Rudy may be out for revenge. Without a credible chance of winning, he may focus, instead, on destroying Ron Paul.

[dwc]

A.M. , Keep up the good work ya crazy thing! kick ass Ron Paul!!!

[Henry]

This guy has the immaturity and anger of a 15 yeard old. Absolutely no professionalism and writes like a drunk. If you want to criticize somebody, do it professionally and not like drunken buffoon. "Veteran journalist" my rearside. Press secretary to Laura Bush. Thats right, you were indeed a pimp.

[Mike W]

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

[K. Fisher]

First they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win" Ghandi

[John L Gulledge]

"Hey, Ron Paul folks, Rudy Giuliani pays tribute to your guy"
As he should, and should be ashamed of himself. As for you, it is clear your not a Freedom loving American, with your slanted article. Why not mention Ron Paul taking 2nd in Nevada, or the 2nd in Louisiana, that may very well be a 1st place win there? No, you would rather be a part of the system that has helped but not succeeded in keeping Ron Paul down. Ron Paul has a message of freedom, and liberty to us, and we as true Americans LOVE him for that. Rudy is an idiot, and so are the rest of the republicans that are running. The ONLY man with any integrity running is in fact Ron Paul. As for you Andrew Malcolm try being a man for once, and not part of the politically correct puppets in MSM!

John L Gulledge
Pensacola FL.

[Brian]

Ron Paul has run a beautiful rope-a-dope campaign. The other candidates have spent themselves and beat themselves up into oblivion. There are now only four candidates remaining, and most of the conservative base will end up going to Paul. Romney, McCain, and Huckabee cannot defeat Hillary or Obama in th fall, only Ron Paul can.

[Ron]

Let's not forget our leader's anniversary. Let's give what is necessary to reach 8.5 mil!

[JimS]

Ron Paul can use your Giuliani defense for a low showing in Iowa for himself in Florida. The interesting thing is Giuliani did campaign in both Iowa and New Hampshire he spent nearly 4.5 million in ads. Now in Florida Giuliani he spent close to 45 million and Ron Paul spent next to nothing. I unlike most RP supporters never voted in text polls, never waived signs nor gave a toss about Giuliani so please don't try and group me. No self respecting Ron Paul supporter has ever thought that getting him in the White House was going to be easy - so please don’t try to make it sound as if we did. No self respecting anybody supporter ever doubted a media bias early on. Now that he didn’t win Florida and in fact came in with 3% please don’t make it sound as if that justifies what the media has been doing since before New Hampshire - give me a break. Do I think the lack of media attention is some sort of conspiracy? No I do not.....I think it’s as obvious as the day is long that the media needs a future candidate that will bring viewers. So they cover the ones that will - nothing conspiratorial about that just basic marketing. A full on liberal or crazy war monger brings ratings pure and simple.

[Orlando]

I'm glad MCain won in Florida. Don't get me wrong, I'm a dedicated Ron Paul fan. Mitt Romney was way ahead of everybody else including Mcain on the delegates untill Florida, if he had won Florida (winner takes all) he would have increased his delegates by 57 and been the clear frontrunner. MCain took that away from him so now it's still a fight. MCain is the most undesirable candidate of all and I just can't see him winning the presidency specially because he is so pro war (not to mention his freaky yellow smile) so the republicans are shooting themselves in the foot. President Paul did good in not wasting our good money and effort in Florida as again (winner takes all) there are no delegates for nobody. That's what Giuliani overlooked. He spent countless millions in Florida and 15% of the state gave him nothing, Paul still has more delegates than him. I live in Florida and there where Mittney ads everywhere, millions and millions of dollars, I saw none from President Paul. Mittney got 31% of the vote, President Paul got 3%, they both got the same amount of delegates, 0. Even Score, Smart move President Paul. While these guys are spending there funds Killing eachother in a state that really does not compensate anybody (except the winner) for there efforts, President Paul has been campaigning in Maine and many other Super Tuesday states and making inroads in all of them.

I'd say President Pauls strategy is the smartest of all.

[Maria Harding]

And he WON the straw poll in my state - Connecticut -- but you don't see big news of that anywhere, now do you? Interesting that these media drones attempt to dictate to us who are candidates are. And McCain - who is pro-war won in NH where most of the people are AGAINST the war. Something stinks in the water --

[Pete]

I'm watching with interest from Australia. We get US cable TV via satellite and US news via radio... plus all the free to air networks of Australia. Ron Paul is not mentioned at all, but everyone seems fixated on Rudy for some bizzare reason. I think this is the election the world is watching - and the world is starting to see America for what it really is.... f#cked!

[Jason]

You might want to check out the fact that Giuliani campaigned more in Iowa and New Hampshire than Ron Paul did... he just didn't win any votes.

Also Paul saved his money by not campaigning in Florida, where everyone else blew through their remaining money. There was no conspiracy in FL, Paul wasn't there to get coverage. And why should he have been? This is about delegates, and there are plenty of those that can be gotten much cheaper than wasting tens of millions trying to out spend McCain and Romney to come in at the top of one state. This is a new kind of election, one that will be decided at the convention, and you can bet that the revolution will be there.

Paul probably has half the money he has raised in the bank still. If he ran the government like he runs his campaign, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in.

[gjothesen]

Why is it so hard for the media to do their job and simply report on what is happening? You get commentary like that that makes Ron Paul look like a moron and Giuliani look like a hero. When opinion is the only thing reported in an election cycle no one gets a fair shake. You can joke all you want about this but it is a serious problem. We are not supposed to be voting for Mr. Popular. We are choosing our President. Based on the one we have now we should be very freakin’ careful.

[DB]

Perhaps it is MSM bias and corruption, but how much of it has to do with the fact that his supporters can't face the reality of Ron Paul losing? It is like religious cults always thinking that they are the smartest ones, the one's who know everything and everyone else is wrong. At least I could understand this whining if he wasn't running as a Republican and maybe an independent instead. He has no chance in the Republican Party because he is not one of them. His best chances lie on a 3rd party ticket.

[Randy]

"Busy-fingered" ??? You guys never stop. Technology prevents multiple voting, and I think you know it

[Dale Pettit]

Florida was a winner take all (delegate state) and Ron Paul moved on to campaign in states that are more fair in the distribution of delegates. Ron Paul understands and demonstrates how to use his time and energy very efficiently. He focuses on the important stuff, like delegates to the National Convention.

It is obvious to the rest of the world and most people in the United States, that the powerful major media is attempting to control the election and control our lives. Obviously the major media's conduct in this matter is violating the trust of the world. One more way, forces used destructively, will destroy our nation and the Liberty and freedom for which it stands. We then wonder why the so many other nations mistrust and despise our meddling in their affairs. The citizens of the United States should join the Ron Paul revolution in taking back our country, renew our belief in the constitution and our previous world enfluence.

A must read for "Supporters of Ron Paul " http://www.blackhillsportal.com/npps/story.cfm?ID=2426

[Ken in NH]

Rudy successfully turned around NYC?!?!? I assume you're not referring to the blatant disregard for the workers health at ground zero. I'll also assume you're not referring to his spending of NYC's taxpayers dollars for his affair. I'll also assume you're just another herded sheep that wants nothing more than your own personal desires to be realized. Baahhh bahhhhh.

