Breaking: Ron Paul won’t run for Congress in 2012
posted at 12:41 pm on July 12, 2011 by Ed Morrissey
The Daily Caller first noticed this message on Rep. Ron Paul’s Facebook page. Instead of going for his 19th term in Congress while running for President, Paul will only focus on winning the Republican presidential nomination:
Big news! I have decided not to seek re-election for my House seat in 2012 and will focus all of my energy winning the Presidency. My hometown newspaper The Facts will be running the exclusive story very shortly.
Over at the hometown newspaper, Paul goes into a little more detail:
After serving almost 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Ron Paul told The Facts this morning he will not be seeking another term for the District 14 seat.
Paul, 75, will instead focus on his quest for the presidency in 2012.
“I felt it was better that I concentrate on one election,” Paul said. “It’s about that time when I should change tactics.”
His announcement will give enough time for anyone with aspirations for his seat to think about running, he said. Paul didn’t want to wait for filing in the 2012 primary to let people know he wasn’t seeking reelection.
“I didn’t want to hold off until in December,” he said. “I thought it shouldn’t be any later than now.”
The Facts needs to do The Math [see update -- they're correct]. Paul first won election to Congress in a 1976 special election, lost later that year, and then won again in 1978. He’s served parts of 18 terms in the House, which adds up in this case to a little over 34 years when his current term expires.
Paul either really wants to retire or really thinks that he’s on the cusp of a major upset in the GOP primary. I’ll assume that he has a somewhat realistic view of his prospects in this primary, where he might wind up as the runner-up among Texans if Rick Perry jumps into the race. He’ll be 76 years old next month, and with his son in the Senate, Paul may feel comfortable with retirement after one last national campaign that puts his somewhat erratic libertarianism on the GOP presidential agenda for a second straight cycle. If he’s not taking a realistic view of his chances, then perhaps he believes that the only thing that held him back from besting John McCain, Mitt Romney, and Mike Huckabee in any 2008 primary was his simultaneous campaign for re-election. If so, then he really needs this retirement.
Of course, Paul could change his mind before the end of the year, but after this kind of announcement, it would be hard to sell even to the adoring voters in his district. Looks like the end of the road for the man best known for contrarian votes on meaningless resolutions and for railing against government spending while garnering pork for his constituents.
Update: Time for me to do The Math. The newspaper has it right; Paul retired from the House in 1984 to run for President, and didn’t return until 1997.
Blowback
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he’s timing this just right… probably paying pennies on the dollar for a posh ocean front villa at some undisclosed location somewhere else in the world… good play dr. paul
gatorboy on July 12, 2011 at 12:43 PM
Again, thank goodness.
The Post-RuPaul era in American government can’t come soon enough for my taste.
KingGold on July 12, 2011 at 12:43 PM
Stuffing straw poll ballot boxes is hard.
Knucklehead on July 12, 2011 at 12:44 PM
Captain EarMark fades away.
portlandon on July 12, 2011 at 12:44 PM
THE NEW WORLD ORDER HAS WON!!!111
MadisonConservative on July 12, 2011 at 12:44 PM
What will we ever do?
Big Orange on July 12, 2011 at 12:44 PM
works for me
cmsinaz on July 12, 2011 at 12:45 PM
I hope he is retiring because he wants too and NOT because he thinks he can win the GOP primary..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 12:46 PM
Thank you.
antisocial on July 12, 2011 at 12:47 PM
Right, those darned neocons are blackmailing Dr. Paul.
The Fed?
Bilderbergers?
SteveMG on July 12, 2011 at 12:47 PM
Yes it does..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 12:47 PM
Your condescension is highly unbecoming, Ed.
If you think there is some internal contradiction between railing against government spending and securing pork you really don’t understand all that much, do you?
Aquateen Hungerforce on July 12, 2011 at 12:49 PM
What Post-RuPaul area, you whineoceros? His practical influence has been all but zip; he’s a lone voice in the wilderness.
