Ron Paul wins the CPAC Straw Poll. Either this is a statement rejecting the establishment (which is a good thing) or something was in the punch like, as some tweeps have noted, crack or weed.

I understand some of you like his economic position, but really, this is the man who said on television that the 9/11 hijackers were individuals not affiliated with anyone. That’s when the perpetual eye-roll sets in for me when I hear his name.

I now predict I will quickly find out if any Paulians are TAMs. Let it roll!

Ron Paul Wins Presidential Straw Poll at CPAC

Ron Paul has ended Mitt Romney’s three-year run as conservatives’ favorite for president, taking 31 percent of the vote in the Conservative Political Action Conference’s annual straw poll.

Paul, a Republican congressman from Texas known for his libertarian views, ran for president in 2008 but was never a serious contender for the GOP nomination.

Romney, former Massachusetts governor and a 2008 GOP candidate, has won the last three presidential straw polls at the annual conference.

The straw poll is not binding — and not necessarily a good forecaster, given that in 2008, John McCain went on to take the party’s nomination over Romney.

Or, of course, maybe that something-in-the-punch actually confused the attendees and they thought they were voting for Pat Paulsen. (Credit to Jupaczyn for being geeky enough to remember 😉

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44 Comments | Leave a comment
  1. BeforeGoreKneel says:

    CPAC fun facts: 54% of attendees are 25 or younger. 23% (or so) voted in the straw poll.

    Does this feel like those early online polls that PaulBots were well known to have skewed?

    Good sign: the absent Palin comes in as third. In my estimation all she needs to do is to continue as she has outlined for us so far. In two years, her portfolio will be both wide and, importantly, adopted by her competitors. Then the question will be, do you want the real thing or this or another imitation?

    Paul is riding Obama’s anti-bank wave, but his idiosyncratic views are hardly anyone’s mainstream, most surely not a real conservative’s.

    • vitadMD says:

      I believe I heard that 60% of attendees were aged 17-25 and that there were 10,000 at cpac. Nevertheless, I don’t think the Ron Paul win was necessarily due to a vote FOR the man as much as a vote AGAINST everybody else, or maybe specifically against Romney. It may also reflect that people really do want radical change not just from where we are now, but from the status quo before.

      I’m glad Palin was third on the list, but disappointed about the low percentage… Not surprised about it though, since there’s much people don’t know about her yet. She’s got a lot of work to do but I believe, as you seem to, that she’s willing and able to run this marathon wisely.

      As for Romney… I think he has an authenticity problem. Do you think he brought his own cheering crowd?

  2. Alain41 says:

    I was at CPAC this Saturday morning (I’m not a voter in the poll). Heard Jonah Goldberg, Amity Shlaes, John Bolton, and Ann Coulter plus a few more. Ann is an unafraid rock star warrior and John Bolton is the best Foreign Policy person in America. There is a fairly strong libertarian section at the conference and Ron Paul is the most recognizable libertarian. I do think the vote was significantly impacted by a dislike for the same-o same-o Like in my case, I didn’t stay for Newt G. because there is nothing that he can say that will interest me.

    Amity Shlaes was very interesting. Like Tammy, she spoke about; we are the real Liberals and we need to take that word back.

    Finally, there is an Irish restaurant/bar near the hotel/metro stop where you can get good Kilkenny irish beer on tap.

    • americanegoist says:

      I love Amity Shlaes! Im glad you did not stay for Newt, Alain, I watched him on CSPAN, he opened with Survivors “Eye of the Tiger”, as if when he got on stage he would rip his shirt off like Hulk Hogan, LMAO. The word “bipartisanship” was tossed around alot as if in these days it could possibly be a virtue.. I think his handlers are preping him for 2012, and if theres anyone worse than MittCare, hes it. Im a beer fan myself, is Kilkenny available in stores? I might need to stock up if either T-Paw Declaw, Mitt-ticulous hair, or Eye of the Newt wins the primary.

      Hope you had fun!

  3. LJZumpano says:

    At this point I have heard two possible reasons, 1st ACORN was involved, or 2 demonsheep ate the votes cast for others. Personally either one of those reasons makes as much sense to me as Paul winning for any real reason.