[Jay_C]

No, this time, Paul was chosing not do much campaining in Florida. He knew it was not a good state for him so he spent the time sreading his campaining around the other Super Tuesday states. (basically the complete opposite of Giuliani's Strategy) If anything we will probably here more MSM propaganda about Paul, and his "dismal Florida results", as "proof" of his unelectability. Never mind that there is still the issue with the Louisiana caucus (what is going on there by the way, Paul may win that state or come in second? Where is the MSM coverage on that?)

[akaye]

You'll get no thanks from me...
ANOTHER smear at RON PAUL.
You mention Paul beat Giuliani in states where Rudy did not campaign.
You FAILED to mention RON PAUL did not campaign in Florida.
Yet he still drew a better percentage than Rudy did when not campaigning.
When will someone just get it right?
We don't need you to think for us. We don't need you to hold our hand and lead us. We need unbiased reporting.
Ah, it is only a no name's blog.........

[Gene]

Let Rudy have his last digs...he ran an historically bad campaign. Paul got zero press coverage, Rudy's was 24/7. The media will act like contortionists avoiding Paul now with just four left running.

[chrisinaustin]

If by "the man who successfully turned life in New York City around," you mean ensuring the FD had outdated communication systems, and forcing kids back to school before the air quality standards were met in and around Ground Zero then you're right on point. Also you failed to mention Paul didn't "seriously compete" in Florida. Next, just to clarify, we weren't reveling against Guiliani, we were reveling for our freedoms. The same ones that the Bush regime has suppressed, and the ones that Guiliani would continue to suppress. All in the name of "patriot"-ism, how's that for irony?

To Guiliani and his, MSM backers/pollsters, that since the summer have wanted so desperately for him to be the GOP candidate, I'd like to dedicate a song to you from the late, great Ray Charles:
"Hit the road jack and don't you come back, no more, no more, no more"

[Tony Andrews]

Why not mention that Romney spent millions on Florida, and WON'T GET a SINGLE DELEGATE out of the deal. That's a huge part of this story. Paul barely campaigned in FL. Giuliani, however, DID campaign in New Hampshire... he hosted the most political events in the state of all the GOP candidates! What did it get him? Jack squat.

Many doubt the accuracy of Florida's voting system. You might remember the hearings after the 2000 election when the programmer of the voting machines admitted the machines had code that could flip any election to 51-49%. Jeff Dean, the senior programmer and VP of Diebold was later convicted on 23 felony counts. But who cares about facts, or about criminals controlling our elections? At least we're 'safe', right?

[Justin Zane]

"Those who cast the votes decide nothing.
Those who count the votes decide everything."

quote attributed to Joseph Stalin

[Guesswhotoo6]

Thank you Europe for noticing we are in a bit of a fascist pickle here in the USA. A place where the paradigm of thinking for ones self has been traded in for mindless TV and trips to the peoples republic of WalMart, We managed to elect Mr Bush the 2nd time even with blatant lies about WMD etc.... Sorry I can not report we are making any progress over here. Ron Paul has the only intelligent message out there. However, the bankers and their friends will control the situation to what ever extent necessary to secure their multi trillion dollar per year cash flows from our pockets to theirs. I am sure, where Fl is a winner take all state for the GOP delegates, it made no sense for Ron Paul to spend dollars there without really good odds to capture the delegates. Hence I think he made the correct moves. The censorship of our media is so obvious, it speaks to the extent of the issues here. Go Ron 2008!

[Free Arthur]

Florida was a difficult state for Dr. Paul. Florida's was the first primary where only Republicans could vote. Many of Ron Paul's supporters are Democrats or independents. Moreover, Dr. Paul seems to do better in caucuses than in primaries.
One needs a computer and access to the Internet to obtain an adequate coverage of election news. The mainstream media often pretends that Dr. Paul does not exist. Are the media afraid of the Ron Paul Revolution? Are they afraid of limited Constitutional government, ending the Iraq War, ending American military involvement in foreign countries, restoring our civil liberties, ending the income tax, balanced budgets, and money and banking reform?

[Mike Knapp]

How nice of the LA Times, who is co-sponsoring this debate, to let us know ahead of time that it will be unfair and biased against Paul by not giving him equal amount of airtime. Us Dr. Paul supporters are used to getting snubbed in real time, we appreciate being told that our candidate is going to get screwed ahead of time. THANKS SO MUCH LA TIMES!!!

www.ronpaul2008.com

[tom brown]

I would hope to see Ron Paul given fair treatment in the press and the next debate. It wont happen. Our media "pundits" lack the least awarness of our countries plight. They live in the other America. The elite ,over paid, im not responsible for anything America. Lap dogs of the media empire. When did pursuit of the dollar and power replace responsible journalism? Thomas Paine where are you? The mindless crude they produce sucks the brains out of the bubba, what are you going to give me populace. Instead of rebate checks how about granite counter tops? Just an old Marine on a mission.

[Nicholas]

It' is freightning to those of us who are not americans when we hear presidential candidates like giuliani speak about terrorism and why they attack america because america is a free country. The world needs an american president who logically understands the world outside america and the real causes of terrorism. giuliani's hopes at a presidential run ended months ago when he and ron paul exchanged views on terrorism. rudy thinks that america was attacked because terrorists hate freedom. rudy should tip his hat to ron paul, for educating him.

[Sandra]

The results in Louisiana have not been tabulated yet. The second place announcement was made before the votes were even counted which is not done in a race this close not to mention most of the McCain delegates were not eligible to run. The Paul campaign has contested the caucus and caucus results are still open.

[Joe McFarley]

The mainstream media is a disgrace. I need to get news about the election so I can cast my vote. When I go to the likes of CNN or Foxnews or MSNBC, they only post videos 3 minutes or less in length or pathetically short articles that 'analyze' essential nothing important happening in the race. They barely discuss issues. They never get into details. They never do full overviews of the candidates' records and positions. They never treat the candidates the same. There is a complete disconnect. The election is covered as if it's a game of football not something that can actually affect the people's well-being.

Look at this article! Candidates name here. 34.56% there. Some million dollar amount raised over here. Another endorsement over there. I DON'T CARE! I want to vote for the candidate based on his ideas. The mainstream media fails us by making the campaign everything but ideas. American democracy has a lot of evolving to do.

[Steve Grycel]

Mr. Malcolm, I'm an RP supporter and I send kudos for you article. Out of all the opinions expressed on the net, I really do enjoy reading yours. I would have added more frills and dressings, but overall, compared to your competition out there, your opinions are fairly well written and non-biased. Thanks for the good work.

[Egosumabbas]

Bah, Ron Paul didn't try very hard in Florida and for good reason. If it's a winner-take-all state, and McCain and Romney are clearly leading, there's no point in even trying, since a 2nd or 3rd place showing won't win any delegates. It's all about the strategy in maximizing the chance for a brokered convention.

[Steve Dasbach]

It was gracious of Rudy to remember to mention ALL of the candidates, including Ron Paul. That's more than news channels have been doing recently.