I think this is a good move on his part. He’s not getting any younger and 2012 is America’s last chance anyway…might as well shoot the works.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 12:49 PM
Wooooooooooohoooooooooooooooo.
nickj116 on July 12, 2011 at 12:52 PM
I certainly understand hypocrisy. My Congressman, John Kline, opposes earmarks and refuses to take them — a position that puts him at some political risk, unlike Paul. Maybe if all the Republicans who claim to oppose waste, earmarks, and increased spending followed his example, we’d actually put an end to those practices.
Ed Morrissey on July 12, 2011 at 12:52 PM
Hah. Nailed it.
LastRick on July 12, 2011 at 12:53 PM
I don’t think that’s a fair assessment. I think Ron Paul is best know for his opposition to the Federal Reserve and fiat money, and with good reason – fiat currency is a key factor that has allowed our nation to be brought to the brink of fiscal collapse. Did you know that 97% of today’s Federal debt has been accumulated since August 1971? That’s when Nixon ended the Bretton Woods era with the terminal delinking of all fiat currencies from any and all hard assets. Suddenly, trillion dollar deficits became possible, and the rest is history.
Also, while Rep. Paul does request earmarks, he always votes against the spending bills. If the main problem with earmarks is that they are usually quid pro quos that garner votes for bad spending bills, and Paul always votes ‘no’ anyway, I fail to see the problem. In his case, all it does is make the spending more transparent so that it’s clearly itemized, rather than disbursed in an opaque fashion by bureaucrats after the money has been appropriated.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 12:53 PM
And the Paulnuts claiming that this is all caused by the Illuminati and the Buid-a-Bear group in a conspiracy to shut up the one true patriot in 5…4…3…2…
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 12:53 PM
“19th term in Congress”
“24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives”
?
burt on July 12, 2011 at 12:54 PM
I’m…kind of going to miss him. I have a bit of a soft spot for crazy conspiratorial grandpa types, I guess. ;)
Bee on July 12, 2011 at 12:55 PM
Writing. Wall.
BKeyser on July 12, 2011 at 12:55 PM
He’s gonna need a bigger blimp this time around…
JetBoy on July 12, 2011 at 12:55 PM
I think Ed is going the way of the establishment. One of the reason I like Ron Paul is because almost everyone else doesn’t.
It’s like this. Government has been growing since about 1911, right? Both parties are responsible for growing government. Ron Paul is disliked by both parties. So, Ron Paul might be the only person in Congress who really wants to ACTUALLY FRACKING REDUCE THE SIZE OF OUR GOVERNMENT.
Maybe … because you never really know what a person might do.
j_galt on July 12, 2011 at 12:55 PM
Get ready to count with negative numbers, chump.
The reason is obvious: Paul’s an old man and America is on the brink.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 12:56 PM
The post-RuPaul era in which a Republican doesn’t cast votes against wildfire victims, oppressed people, and our military allies.
The post-RuPaul era when we stop hearing bluster about government largesse when a certain district in Texas gets packed with enough pork to make the ghost of John Murtha blush.
KingGold on July 12, 2011 at 12:57 PM
LOL!..With plenty of tin foil!..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 12:57 PM
The other option is he believes he could still run as an independent in the fall of 2012 and win his seat (which, depending on how the Congressional GOP leadership does over the next several months, and who the party does nominate for president assuming it’s not Paul, court be possible).
jon1979 on July 12, 2011 at 12:58 PM
And he manages to get these earmarks included in legislation, despite the fact that he sits on no relevant committee, and the people on those relevant committees know… know, mind you, to a moral certainty… that there is nothing they can do to secure Dr. Paul’s vote in support of that legislation.
Man, that’s not politics… that’s magic.
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 12:59 PM
OT: Obama Executive Orders Impose New Gun Rules (The blaze)
AKA: Registration.
