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Ron Paul’s Delegate Strategy Is Still Working, So Why Make a Redundant Announcement About It?

Brian Doherty discusses the state of the Ron Paul campaign in the wake of its recent perplexing announcement: Politically, Paul has been pulling off wins thought impossible through the winter and spring, when every other candidate had his or her moment as the presumptive leader of the opposition to Romney. Paul now controls the delegation […]

Brian Doherty discusses the state of the Ron Paul campaign in the wake of its recent perplexing announcement:

Politically, Paul has been pulling off wins thought impossible through the winter and spring, when every other candidate had his or her moment as the presumptive leader of the opposition to Romney. Paul now controls the delegation from Maine, and seems on target to do the same in Minnesota, Iowa, and Louisiana. He has also made substantial in-roads in filling delegate slots in Massachusetts and Nevada (though even delegates who are Paul supporters are bound to vote for Romney). Paul supporters hold top leadership positions in the state GOP in both Iowa and Alaska. No matter how many delegates he goes into Tampa with, Paul and his fans can no longer be written off as politically unimportant.

I agree that Paul’s supporters can’t be written off anymore, but I suspect it won’t be for lack of trying. Regardless, the 2012 campaign has done some very impressive work in laying the foundation for future electoral cycles. The 2008 and 2012 campaigns have mobilized a significant and growing constituency for the ideas that Rep. Paul has espoused throughout his career, and it is a constituency that the Republican Party won’t be able to keep ignoring forever. There has been a lot of speculation about “what Ron Paul wants,” but the answer to that is that Paul wants what he has always wanted, which is a revival of policies dedicated to the preservation of peace and liberty. He and his campaign must understand better than anyone that a Romney-led Republican Party is opposed to that goal, and they will act accordingly.

P.S. Weigel reports on Doherty’s frustration with the campaign’s announcement.

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