    • Tammy says:

      LOL! I knew the DemonSheep were somewhere!

    • larrygeary says:

      The DemonSheep is actually a wolf, and Sarah knows all about predator control. Beware helicopters.

      All those 17-25 year olds, and didn’t Ron Paul say there would have to be a draft if we don’t change our interventionist foreign policy? Maybe that’s why he won.

  4. Misha S. says:

    Being the most libertarian of the candidates, I believe Paul’s win was probably a rejection of Ryan Sorba. The Paulers’ views on foreign policy are naive, bordering on suicidal, but they rightly reject the Old Testament medievalism that unfortunately characterizes a rather large portion of the political right. For that they should be given credit. So, I am encouraged by Paul’s win, even though I would have personally voted for Sarah Palin.

  5. JLThorpe says:

    Ron Paul always seems to remind me of some old 60s TV character, but I can’t put my finger on whom. The closest one I can think of is the Martian from “My Favorite Martian”.

  6. Palin2012 says:

    Students seeking out booths to vote for their “hero” is not an effective straw poll. If Ron Paul had his way we would close down all of our military bases in Europe and let the Muslim jihadists take over – “doesn’t matter to Americans” – bullcrap! His extreme pacifism in the name of saving American dollars trumps anything else “good” that this man has to say. He frightens me, I refuse to wear a burka, would prefer death.

    I must say I am happy and impressed that Sarah Palin came in 3rd, right behind Mittens (who will have no more success than he had in the last election). This is an excellent sign – run Sarah run!

  7. franknitti says:

    It’s pretty obvious to me that RuPaul opened up his wallet and chartered a few buses filled with zombies in order to spam the CPAC straw poll. The results of the straw poll, along with Ryan Sorba’s hateful rant, make the entire CPAC conference nothing but a joke. Shame on you, CPAC, for inviting a lake loon like Sorba. Shame on you, CPAC attendees, for casting your ballots for another lake loon like RuPaul. Maybe you’ll do better next year.

    • SmallgGay says:

      Ha! I kept thinking of his scene in Bruno- imagine that little confused man giving the SOTU? How can he run for President when he’s so busy hosting “Drag Race”?

  8. vitadMD says:

    Tammy, did you notice they played your music for Glenn Beck?…

  9. Maynard says:

    Ron Paul is like your loopy old uncle…and he’s often an embarrassment, but when the parade rolls by and everyone cheers, he’s the only one unafraid to shout out that the Emperor has no clothes. I don’t want Paul as president, but I want someone to force the likely candidates to address the hard economic questions that they’re masters at evading. I appreciated Ross Perot for doing something like that for the election of 1992; we desperately need more of that medicine. Will anyone other than Ron Paul pick up that particular torch? Until and unless someone does, I definitely want Ron Paul, even with his baggage, to be part of the process.

    • Misha S. says:

      I feel pretty much the same way.

      Also, the conservative coalition of the future is going to have to look a lot more libertarian in order to survive. The TheoCons might not want to admit that now, but their denial can’t change demographics. The right’s obsession with homosexuality and other forms of “sexual deviance” has almost no legs with the millennial generation, and its appeal is actually fairly limited among the minuscule percentage of that generation who do espouse right-of-center political views. If, in the future, the conservative coalition looks like Ryan Sorba because all the libertarian elements have been pushed out, then just go ahead and put it in its funeral casket now, ’cause it ain’t gonna make it. When the over-fifties and over-sixties start dying en masse there won’t actually be much left of the political right if the TheoCons are the ones who get to set the agenda. My hope is that over time, as young people are drawn to the right by libertarian ideas, they can gradually abandon their foreign policy naivete while still retaining their commitment to individual liberty. Right now Ron Paul is the only person in the GOP who seems to have any appeal to the young though, so I’m not ready to jettison him just yet.