NMRN123 on July 12, 2011 at 1:00 PM
Gee, does this mean all the Pauly nuts are going to be heading to the cliff edges or something?
pilamaye on July 12, 2011 at 1:00 PM
OT:..Rush is fixing to interview Rubio..:)
PS..This should be good..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:00 PM
It’s a conspiracy hatched by teh
jooooooooosneocons as part of their scheme to build a transborder highway from Mexico to their secret New World Order capital hidden in Canada using unmelted steel from the World Trade Center!Ron! Paul!! 2012!!!!eleventy!
OhioCoastie on July 12, 2011 at 1:00 PM
What tosh. Earmarks make up around 1% of the Federal budget, and usually don’t even increase total spending; rather, they specify a specific item a portion of funds that would be appropriated anyway should be spent.
The main bad effect of earmarking is that they serve as bribes or quid pro quos to convince Congressmen to vote for bad spending bills. If all the Republicans who claim to oppose increased spending actually refused to vote for an unbalanced budget, as Ron Paul has for his entire Congressional career, then we would actually put an end to those practices.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:01 PM
Ouch!!!
Vince on July 12, 2011 at 1:01 PM
Okay, you Ron Paul worshippers, who carried out the attacks of 9/11? Who orchistrated it?
BTW, Ron Paul shoudl be asked this at every debate to out him at the closet truther that he is.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:02 PM
Only ones involved in any conspiracy here are mortal man and Father Time.
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 1:02 PM
My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over
Kini on July 12, 2011 at 1:03 PM
Try asking that again…and have your mommy spellcheck before you post this time.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:03 PM
Obama’s resigned?
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:04 PM
So, I don’t think what you are describing is hypocrisy. You understand that Paul is working in an environment that will not reduce increases in spending, much less actual spending. As your own Congressman shows, the act of one person does not change this fact. I’d have to take a look, but my guess is that Paul isn’t earmarking funds for ant genetics studies or getting monkeys high on cocaine to find out how cocaine affects simian brains. If the money is going to be spent, I’d rather someone like Paul be in charge of where it goes than just about any other member of Congress.
Aquateen Hungerforce on July 12, 2011 at 1:04 PM
WOOHOO!
Now if he would just keep that promise! /sarc
DannoJyd on July 12, 2011 at 1:05 PM
I blame planet Nibiru (or Planet X).
SouthernGent on July 12, 2011 at 1:05 PM
A bunch of Arab fanatics, and Khalid-Sheik Mohammed, respectively.
Your point (besides the one you hide under your hat)?
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 1:05 PM
This is probably exactly what’s going on.
Honestly? I like Ron Paul. I don’t agree with him entirely on foreign policy and I think he’s a little too eager to legalize hard drugs but he’s done a pretty impressive job of attracting young people to the cause of individual liberty and limited government. I think his contribution to conservatism has been a net positive.
Caiwyn on July 12, 2011 at 1:06 PM
Any time Ron Paul is shown to have low pol numbers or isn’t worshipped by a news organization the Paulnuts scream “CONSPIRACY!!!!!”
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:06 PM
19 Arab Muslim hijackers affiliated with al-Qaeda. Duh.
Ron Paul isn’t a Truther, that’s just a smear. Here, have a link: http://seoblackhat.com/2007/07/27/ron-paul-not-truther-interview/
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:06 PM
Crazy Uncle Ron. Buenos noches.
Jaibones on July 12, 2011 at 1:06 PM
Only the ones in your head, friend.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:06 PM
Which means that the rules apply to everyone but America’s Greatest Patriot.
KingGold on July 12, 2011 at 1:08 PM
I don’t have a problem with reducing the size of the Federal Govt…just have a problem where Ron Paul wants the reductions.
JetBoy on July 12, 2011 at 1:08 PM
Just answer the question.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:09 PM
You mean everywhere?
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:09 PM
I worship no man (Other than Fred!, who is more God than Man anyways).
Al-Qaeda orchestrated 9/11 and it was carried out by 19 p!ssed off Muslims, mostly from Saudi Arabia.