However, contrary to Rudy's insinuation (and yours) you can only vote once per cell phone in those text message polls. Ron Paul didn't win the debate polls because his supporters voted multiple times -- he won because we cared enough to vote.

[James]

In a winner take all state that only allows registered Republican party members to vote in the primary, Florida would have been a waste of time and money for Dr. Paul. His campaign's goal is to accumulate delegates in a cost effective manner. Does anyone really think Hillary would have trounced Obama in Florida the way she did, if Obama had actually campaigned in the state?

What's really interesting to me is what will happen if, after Tuesday, Mccain truly has the nomination locked up, and Hillary wins the Demo nomination. I believe more than half the electorate would be highly motivated to vote against both parties.

[patty]

I wonder why you tried to make us look bad in this article when you've been so gracious towards us lately? Such a tiny fraction of Paul's supporters would even dream of barging in on one of Giuliani's speeches. And I join the chorus in pointing out that you underplayed Ron Paul's victories over other candidates and second places finishes (but I guess it would have been too much to ask that you look into the egregious vote fraud in the Louisiana GOP caucuses, which stole an outright victory from Ron Paul.) But no hard feelings, you do good work. Cheers.

[Daniel from Winder]

Funny, I didn't see it as a "tribute" or homage or even a good-natured "okay, you got me" - sounded to me like one last time to ridicule Ron Paul and his supporters. Maybe I read him wrong and I'm just used to being laughed at for supporting Ron Paul. Either way, I'm glad he's out of the race.

[Alan]

Andrew - Ron Paul was crushed in Florida, but this was to be expected. The campaign ignored Florida, because it is a winner-take-all state, and would have been a huge financial drain. How much money did Romney, McCain, and Giuliani spend on Florida? TONS. Romney ran an aggressive, expensive campaign there, and he comes away with no delegates... Rudy staked his whole campaign there, in what will come to be known as the worst campaign strategy EVER.

Instead, Ron Paul has been campaigning in states where he can pick up delegates even without coming in first. Sure, First place finishes would be nice... In fact, they are necessary heading into the national convention, but skipping Florida was the right thing for Paul, allowing him to put his time and resources into states where he might be competitive.

John McCain appears to be hitting critical mass... If he gets the nomination, it will result in a landslide defeat in November. He does not have the chops to stand on a debate stage with either Hillary, or Obama, and he doesn't have the conservative credentials to consolidate the Republican base. His stances on immigration, his dedication to the war in Iraq, and his complete bewilderment on economics and monetary policy will result in disaster come election time.

Say what you will about Ron Paul - It cannot be denied that he's the real agent of change in this race. He recognizes that the 9.5 trillion dollar debt is going to be America's undoing. He recognizes that America's absurd foreign policy is the primary motivation of our enemies abroad. He recognizes the de-stabilization of our currency, and the ready supply of cheap money, are the root causes for our current financial situation, and that it cannot be remedied by lower interest rates (more cheap money), and a $600 rebate check that will no doubt be spent on more imported goods.

Ron Paul is the candidate of ideas, and of principle. If the Republican Party doesn't wake up to that, they are sowing the seeds of their own destruction.

As for Giuliani... Goodbye, and Good Riddance. Paul has a better chance of becoming President than Rudy does - he's still in the race.

[stephen]

Hey why not mention that as the lone candidate, republican or democrat, who opposes the Iraq war Ron Paul has brought in more funding from troops, both retired and on duty, than any other candidate?

[Nate]

After reading articles about the candidates, or watching them on television or other media, ask yourself one question: do I know anything about this candidate's positions that I didn't know before? Did this reporting help me to understand what this candidate stands for or what his record is? In almost every case, I think the answer will be an emphatic "no". We are not told anything about the character, the positions or the records of the candidates that we are voting for, and I think that is a horrible thing. Instead, we are told who is "crazy", who is "unelectable", who "has an edge", who is talking trash about whom, and many other worthless details that are really only fit for tabloid celebrity reporting. Who cares what hillary clinton is trying to imply about obama, or whether she meant something insulting when she said such and such? Let her say what she wants, but don't report on it constantly! Tell us her POSITIONS! People, we have to disconnect from this media circus and think for ourselves or this experiment in democracy is OVER!

[John B. in Florida]

Just wanted to clarify something Andrew. You stated "Paul supporters will argue was caused by a mainstream media conspiracy to run those fraudulent polls, to under-report Paul's support and to minimize his chances". However, this is not the opinion of most supporters.

What we believe is that BECAUSE the media did not give Congressman Paul fair time in their coverage, they have essentially given millions of dollars worth of advertising to the front runners (one of whom has benefited greatly from that "free media"... Mr. McCain who has no money and is only winning because of that free media).

Our issue all along has been this. In this country people make their decisions based on what they see... as sad as that may be. Many (if not most) Americans today have gotten lazy. They don't want to read... or do research... or have to go looking for a candidate. They want that little box that sits in their living room to tell them who is running and what they stand for. This inherently is one of the major problems with our country and why in my humble opinion our Republic is dead.

When people have to go on YouTube to find out the views of a candidate because the mainstream media doesn't give him any play on ANY of their controlled stations... something is wrong. It's like that James Bond film where the villian wanted to control all of the worlds media stations... because control the news... control the world.

Time after time Dr. Paul was basically ignored in debates, given questions completely off topic and given 1/3 to 1/4 the amount of time other candidate were given, including ones he had beated several times in a row in other primaries. How can this be considered fair treatment by the media? When he wins text polls the hosts of the show say... ahhh, he's hacking it... it's not real... they're voting more than once. I doubt they would say anything like that if one of their crowned "front runners" won the poll.

Bottom line is Dr. Paul is basically running for President solely on the advertising dollars his campaign has raised. No other candidate in history has raised the kind of money Dr. Paul has... but that is basically ignored ONCE AGAIN by the media. Meanwhile, they have McCain, Guliani and Huckabee on their newscasts EVERY NIGHT... GIVING THEM MILLIONS IN FREE PUBLICITY.

What it comes down to in the end is that most of these primaries are being voted by the older generations. Older folks who only get their news from the TV and newspapers. Most I have talked to don't even know who Ron Paul is. How can this be... with the fundraising success he has had and the poll victories he has taken? "Well (they tell me)... I have never heard of him on the news".

Ding ding... Most of the articles I read online are all Blogs... and what senior citizen do you know is surfing the cusp of blogs across the globe? Answer... none.

Now... let's talk about how Dr. Paul is going to win this thing. It's not going to be because of you Andrew, and certainly not because of the Times. It is going to be because people are fed up. They are tired of this garbage and the same old crap. So we win... even if we don't win... because people are awake... and waking up even more every day as we spread this message of freedom. And we THE PEOPLE will have this country back... whether through democracy... or by other means... we are a resiliant people... and we will take nothing less.

[stephen]

Ron paul got more funding from troops, both on duty and retired than any other candidate who does not want to withdraw troops, i posted this before but i can't see it i think it might not have gone through.