    • franknitti says:

      One problem, Maynard. RuPaul isn’t wearing any clothes himself so how can he be taken seriously by anyone except the lake loons and zombies who follow him? The man is a fool and a hypocrite. How can you trust a man who rails against wasteful spending yet doesn’t hesitate to take millions in pork money for his home district? How can you trust a man who’s dangerously stupid on foreign policy? He’s just as much a part of the problem as anyone. The best thing for RuPaul to do is take his fat Congressional pension and go away.

    • norm1111 says:

      Ha! Good one Maynard! I have a “loopy old uncle”, who I adore, but is a radical Libertarian and was one long before Ron Paul was ever on the scene. He sends me all these “Lew Rockwell” links…which I occasionally read and often laugh at. Short is; he is a great old Uncle Chris who is seriously delusional when it comes to Ron Paul and some of the more nutty Libertarian ideas; I believe some of their ideas are really good, however….

      By the way, my loopy Uncle Chris was a teenaged partisan fighter in WWII Norway…he lived in the woods with his buddies and pulled off all sorts of trouble for the German occupation in Norway…..and after coming to the U.S., he promptly joined the U.S. Airforce and spent about 4 years in service until a plane crash caused him to leave the Airforce before he wanted to…mid-1950s.

  10. americanegoist says:

    I have to say I concur with most here, Pauls a nut that never fell off the tree, hes in his 5th or 6th growing season now, and there he is, petrified, dangling in the wind. I like Ann Coulters Q&A response to the “Ron Paul Question”, saying that she basically agreed with everything Ron Paul was for, unless the topic is national defense. But I would add one domestic policy disagreement with the Pauler crowd. He is too heavy on the States Rights issue. Why would I allow my State to violate my individual rights? If its “unconstitutional ” than the federal government cannot violate my rights, nor the State government, nor the watershed councel, or the township board. Due respect to federalism, localizing tyranny is not proper defense of individual liberty.
    On the CPAC Straw Poll, I think its a statement against the establishment, early polls like this tend to be viewed by those being polled as a good opportunity to “make a statement”. What fresh hell would it be if Paul was in the White House drafting foreign policy?
    I used to be a Libertarian some years ago, after the Republican Revolution devolved into a Sunday Punch Bowl Golf Club. In terms of libertarians, Beck has it together more, and has a nice appeal to newcomers of the Paulian & Gen X thru Y types. But, when Tammy does the keynote someday at CPAC, the right will have “arrived”.

  11. VinceP1974 says:

    Someone mentioned ACORN.

    This speaker (Anita MonCrief) at CPAC is a must listen to in regards to what ACORN is doing now and what its evolution is.

    http://www.c-spanarchives.org/program/292173-101#

    Skip to the 190 minute mark

    She also has outstanding articles at RedState that gives an inside look at ACORN and Organizing for America… she also exposes that the so-called whistleblowers ACORN-8 that Beck featured last year are not who they seem to be

    http://www.redstate.com/anitamoncrief/

  12. lord-ruler says:

    Ron Paul stinks. He has no chance of getting elected.

  13. CO2aintpoison says:

    I say, can this guy beat the current guy Mikulski for the MD Senate seat? http://www.rutledgeforussenate.com/

    From a review of his site, he stands for all things good about this country. Military, 2nd amendment, free speech, less gov’ment, against illegal immigration, against foreign dependency on energy (for drilling HERE), cut taxes, etc.

    How’s that ankle coming along Bob, Barb?

  14. CO2aintpoison says:

    Maybe part of the “refreshments” they were serving at CPAC during Ron’s speech were those, um, special brownies with a side of bong water – hence his “landslide” win. Is that too much?

    It’s a straw poll at CPAC for goodness sake; I think we all understand the overall electorate does not take this guy seriously. As Ann Coulter said in response to a questioner yesterday – if Ron is for it, and if it doesn’t have anything to do with foreign policy or the military, then so be it (I’m paraphrasing).

  15. ladykrystyna says:

    When I first heard about Ron Paul, I was interested b/c of he’s apparent fiscal conservatism. But then I heard what he said about 9/11 and foreign policy and decided – not so much. Libertarian foreign policy is dangerous IMHO. Too 18th century. We need a party that encompasses the fiscal conservatism AND the committment to national security issues. Ron Paul is definitely NOT that person.