Now my turn for a question. What does your finger smell like?
Aquateen Hungerforce on July 12, 2011 at 1:09 PM
LOL!..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:09 PM
And to answer your pathetic “gotcha” question, Muslim extremists in general and Bin Laden in particular.
I have no problem with the core of the official story, unlike some RP supporters, my beef is that a lot of the rest doesn’t pass the smell test. But I’ll probably have to wait until I get to heaven to hear the whole story; the 9/11 Commission was a JOKE and conservatives are (for some reason) rabidly backing the gov’t.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:10 PM
My point being is that the vast majority of Paul Nuts out there are truthers.
Anyways, let me ask you this. Do you tink the government was involved in any way possible? If not, then will you tell your fellow Ron Paul worshippers to STFU because they make you guys look even worse.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:10 PM
I did. So did Ron Paul, in the link I posted above. Asked if he believes “that 9/11 was orchestrated by the government”, he answers “Absolutely Not!”.
It doesn’t get clearer than that. I’m so tired of seeing the lie that Paul is a Truther stated as fact over and over.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:11 PM
Well, I’m pretty sure he wants them everywhere. Any ones in particular you got a problem with?
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 1:11 PM
I don’t exactly follow. Of all the things Paul critics have against the man, I’ve never heard the charge that he is corrupt. Is that what you were implying?
Aquateen Hungerforce on July 12, 2011 at 1:12 PM
Do you mean besides multiple administrations dropping the ball? With the intel we had AQ couldn’t have done much more except put up a neon sign…
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:12 PM
If he’s really not a truther then he’d tell his truther fans to STFU as well as his buddy Alex Jones. Alex Jones brings up 9/11 and the crazy conspiracies all the time and Ron Paul just keeps his mouth shut.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:12 PM
Aquateen, Paul’s earmarks are massive and include everything short of ant genetics- as long as it’s in his district.
It’s Paul’s hypocrisy on this and his outlandish views of everything outside the United States that makes him nothing more than a caricature of a political leader.
michaelo on July 12, 2011 at 1:12 PM
So then you’re truther-lite.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:14 PM
What I’m implying is that you give him a pass on something you’d eviscerate anyone else for doing – namely, porking up his district and not taking responsibility for doing so.
And thereby accusing Paultards of flagrant hypocrisy in the service of their Constitutional Patriot god-king.
KingGold on July 12, 2011 at 1:15 PM
Tinfoil futures hardest hit.
trigon on July 12, 2011 at 1:15 PM
I didn’t realize that a memo saying “Hey, at some time at some place Al Queda may attack” equated to a neon sign saying “In September Al Queda is going to fly planes into buildings”.
Dammit, i want to know who the secretary of psychics is because apparently the government is full of psychics.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:17 PM
OT:..Obie is going to his scare tatics..Obie has just said if the debt ceiling “crisis” is not fixed by August 2nd ..he (Obie) cannot guarantee SS checks will go out..:(
PS..What a sad person Obie is..:(
PSS..Per Rush Limbaugh
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:17 PM
He is getting a bit up there in years. And let’s be honest about 2008. Liberals used the Ron Paul brigade effectively to disrupt conservative message boards and screw up polling in 2008. Which was a big reason we ended up with a candidate in 2008 that the Democrat could out-youth-and-shiny.
Sekhmet on July 12, 2011 at 1:18 PM
HE HAS! For Pete’s sake, do you do any research at all before shooting your mouth off?
http://www.rawstory.com/news/2007/Fox_ambushes_Paul_with_911_truthers_0111.html
The man has been consistently clear on this. I understand that not everyone agrees with Paul on the issues, but if that’s so, rather than smearing him with false allegations of Trutherism and anti-semitism, let’s talk about the issues!