[Darel]

Mr. Malcolm,

Having read your column prior to the election cycle I have noticed many times you have either provided incorrect information by accident or lie about the subject matter, the case in point is based on Florida's delegates.

Perhaps you should contact Florida's Secretary of State and receive a short education regarding Florida's states delegates. The fact is the states delegates are only awarded early February - April 30 at delegate selection caucuses-so why didn't you explain this fact? Ron Paul does have a very strong chance of winning delegates...

As far as a mainstream media conspiracy to underreport Paul's support.... For sure even the left is aware of this fact. My uncle who is a well known writer for a major media source has been told not to write about Ron Paul based on his editors direction for sure word have been handed down to every major media source to surpress Paul's campaign. According my uncle they were told to underreport Paul's success but present any negative news starting 4 days prior to the Iowa. We have witnessed Mel attempt to remove Paul from the debates and actually noted Fox news removal of Paul prior the NH debates. CBS news doesn't even list him on there guide and even James Dobson's foundation has omited Ron Paul. Mr. Malcolm there is no conspiracy at all but rather based on fact that the media isn't fair to Ron Paul at all. Do you need more examples?

Just watch CNN of FOX today and I'm sure they will mention Mr. 9-11 and not even mention Paul's name other then to suggest he doesn't have a chance or his last place finish which still looks like he received over 100,000 votes in a pro neocon state.

Mr. Malcolm I'm going to deem you as part of the MSM issue who does not report the truth nor are you interested in reporting the truth.

[Jeanette Doney]

The Ron Paul rEVOLution has been marginalized profoundly in CA where MeetUp groups reported papers refused to publish paid ads for Ron Paul, and yet, I see Ron Paul everywhere I go. My own Ron Paul bumper sticker has turned road rage into a thumbs up, hand waving, big smile e- ticket with a few one finger salutes, but not often. This has been a great race, a incredible experience. I'm PROUD to be a Ron Paul rrEVOLutionary!

[steven orrange]

WOW! Ron Paul has climbed from 11th place to 4th place in the last few months.
No I did not read that in the news. unfortunately I had to do the math myself. (I must have attended private school as a kid.)
After Super Tuesday, I expect Dr. Paul to take it up another notch, quietly inching into 3rd place.
It will be so entertaining to watch the two remaining fat RINO's slinging the other guys voting record around like the liberal mud it is, trying to make the other seem more liberal, while our beloved STATESMAN slowly moves into 2nd place, all the while keeping his powder dry.

[Dagny]

As a Paul supporter, I'm very pleased with his 3% showing in Florida!

When one considers the virtual media blackout of this Constitutionally-principled man, and add the fact that he did not concentrate great efforts in Florida but rather focused on several other upcoming States, we can all be satisfied!

For those who may not be aware of the media "blackout," every major TV news outlet, since the eve of Iowa's caucuses, has been quite careful to mention every other candidate, including those Dr. Paul had "bested," while avoiding his name and or his picture. They had given sparse coverage prior to Iowa, after Iowa: nothing.

Paul supporters combatted the initial poor coverage by setting new fundraising records; by giving lift to blimps, planes, etc.; by standing in knee-deep snow enthusiastically waving signs for the man who defends liberty, peace, and prosperity; renting billboards; paying for full-page ads in well-circulated newspapers; writing letters, etc., etc., etc.

News outlets were so perplexed! How exactly was Ron Paul doing it?! They could not fathom that he wasn't doing anything to "orchestrate" his supporters actions, that the support was being generated by concerned folks across the nation, inspired by the message Dr. Paul carries.

Ron Paul's media coverage was indirect at best and focused on his supporters. The next step was to demonize his supporters, and then, to "disappear" them as well.

In spite of all this incredibly well-orchestrated media "blackout" campaign, Dr. Paul garnered 3% in Florida!

Ron Paul's campaign is not only educating millions (through the Internet) about foreign policy, fiscal and monetary policy, the beauty of the founding documents, etc., it is accomplishing something else: it is exposing the mainstream "news" outlets for the corporate/government lackeys they have become. They will continue to lose viewership as the older generation fades. They have lost all credibility with anyone under 60. As "boomers" retire, televisions will go dark.

www.ronpaul2008.com/Prosperity. We are in serious financial straits, Ron Paul understands the situation and has the answers.

[Jim]

The standard ratio of supporters to contributors is about 20 to 1. RP has 200K donors which translates to somewhere around 4 million supporters, and that number is growing by the day. The Republican party cannot afford to alienate that many active, informed members and still win in November. They have a real problem here, and if the Libertarian party drafts him in May, as is expected, the LP will gain millions of new members overnight. In that scenario, the Republican nominee is simply done for. It is time for them to wake up and start looking at this with a clear eye and an open mind. It doesn't matter a damn how much they dislike him or disagree with him. If they continue to ignore and/or ridicule him, they will pay dearly and they'll put Hillary back into the White House. Pride goeth before a fall, as they say.

[Steve]

Andrew,

If you look at the total time Rudy spent in early states like New Hampshire, Nevada, etc., you will see Rudy spent more money and had more trips than Ron did. He only did less campaigning in the last weeks before the actual primaries when the polls showed he was not going to win. Same with Ron Paul in Florida. He campaigned in Maine instead of Florida.

[mnjrupp]

Just in from the Ron PAul campaign.

"Last night, over 60,000 people stood up and asked for an end to the runaway violation of our liberties. But contrary to the impression you may be getting from the mainstream media, no national delegates have yet been won in Florida. Those delegates will only be awarded between February 6 and April 30 at delegate selection caucuses, and many of those delegates will be supporters of Dr. Paul."

Matthew Hawes, Policy Assistant
Daniel McCarthy, Internet Communications Coordinator
Jonathan Bydlak, Fundraising Director
Ron Paul 2008

[bkusz]

When the "Best Political Anylist" (they all make that claim) on TV News reported from day one of the election, let me quote the most repeated" Cannot Win" Maverick" "Long shot" etc. and still repeat that mantra to this day, combine that with no reports of any of Pauls successes, NO newspaper print articles, etc.. is there any doubt the man has been blackballed by msm?

Nice article Andrew! Your one of the few who report, not trash. Keep up the good work!

Bkusz
Lbts, Fla.

[James D]

"Ron Paul won all the debates." - The first true thing I've ever heard from Rudy Giuliani.

Too bad Rudy dropped out of the race. With his nose so bright, Rudolph won't be leading this sleigh tonight.

I guess it will be up to Ron Paul to find a way through the growing darkness called McCain who is the man of eternal war, blood, bombs and the ruin of a once great nation.

[bkusz]

When the "Best Political Anylist" (they all make that claim) on TV News reported from day one of the election, let me quote the most repeated" Cannot Win" Maverick" "Long shot" etc. and still repeat that mantra to this day, combine that with no reports of any of Pauls successes, NO newspaper print articles, etc.. is there any doubt the man has been blackballed by msm?

Nice article Andrew! Your one of the few who report, not trash. Keep up the good work!

Bkusz
Lbts, Fla.