    As for that MUSE song – I first heard it on Glenn Beck and added it to my “SONGS OF THE REVOLUTION” playlist, along with “We’re Not Gonna Take It” and “Invincible”.

    They also use that MUSE song on advertisements for the show “V”. I think the lead singer is a 9/11 Truther, but he’s a Brit; and it’s still a great song!

    • franknitti says:

      Libertarian (or ostrich as I like to call it) foreign policy was what the United States practiced between World War I and World War II. Thanks to our libertarian foreign policy, we saw the rise of dictators like Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, and the Japanese militarists. It took the 9/11 of its day (Pearl Harbor) to shake the United States to its senses about a libertarian foreign policy.

  16. I completely support much of what Ron Paul discusses regarding domestic policy…but, like many of above…I just cannot swallow his foreign policy. And some of his supporters really have this “cultish” kind of feel that really is kind of freaky. I mean…I love Ann Coulter and Mark Levin but I don’t agree with them on every single solitary thing! Of course…my love for Tammy needs no further clarification! 😉

  17. flaggman says:

    50% of Ron Paul is great. The other 50% makes us all look stupid. Since we can’t split him down the middle, then 100% of Ron Paul makes us look stupid.

  18. Mariachi says:

    Last 4/15 at the NYC Tea Party, I was honestly expecting a sparse turnout. In fact, it was packed to the gills all the way down Broadway by the City Hall area, and of course the media did NOT report it. Or barely did. I can attest to the fact that it was VERY well-attended. The most vocal Tea Party supporters were Ron Paul supporters, many of whom are part of the the NYC Libertarian meetup groups. I was grateful that they were so passionate, as they were VERY vocally anti-Obama, and are generally in college/younger & have that kind of organization. They appeal to younger people and kind of had a hippie vibe. Personally I loved it. 🙂 IMHO, Paul is NOT a pragmatic presidential choice & would not garner votes from the larger base, beyond his acolytes. The left knows this. They probably know that he could very well split the anti-Obama vote..

    My concern is that the left will capitalize on the Ron Paul contingent (passionate & devoted) and other disenchanted-by-Obama urbanites (inherently liberal) to make it like a party-splitting thing in 2012. All these Paulites need is a glimmer of hope and they’ll be firing on all cylinders to get him to run on a different ticket. Many of these acolytes are not ones to “take one for the team” and forfeit a chance to vote for their guy, even if they know he wouldn’t win. This is something we need to watch. IMHO.

  19. 1elder1 says:

    There were 10,000 attendees at CPAC. RON PAUL won because he got a third of the 2ooo people who bothered to vote in the straw poll.
    One of the main features of CPAC is the Straw Poll.
    Why on earth would you go there and not vote in the Straw Poll?
    Weird!

    Pretty messed up Conference and the bloggers who complained about the First National Tea Party Convention should hang their heads in shame.
    Phony.

    Palin in 2012
    ###

    • cmoore324 says:

      Elder–I totally agree. The “biggies” in the Tea Party movement are affiliated with Dick Army and Freedomworks–I have no problem with that, but when they denigrate a small tea party organizer for trying to have a convention to further the cause as an “elitist” then go to CPAC to rub elbows with the DC elite smacks of hypocrisy and a major power grab. There is a lot of political maneuvering (surprise) going on in the Tea Party groups. Participating in DC with the people in office who are part of the problem and not going to Nashville to be with the folks who want them out? Disingenuous.

  20. RobbieK says:

    Pass me the roach clip dude, I need to vote for Ron Paul here. Yikes! Most of his followers are the old hippies who migrated over to the right but didn’t leave their paraphernalia behind. And Bob Barr got booed because he called Water-boarding “torture”, but not surprising coming from a partner of the ACLU who worked against the Patriot Act.

  21. Joel267 says:

    Not a Paulian..

  22. Joel267 says:

    Oh, I like the little square design instead of the plain square that holds a poster’s pic. Nice touch.

  23. frank002 says:

    This moron recently said that our forces in Iraq are OCCUPIERS. Vote for him at your own risk.

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