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:18 PM
Since by ‘truther’ you mean ‘someone who doesn’t blindly swallow the official story hook, line, and sinker’…
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:19 PM
Oh, And expect Paul to wring every penny of taxpayer-paid pension and medical benefits he can when he DOES retire. The ultimate hypocrite.
michaelo on July 12, 2011 at 1:19 PM
Bah, now I’m gonna hafta go look up his earmark record.
I would eviscerate someone who consistently voted for ever bigger budgets while porking up their district, essentially robbing peter to pay paul. If you consistently refuse to vote for ever bigger budgets, I have no problem with you trying to get your constituents money back from leviathan. I’m still failing to see the hypocrisy.
Aquateen Hungerforce on July 12, 2011 at 1:19 PM
We’ll be here all day if we do that. DMCM has more issues than National Geographic.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:20 PM
Breaking: (via sweet Martha McCallum at Fox News)
Obama: “Social Security checks might not go out after August 2nd”
Can we impeach this WPOS now? Talk about spreading fear tactics.
Rovin on July 12, 2011 at 1:20 PM
Hardly.
fossten on July 12, 2011 at 1:22 PM
He needs to actually say it to his fans at the ralleys. Otherwise if he’s not a truther then he’s just showing that he takes advantage of the crazies out there in order to get their votes and money.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:22 PM
Rubio is pounding Obie on Rush’s radio show..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:23 PM
Does anyone here talking down Ron Paul know anything about him at all?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_pension
This is getting depressing.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:23 PM
And your data set for this absolutely falsifiable claim is…? Because I’d love to see it.
I can tell you from experience that the vast majority of RP supporters I have dealt with are not Truthers… extremely small percentage, and that the RP campaign did all it could to discourage, including an interview THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE A LINK TO in which RP denounces such balderdash.
Only to the extent that government is involved in every facet of our lives, from cradle to grave. Was government responsible for safety on those airplanes that day? Yeah, and they did a p!ss poor job, didn’t they.
Was the FBI forewarned about some of the hijackers? Yeah, they were. I guess they were a little too busy to investigate this threst. Too much on their plate, perhaps.
Did said investigators play fast and loose with the truth in a massive game of CYA after the fact? Sure looks that way to me.
Does that count as involvement? Because that’s what Ron Pau wants to fix. Let the airlines defend their own property. Get the child molestors with badges out of our airports. And when FBI f**ks up, FBI answers truthfully about it.
Doesn’t seem like that much to ask.
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 1:24 PM
You basically said that there is something fishy about the official story, basically alluding to a conspiracy existing.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:24 PM
I agree with you on Martha McCallum..She is a cutey..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:24 PM
I tell ya, Obama was totally born in Kenya.
MadisonConservative on July 12, 2011 at 1:25 PM
Mmmmm…looks like if he’s not a truther now he was at some point.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:25 PM
9/11 was much like Pearl Harbor.
You can have a canvas and every pot of paint in the right color. But it’s not the Mona Lisa. We had all the information that in retrospect should have pointed to both plots. But doing intelligence is like taking a magnet to look for a needle in a junkyard. It’s hard to tell whether a piece of intel is going to go somewhere, or whether it’s some moron running his mouth.
Without the benefit of hindsight, we could not have put together what we had into a comprehensive picture that would have stopped either plot in time.
Sekhmet on July 12, 2011 at 1:26 PM
Looks like he refuses to tell them to STFU about the truther stuff.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:26 PM
Dude, even Ron Paul himself couldn’t deny that a large percentage of his fan base are truthers and that he refuses to tell them to stop with the truther crap at his rallies and such.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:29 PM
So, michaelo, explain to us again why we should take any assertion you make seriously?
JohnGalt23 on July 12, 2011 at 1:31 PM
But any intelligent person would know that “Al Queda will attack some day” equals “in September Al Queda will fly planes into buldings”!!!!!