[Drew]

Andrew, please do some additional research on the Florida GOP and how it awards its delegates to the National Convention. At this time, no national delegates have been awarded to any candidate. Those delegates are selected at delegate selection caucuses held between February 6 and April 30 and are not bound to a single candidate.

[Amber]

Our media is controlled by the government. The government does not want us to know of Ron Paul, the government has been stealing from us, lying to us for over 50 years. We supposedly live in a country that is "free" and yet our constitutional rights have been taken away. Ron Paul is not going away. Ron Paul is the only "hope" for America. I learned about Ron Paul 3 months ago and I've contributed a lot of time learning about him. He stands for us "The People", not the government. He is the only candidate that wants to help our economy, and actually knows how to do this. All of the other candidates seem to change their minds after each debate. What does that show of their integrity and honesty?

[Doug]

Dead last or a close second amounts to the same number of delegates from Florida. It appears that Ron Paul knows how to pick his battles. There's no need to dump good money after bad into a failed battle. Now if our next president (no matter who that will be) could grasp that concept, we may be able to stop this economical bleeding.

[MJ]

Giuliani was attempting to portray that only a few committed Paul supporters were repeatedly calling in. Why don't the other candidates fare as well then? I guess being able to motivate people is one of Paul's stengths.
I have never called in to support him but if he does well in the debate tonight I will.
If you think he does well please text in on the CNN poll.
More importanly, VOTE IN THE PRIMARY.
If you believe in the Constitution and Dr. Paul PLEASE either donate or purchase from the campaign site. Others are dropping out as their warchests dry up. Dr. Paul knows how to manage money, money that was given to him by the people. This is true as a congressman (he sends money back from his budget every single year) and as a candidate.

GO PAUL!!!!!

[Tom Brown]

Look at Andrews picture...he writes for the L.A. Times and is part of the generation that allowed all of this to flourish. Does anyone really think he'll act, or write, like a true journalist? Objectivity? What a lofty expectation, let alone a joke. Navada & Louisiana cannot & must not flow from his fingertips regarding Paul. That would imply integrity and responsible journalism and that just cannot happen. Guliani's gone, Huckabee is next, and the MSM will try like a cornered tiger to keep McCain propped up as the fruntrunner. For they know Paul would wiipe the mat with Romney OR McCain, let alone the Democrats.
Why isn't he mentioning the fact that the issue most on Floridians minds is the economy, yet McCain, who admittedly doesn't know !@#$ about it, wins the primary? A couple big endorsements for the mindless? Just a guess.
Romney, from practical experience, knows more about the economy than McCain, but Paul knows the whys & hows of where we are today and where we are going. Something neither Romney or McCain are willing to address. Foridas primaries were a very good sign for Paul. We just need to realize this, not get caught up in the MSM rhetoric, and donate more NOW then ever before. If we keep him in this race, the others will drop out and his honesty, integrity, knowledge of the facts, sincerity and willingness to lead us in turning this country around, will prevail. A brokered convention is what we're seeking. Let's make it happen.

(Well, at least Andrew Malcolm uses his real name and photo with his writing and knows how to spell Nevada. Make no claim to objectivity here, Tom. And didn't hear any RP complaints when we noted he was doing better. But now he's not. And, alas, we note that too. This is a blog. Not a news story. We have a viewpoint and these comments are for you to obviously disagree or like some of your RP peers, agree. So welcome to the forum. And thanks for reading.)

[Peter Quinones]

"Under Florida winner-take-all rules, McCain now takes the state's 57 delegate votes at next summer's Republican National Convention in St. Paul."

Um, you may want to check your facts.

John McCain did not win all of the delegates in Florida.

Those delegates will be awarded between February 6 and April 30 at delegate selection caucuses, and many of those delegates will be supporters of Dr. Paul.

Thanks for proving the MSM bias for us.

[Tyranny]

Ron Paul had such a poor showing in Florida because of a couple of points. The main one being his objection to Amnesty. McCain got the latino vote and that made a major difference. Another reason is because of seniors. The seniors seen only one point in Paul's campaign and that was the end of social security. They failed to realize Paul's plan. Once the retired got wind of this they stopped listening to his message.

But, remember .... no delegates have yet been awarded. "Winner take all"? Sure, if the winner is awarded the delegates ... Let's see who's delegates get elected. Will the latino population turn out to precincts? Will the retired? I doubt it.

It's still a long road to the White House. Keep in mind how dedicated and active Paul's supporters are. You can bet we're going to be at those precincts come delegate election day.

[FGFM]

Thanks for feeding the obsession of the Paulbots. I am looking forward to him tanking in Illinois, although there was some rube handing out leaflets outside Union Station the other day. That's what we get for extending the commuter lines.

[Bob Pylant]

Ron Paul SECOND IN LOUISIANA AND NEVADA - ignored Florida as it was a lost cause - but wait til Maine and other states where he campaigned - wait til super Teusday and wait for the Western States....
GO RON GO....

[Eric]

Andrew,

Thank you so much for this article. At least there are a few people reporting the news.

[William T. Patton, Jr.]

Rudy was right, Ron Paul did win every debate. He won not just because of the support of his followers but because Paul actually spoke in deatil about the real issues.

Issues the others choose not to discuss such as the damage to our economy caused by deficit war spending. Those neo-con idiots do not realize the faltering economy and the disasterous war are the SAME ISSUE!

[Scott]

Thanks for the article, Andrew. Paul will do well in many states to come. Especially the ones that he can afford to advertise in, unlike McCain and Huck. There will be exponentially more delegates up for grabs next Tuesday than there was for Florida, and then that's only half the possible delegates so far. Only half way there AFTER Feb. 5! This is going to be the first brokered Republican convention since 1952. Hold on to your hats and glasses! It's going to be a bumpy ride.

[ShawnBoy]

Hey Mr. Malcom,

I am a fan of your articles, however I must say this is not one of your better pieces. I find it hard to believe that you really feel like Rudy gave a genuine "tip of that hat" to RP. He barely remembered to mention RP, as he mentioned him last and after a great pause after he mentioned the Huck's name. I also believe he was taking a shot a at RP with the whole "texting" thing (I quote texting because Rudy did not even use that term, he said "the thing where you push the buttons", as he clearly is not up to date on the new technologies). I think he said "Ron Paul won every debate!" in a real synical tone, meant to down play RP himself and his supporters as computer using, texting junkies.

But what ever, I guess we are each entitled to see it how we saw it. And this is not a crack at you in anyway, i actually respect your writing as non-biased (except may be by your own opinion, but that is acceptable in journalism). And at least you keep writing articles abotu RP, which is hinestly also why I like your writing, so I guess I am biased in my own way : )

[J. Cline]

I would say it is a bit early to pass final judgment on the Florida results. We won't know the final popular vote until all the absentee votes are factored in, and many of those will come in for Ron Paul from the substantial military voter community. I am one of those.

Also, it's proper to remember that no delegates were awarded based on the popular vote. Those will be apportioned when Florida GOP caucuses meet, and at that time, look for Ron Paul to make a stronger showing. Caucuses are won by those who show up, and if there's one thing that Paulites do best, it's show up! Even if he doesn't win outright, which I don't think anyone expects, he should pick some delegates to add to the 6 he already has.

