Sunday, December 22, 2013

Rand Paul’s Play to Expand the GOP’s Tent

It's all about ditching libertarian principle. Politico tells us:
Paul has distanced himself from the more controversial foreign policy views held by his father[...]“Sen. Paul will benefit from his father’s supporters like we’ve seen before in the past,” said GOP strategist Chip Saltsman, who managed Gov. Mike Huckabee’s 2008 presidential campaign. “Sometimes you get half the supporters and all the enemies — but even with just half the supporters, it gives him a great base launching pad.”

And he is more likely to win over a broader coalition than his father was, observers say.

“Sen. Paul clearly has greater potential to grow his coalition than his father did,” strategist Ayres said. “But libertarians are still very much a minority within the Republican coalition. So he’s going to have to reach out beyond libertarians in order to become a serious candidate.

14 comments:

  1. "So he’s going to have to reach out beyond libertarians in order to become a serious candidate". here comes the sell out.

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  2. err, Rand just voted against the NDAA.

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    1. Only cause it was "safe" to do so.

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  3. Unless there is hyperinflation and a dollar collapse in 2016, he won't be able to run on his daddy's platform. 8 years of getting it wrong is not going to attract the clear thinking independents who the GOP needs to win in 2016,.

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    1. how is not interfering in overseas in foreign fuck ups and bailing out crony capitalists, wrong? oh yet End the Fed.

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  4. "Paul has distanced himself from the more controversial foreign policy views held by his father"
    .
    Controversial my ass.
    The Golden Rule and/or the NAP is not controversial.
    Its called basic decency.
    And that annoys morally bankrupt statist slime balls.........and their mouthpieces.

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  5. Too bad. his father grew the movement. Rand could do the same, perhaps even making it viable. Instead he is squashing it, but it will grow without him and he will have to deal without my support, and I know I'm not the only one. If he wants to be a statist, treat him like one.

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    1. If our numbers continue to grow, one day he may wish he had chosen differently...

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    2. His father is a great and good man.

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  6. "“But libertarians are still very much a minority within the Republican coalition. So he’s going to have to reach out beyond libertarians in order to become a serious candidate."

    So basically he has to reach out to the statists aka the paleocons, neocons, theocons/warvangelicals and liberals. Did I miss something?

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    1. He already did that a number of times.

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    2. "But libertarians are still very much a minority within the Republican coalition."

      Well. of course they are. Most libertarians wouldn't want to touch the Republican party with a ten foot pole.
      And many who would are not even libertarian to begin with. There are a few real libertarians in the RP no doubt, and they only need a little time to wake up and find out they are in the lion's den.

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  7. Don't vote unless it's straight ticket Libertarian (which will be like not voting for 90% of the offices). When turnout gets down to the 10-25% range it will be a lot easier to push back against all the bullshit politicians throw at us.

    Too bad they are stocking up on bullets and MRAPs

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