/RonPaulnut
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:31 PM
He EXPLICITY asked them not to. But it’s true that he’s not their boss – he can’t command his supporters. There’s a small minority who believe crazy things and insist on talking about them. People like you just like to focus on them so you can avoid the issues: that Paul is the only candidate who had never voted for or endorsed an unbalanced budget; that he’s the only candidate who as President would refuse to sign an unbalanced budget; that he’s the only candidate who rejects all the failed forms of central economic planning so beloved in Washington, both through taxation by the Congress and interest rate manipulation by the Federal Reserve; and on and on. He’s the only candidate who is seriously offering the root-and-branch systemic reforms we need almost immediately to head off disaster, and if people don’t realize that soon, I fear for the Republic.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:32 PM
Don’t be depressed. Be prepared. Most people have no clue. It’s just too hard for people to rip themselves away for Idol to read a bit of history.
j_galt on July 12, 2011 at 1:33 PM
[asbestos underwear on]
He’s getting ready to be appointed Treasury Secretary in the Palin Administration.
:-)
(Seriously,
ifWHEN dammit WHEN we get the WH back in 2012, I would love to see Ron Paul as Treasury Secretary, eviscerating the IRS… how sweet would that be?)Mary in LA on July 12, 2011 at 1:34 PM
He might pull a Ross Perot.
Schadenfreude on July 12, 2011 at 1:34 PM
Dont’ get me wrong. I like his fiscal policy and even a bit of his foreign policy. But anytime I even think of voting for the guy he does/says something that reminds me why I dont’ like the guy. His fans dont’ help, either. Every single one of them say stuff like “If you don’t like everything about Ron Paul then you’re a sheeple” or some crap like that. It’s really annoying. Same with their conspiracy theories.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:36 PM
I would actually like to see that, too.
DethMetalCookieMonst on July 12, 2011 at 1:37 PM
I will miss Ron Paul. He could have done something about the Federal Reserve for all those years in Congress…
As for earmarks – they are the gateway to higher spending. When you are willing to accept cashola for your district to allow for a larger budget, then the size of the bribe (for that is what they are when all is said and done) doesn’t matter in terms of the budget. It is what they allow through that is horrific. You can’t get to a smaller government through earmarks, nor to one that will spend wisely. That basic understanding has never gotten through to him, which is quite sad, really, as the ‘if the gravy train is here then hand me some slop’ attitude has gotten larger and larger budgets during his decades in Congress, and makes him look like any other spendthrift who talks a good game of thriftyness but won’t do the one thing necessary to prove it by stopping the acceptance of the gravy. Sad, that.
ajacksonian on July 12, 2011 at 1:38 PM
Come here and let me show you these charts..:)
Dire Straits on July 12, 2011 at 1:39 PM
Oh dear Lord how I would LOVE to see that! Palin has the pull to make the spittle-flecked Paul detractors STFU, and RP could to so much under her administration.
Uncle Sams Nephew on July 12, 2011 at 1:39 PM
I’m sorry that some Ron Paul supporters are nutty or nasty. But that shouldn’t reflect on Dr. Paul. He’s just a soft-spoken country doctor, a Bible-believing Christian, and a man who loves Liberty and his country. He takes Ben Franklin’s challenge, “A Republic, if you can keep it”, seriously. He remembers de Tocqueville’s warning;
He sees this happening in our own time, in the nation he loves, and has resolved to stop it if he can.
I think it is genuine fear and worry for our nation that make some of his supporters so intense, and sometimes rude. I’m sorry for that, but please don’t let a few nuts make you dismiss him out of hand.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:45 PM
You’ll have to wear a fluffy white wig for that to work. ;)
Bee on July 12, 2011 at 1:46 PM
As I said to Mr. Morrissey, while Rep. Paul does request earmarks, he always votes against the spending bills. If the main problem with earmarks is that they are usually quid pro quos that garner votes for bad spending bills, and Paul always votes ‘no’ anyway, I fail to see the problem. In his case, all it does is make the spending more transparent so that it’s clearly itemized, rather than disbursed in an opaque fashion by bureaucrats after the money has been appropriated.
Inkblots on July 12, 2011 at 1:48 PM
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