As for Giuliani, he dug his grave. It wasn't cheering Paulistas who brought him down, but his own demons following him from NYC -- the Times, the firefighters, and everyone else he managed to alienate with his egomania and abuse of privilege. However, in fairness, there is a certain amount of Paulite schadenfreude in seeing the "President of 9/11" go down not with a bang, as it were, but with a whimper.

[Wupta]

I have always been nationalist when it came to the USA. Seeing this incredible manipulaiton of the elections by the MSM I came to the conclusion that are owned by the Republicans and Democrats. When this realization hit me I remembered the saying "to hide in plain sight". Off course they are owned by the parties. This ensures the control the minds of the people and ensures their message gets out as well as keeps out competitors. If I was the party leader I would have made that a stated party strategy. So now I am very mad at what they are perpetuating on this country. Everyday every chance I get I talk about Ron Paul and I a lot of people. When they quote to me nonsense that the pundits and the stooges of the party spew I feel disgusted and am more determined to challenge the status quo.

This is a revolution. Whether Ron Paul is elected or not he has started something which will not go away. I am not alone. The party and their stooges might win this battle but the war has only just begun. They either will loose or they will dramatically change.

[Iconoclast421]

Sure, Ron Paul hasnt been treated very fairly by the media, but that definately doesnt explain all of whats going on here. In a country where people care more about the super bowl than they do about their political system and their constitution.... what can you expect? In a country where people think more about american idol and desperate housewives than they think about 1% autism rates and fluoride in the water.... what can you expect? And in Florida... a state with a bunch of "warehoused" retirees sitting in front tv's watching Fox News telling them that mercury is good for them?... What can you expect? Does it matter that millions of retirees living on social security have seen the value of their fixed income decrease dramatically, through currency devaluation? Does it matter that Ron Paul has been speaking out against this THE WHOLE TIME? And that the media covered it up THE WHOLE TIME? People ought to know by now that this is how the mainstream media operates... NOT in the best interests of the public. Anyone with some programming experience knows what this phenomenon is called: GIGO - garbage in, garbage out

[JD]

It seems the only people that are poo-pooing the idea of media complicity in minimizing Dr. Paul are those in the media.

"...a mainstream media conspiracy to run those fraudulent polls, to under-report Paul's support and to minimize his chances."

"Chances are, he will be given less time to speak than the other three."

[Paul]

Girlie-annie didn't pay tribute to Ron Paul, that was yet another jab.

But look out people, we might still wind up with the Ghoul as VP...

[Web Smith]

If Rudy were to appear in a New York police drama, it would be as a criminal. The cops would say, "This guy is wrong", well before they had the goods on him. Even in defeat, this blatant criminal who grew rich on the bodies from 9/11 took a sarcastic parting shot at Paul as the winner of the debates according to the post debate results from the polls where you key in the numbers on the little things. As his campaign efforts show, Rudy didn't want to be President. He made a token effort because the investment bankers who own him asked him to. Rudy is a decadent glutton who wants to spend his time pampering Rudy instead of helping the country. Rudy is wrong.

Come to think of it, many things are wrong. What the investment bank owned media is doing is wrong. What they are doing with our money internationally is wrong. What they are doing in Iraq is wrong. What they are doing to our soldiers is wrong. What they are doing to our borders is wrong. What they are doing to our rights is wrong. What they are doing to our currency is wrong. What they are doing to our economy is wrong. What they have done to social security is wrong. That we are allowing them to do these things is wrong.

All these wrongs won't make a right. It's well past time that we changed things. Vote for Ron Paul.

[puerto]

I am tired of listening to all the negativity that is going on in this race. I happened to run across a youtube clip of this radio talk show host Mark Larson interviewing Mitt Romney and thought that it would be a good interview. I will admit that I was going to vote for Romney on tuesday of next week simply because we are both mormon. Apparently Mitt Romney had pushed this host to vote for Ron Paul because of the answers that were given by Mitt. I myself have changed my vote towards Ron Paul after looking at both platforms, it is clear that Ron Paul is a strict constitutionalist. Ron Paul is a lot like one of the old Presidents of the LDS church "Ezra Taft Benson" . When I think about it, everytime Mitt Romney laughs at Ron Paul, he is laughing at President Benson. Mitt Romney, I no longer support you, by your actions and disrespect for Ron Paul I no longer see you as an example to our church. I am now supporting Ron Paul.

[Mason]

I finally saw my first Ron Paul ad on the history channel here in Colorado last night. Even if the MSM ignores him, Dr. Paul's supporters will continue to spread his message. Email, call, write and talk to everyone you can about Dr. Paul. Ask them to simply spend 5-10 minutes on the Internet reading about Dr. Paul and his stances, voting record and plan for the country. Keep on posting all over the net and don't forget to Yahoo and Google "Ron Paul"... bring his name and news stories up on those lists of most viewed. We have to be our own media! Go Ron Paul go!

[Paul Furlong]

With the exception of Ron Paul, each candidate is tied, one way or an other, to the CFR, or Council on Foreign Relations (Google it) , meaning (paranoid as this sounds) the end of our sovereignty and putting all the Americas under one large central government. Each candidate knows this, some are actually on this committee.

I'm not sure about Giuliani, but I'll bet there was a giant sigh of relief when he realized he was out of the race. When he knew he wasn't going to be the President to throw our nation away....when he knew he wouldn't be hated through history as the one who sold us out. It says a lot about the man that he recognized Ron Paul as a proper winner.

It also says terrible things about both Democrats and Republicans who are still willing to do that to us. Ron Paul believes with all his heart in our constitution and our sovereignty.

Please don't give up no matter what the polls say, no matter who says it's lost. Let's vote with our conscience, not to be on a winners side, or pick the best of two evils; but to be right in our hearts.

[Tess]

Thank you Mr. Malcolm for another write up on Ron Paul. Glad to see the Murdochs/Fauxnews media's guy Rudy gone. He should have done it before Florida, but he invested the little he had left in hopes of a win, unfortunately, he failed to realize he is not well liked or supported in Florida, or anywhere else in these great United States.

My hat off to Romney for his win. I do not see McCain as a winner, he received liberal and neocon votes, along with the wanna be Republican Cuban rejects. We all know the truth, we are not dumb. I wonder if any of you realize that McCain was at the bottom of his class in Navy flight school, that he wanted to grant Amnesty to all illegals, and will not deport, that he played a major role in scamming some folks out of their savings by being one of the Keating Five, he also had the POW records sealed because he did not want his record revealed showing how he gave information to the enemy and lied to the other POWs while in captivity, and threw our country under the bus, his tax record is horrible, he would jump at the chance to increase our taxes and WOULD continue funding war adventures for greed of corporations and the media for the next 100 years, and those are just a few things McCain has done, just imagine him as President, I can't, can you? 100 more years in war? NO THANKS. I will take Ron Paul or Mitt Romney anyday. My vote and support is for RON PAUL, I will vote with Integrity and for our Constitution. I hope you print this Mr. Malcolm and L.A. Times, let the truth be told, I have done the research. If you question any of it, google it, and find out. Ron Paul for the Win!!! Let's get the U.S. stable again, and start by bringing home our troops, securing our borders, deporting illegals, cutting government spending along with lowering taxes, and returning our Liberties and Freedom to the United States citizens again. Wake up America, and start making our law makers follow the Constitution of the United States, and the Laws of our Land before it is too late, and we are taken over by other nations, corporations, and a government that will own you, no joke, please remember we are still WE THE PEOPLE, AND WE CAN DO THIS..

[John Reading]

The bullies, parasites, cowards, and armchair war-mongers are never going to give anyone a fair shake. Ron Paul and his supporters should really stop thinking that if they do well in this poll or that caucus, the MSM will finally start to play fair. On the contrary, the MSM will redouble its efforts at dismissing and dissing Ron Paul if he shows any signs of succeeding.

Americans are obese slobs who worship TV. They are not revolutionaries any longer. They will do what they are told as long as the junk food and entertainment keeps flowing. When the economy crashes, they will scream for more handouts and more war to give them jobs.

They don't care about Ron Paul. They care about Britney Spears.

[David]

Are you sure about the winner take all in Florida? I think you are incorrect. No national delegates have yet been won in Florida. Those delegates will only be awarded between February 6 and April 30 at delegate selection caucuses, and many of those delegates will be supporters of Dr. Paul.

Please check your information - thanks, David

[bread111]

Well, im one of the 3 percent here in Orlando, and the was a NEAR COMPLETE media blackout here. Proof? Go to orlandosentinel.com and search rom paul.
The media blackout was sickening in our area, and nationwide for that matter.
I went to the polls near me at 8 am, and there was no line...i seen about 4 people inside voting, and alot of ron paul signs. I was a bit shocked by the low turnout.
But, then again, we had early voting here too, but that was all on diebold machines. If you wanted the old style paper ballot where you fill in the broken arrow you had to wat until the Jan 29th final date to vote.
Seeing my home state of Florida voting for 100 more years in Iraq , and "bomb bomb bomb Iran" John McCain really is a slap in the face to the boys in our military who know this war was a mistake, as well as OUR children, who could face a future DRAFT to keep this military/industrial complex`s business earnings up.

[William]

The Louisiana Republican Party has provisionally declared Ron Paul the number two candidate in the state.

An estimated (based on numbers released from the LAGOP) 500 to 650 Ron Paul supporting voters who had registered by the Nov 30th deadline were forced to file provisional ballots because the Louisiana GOP was using a printed list of voters from November 1st.

The "Reagan Delegate Slate" aka the "Pro-Life/Pro-Family Delegate Slate" which was comprised of uncommitted delegates won out over all Republican candidates.

Given that there are 105 delegates and McCain did not win the majority and there are still another 20 or so up for grabs from provisional ballots, if Ron Paul could total 25 and the Pro-Life/Pro-Family delegate slate won over 55 then Ron Paul could have tied or even won the Caucus.

[Steve R]

Andrew, mockery doesn't become you and seems a tad out of step with the territory you've tried to stake out.

Your 'many busy-fingered followers' comment respecting Paul's debate wins stops just short of echoing the oft-repeated absurd suggestion that Paul supporters somehow rigged the voting even though the text messaging technology used checks and allows but one vote per cellphone. Surely all those millions in the campaign kitty weren't used to buy multiple cellphones to rig polls, since most people I know have but one. Or maybe it was rogue Democrats using the classical 'crossover' strategy to pump up the vote totals of opposing candidates deemed to be easier to defeat in the general election. Got to be some explanation. Just ask Fox.

When other candidates choose not to materially contest a primary -- especially a winner-take-all primary that at this stage Paul could not possibly win, everyone regards their poor showing as simply reflective of that choice. Why once again would the spin on identical events be different only for Ron Paul?

As each neo-clone drops off the perch in turn, the contest of ideas and the ongoing internal struggle for the soul of the GOP becomes more visible.

The Republicans are torn between historical Old Right roots (non-intervention abroad, civil liberty, small and constitutional government, balanced budgets, low taxes, and a very big stick quietly carried), and the New Right heresies(world policeman, shredding the Bill of Rights to buy temporary safety, cancerous growth of government programs, deficit spending enough to make LBJ and FDR blush, the inflation tax, 'signing statements' federal mandates and a very big stick swung indiscriminately).

Likely it will be a brokered convention for once, not a coronation. And recall that what was with some difficulty brushed aside at the 1976 GOP convention, became the Reagan steamroller in 1980.

In any event a torch is being passed to a generation of people which, like those in the ex-Soviet Bloc, was the product of two generations of doctrinaire 'political correctness' and attempted brainwashing. And like those fine folk, this new generation given an opportunity has dropped the propaganda line almost instinctively.

Celebrity endorsements don't count for much -- some of the entertainers in particular have all the critical thinking capacity of a bag of rusty bolts -- but something strange and wonderful is happening when both Arlo Guthrie and Barry Goldwater, Jr., find themselves enthuisiastically backing the same horse.

[clr]

The duration of this evening's debate is two hours. The rebroadcast is only ninety minutes. The last couple of times that the Republican debates have been rebroadcast, some of Ron Paul's commentary had been edited out (i.e., FOX, CNN). I am not being conspiratorial. But I did locate the missing segments, albeit short but substantial, on YouTube as well as RonPaul2008.com after reading concerns about his exclusion.

I am a little put off by the diction of this article. It too seems to hit at exclusion and the unlikeliness of Ron Paul's candidacy.

Although I do thank the LAT for reporting nevertheless.

(You're welcome and thanks for coming back. The full duration of tonight's debate is 90 minutes give or take a coujple, not two hours. So the rebroadcast is the full deal. You can also watch the debate live-streamed on this website and time it yourself.)

[Mike]

I think a good point that people need to look at is this whole nonsense of 'a wasted vote.' Isn't saying that in and of itself non-democratic? Each election SHOULD be like a race. One vote counting as one vote out of the total number of votes; the person with the highest number of votes coming out victorious. This way even all those who are 'exclusion-edited' will still have a voice in the end.

It's things like this that beg for the restructuring of the government and the USA.

[JeffnDallas]

I find the more amusing fact to be that the "declared winner" of the GOP (Rudy) has now fallen by the proverbial wayside while the "fringe candidate" (Ron) is still in the race!

Make no mistake, those who support Ron are not abandoning him as with the other candidates. Ron has said as long as we support him with volunteer work and money that he has no intention of dropping out. Well guess what? We're standing with him--even to a brokered convention!

Time and TRUTH are on our side!

[Seth M]

To say that McCain will receive all of Florida's 57 delegates is inaccurate. Just like the MSM's awarding of delegates in Nevada.

Ron Paul could still garner many of those seats. The MSM knows this, but doesn't want to report it.

[1antonio]

To the writer, you were one of this week kids who hung aroung the bullies just to be cool, and didn't stick up for anything you believed in. You are a follower with no morals, principles or integrity.

Bye the way I haven't decided who I will support.

[Ian]

I'm not sure what your insinuating, but one person can only vote once in the text polls. As for the main stream media "conspiracy" (as you call it) there is no conspiracy. The media ignoring Ron Paul is a statement of fact and it's out in the open for all to see.

If you really want to make waves, why don't you gather all these facts and write about how the media skews the public perception.

I will point you in the right direction...

Did you know there are media monitoring services tracking how many times the candidates names are mentioned? Do you know that the results of their survey? Do you know what comes first, the uptick in reporting numbers or the uptick in polling numbers?

[Connie]

I got to vote for Dr. Paul in a telephone poll today! I live in Oklahoma.

[Dino]

Anybody seen McCanes locked up war documents? The commies didn't do favors at the Hanoi Hilton without a payback. What did he sell to them?

I ask this not to degrade his service to his country,but as a security reason.

The highest office of the land is about to be given to someone who may be brain washed as a P.O.W.

Shouldn't Americans see his sealed records before his CFR buddys put him into the highest office?

[ET]

The proof that the non-internet media is completely biased against Paul (as well as anyone they believe couldn't win) is how this column from the LA times does not in any way appear in the paper edition of the paper.

However, as an RP supporter, and an LA times paper subscriber (but I'm thinking of stopping that), I would point out that the couple page spread in the last few days have completely ignored Paul.

As to Rudy, I can’t really tell from the blog what Rudy really said. Maybe he's just trying to get the RP supporters to stop following him. The only thing I feel for certain about Rudy is that he regrets his little 9/11 match with Ron. That was likely when his downfall began. And he thought he was so clever to wave the 9/11 flag.

[Barney]

RP received 0% MSM coverage according to journalism.org Jan 1 - Jan 27

Media Exposure by Candidate
Main Newsmaker

Barack Obama (D) 27.9%
Hillary Clinton (D) 22%
Bill Clinton 13.2 %
John McCain (R) 7.1 %
Rudy Giuliani (R) 7.1 %
Mitt Romney (R) 4.9 %
John Edwards (D) 3.9 %
Mike Huckabee (R) 1.2 %
Fred Thompson (R) 3.7 %
Dennis Kucinich (D) 2.4 %
Ron Paul (R) 0 %
Bill Richardson (D) .2%

Source: http://www.journalism.org/node/9512

[Timothy Bledsoe]

I hope many people read this. Most people are good people and want the same basic things. The left wing and the right wing have different ideas about accomplishing things. It is far past time, and probably too late, for the American people to understand that there is no difference between the major parties. In a gradual process, the left works to destroy the country just as the right works to destroy the country. The American people are fooled into discussing how the pictures on the Titanic should be arranged. Politicians take advantage of this for their own selfish interests. Ron Paul is telling you that we have hit an iceberg.

Let's suppose the iceberg wasn't so bad. Let's suppose how those pictures are arranged really are the most important things to discuss. The irony is, is that Ron Paul is the only candidate that truly supports, and has the record to prove it, almost all of the right's issues. In addition, even though Dr. Paul often speaks of a futuristic and ideal world, Ron Paul is the only candidate whose policies can save the social programs that the left wants.

People have failed to understand that international bankers are consolidating the wealth (stealing out of everyone's pocket books) and eliminating the middle class. People are too interested in reality television, football and golf. People are helping to destroy the country because of their reckless and uninformed, although good intentioned, opinions.

People like to laugh and snicker. I hope they enjoy thier money losing its value, their taxes rising, their pension funds being taken, their television-induced comatose state, and fluoride lowering their IQ between 10 and 20 points. Their televisions won't save them from what is coming. Whether it will be 10 months, or 10 years from now, things are going to get very bad.

Thanks so much you stupid idiots for playing your part in creating this mess. Thanks so much for getting angry at my comments because you are still too stupid to wake up an make your ancestors proud. Remember that me, and others like me, HATE YOUR LACK OF ACTION right down to the bones for the part you have played in all of this. The elite know what they are and what they believe. You people though are all together different.

God help us all.

[Cristina McDonald]

please publish more articles about Ron Paul! he's our only chance to make changes in this country!

[TheWhatNow?]

We don't expect anyone like you to televise or report on the revolution, this would be counterproductive to your bosses' ambitions, which have more to do with ratings and sales than objectivity. Of course, you're ready to scream from the top of a mountain when the doctor gets 3%, then address us in a condescending article as "Ron Paul folks", in which the ex-mayor praises our "guy". You could have easily entitled your article "Rudy Giuliani pays tribute to Ron Paul," but that is not degrading enough, is it? In any case, I'm not mad at you, keep making your money before your medium completely rots away. The US is a country by and for the people, and it has been those people conscious of this country's values and principles, who have watched people like you corrupt and subvert said values and principles, that will have the last say. You may or may not be in the dirt by then, but your newspaper surely will. In the meantime, keep making your money, gangster.

Oh shoot, you were press secretary to Laura Bush, pffffff!
Smell ya later.

[Shelly]

Ron Paul didn't suggest Americans had caused 9/11. He suggested that our history of interfering in middle east politics, including financing the Taliban and Saddam Hussein, removing the Shah from power, etc. had contributed to a general feeling of hatred toward our country. It is our government's foreign policy that is to blame. He believes that the amount of money we spend conducting CIA operations and illegal wars would be better spent taking care of our obligations here at home.

I hear a lot about "American interests abroad," but don't hear too much about American interests here at home. I bet if you didn't give so much money to the IRS, you would be able to make better health care choices for yourself. If you could give more money to your California State government instead of the Federal government, the schools, infrastructure and emergency services would all be better funded. Ron Paul makes a lot of sense.

[John]

Why not use your position as a sponsor of this debate to demand journalistic integrity and an equal time for all candidates?

Stand up.

[Andrew76]

Well, at least Giuliani has a faint bit of class. I for one am overjoyed that the "mayor of 9/11," is being forced to go home, and why shouldn't he? Ron Paul has beaten him handily, several times already. Ron Paul has the most 1st place wins from Rep. straw polls of ANY repub. candidate, the most money donated by active military personell, and has set TWO recent fundraising records (beating out any U.S. candidate EVER, dem. or rep.), AND, by Giuliani's own admission, Ron Paul won all of the debates. So, heheh,... it's a bit of a hard pill to swallow when someone puts the phrase -media blackout conspiracy- in quotes when you look at how purposely little time and attention he is given by the MSM as compared to other candidates, with less money, less support and less clout. What is the alternative? "Oops, we forgot?" Puuhleeeze.

[Kelly O]

Andrew,
Giuliani was not "the man who successfully turned life in New York City around." As a New Yorker who lived in the city on 9/11, I know that is not true. New Yorkers turned life in New York City around. The rescue workers, the firemen, the policemen, the volunteers and the whole New York City community turned life around. Rudy just said pretty words to make everyone feel better.

Ron Paul for president. Never never never give up!

[JDC]

"As one result of that debate incident, which involved Giuliani taking offense at Paul's suggestion that Americans were at least partly responsible for 9/11 by their occupation"

Here we go again. Doctor Paul NEVER said that Americans were at least partly responsible for 9/11. The Doctor said It was blowback to the American interventionist foreign policy that was responsible for 9/1.

And you forget to m