AmP quoted in National Catholic Register today

Today's headline piece in the National Catholic Register, "Ron Paul Draws Passionate Support", by Charlie Spiering features two quotations from yours truly:

Paul stands alone among the Republican presidential candidates as one who voted against the Iraq war, stating that it was unconstitutional, since it never received a congressional declaration of war. If elected president, Paul promises to withdraw troops from Iraq.

Thomas Peters, who runs the blog American Papist, contributes to a blog called Catholics for Ron Paul. He noted that since the Vatican hasn’t spoken magisterially about the Iraq war, Catholics can continue to debate the issue. “He [Paul] has philosophical and rational reasons for why he thinks that American involvement isn’t the best choice,” said Peters. “He examines the question using principles of just war theory, specifically speaking about the Christian tradition of a just war,” he added.

Paul mentioned the Vatican’s comments regarding the Iraq War when paying tribute to John Paul II’s legacy. “The Pope’s commitment to human dignity, grounded in the teachings of Christ, led him to become one of the most eloquent spokesmen for the consistent ethic of life, exemplified by his struggles against abortion, war, euthanasia and the death penalty,” he said on the floor of the House of Representatives on April 6, 2005, four days after the Pope’s death.

Although initially a supporter of the death penalty, Paul changed his position after studying the issue throughout his political career.

Some religious voters remain skeptical about a vote for Paul, as his strict interpretation for the Constitution pits him against federal legislation to ban prostitution, drugs and homosexual “marriage.”

Peters said, “Ron Paul voted against the marriage amendment, but only because he thought it was non-constitutional, not because he doesn’t think marriage isn’t a union of a man and a woman.”

Ron Paul addressed the March for Life yesterday, but sadly I missed it. There were several Ron Paul supporters at the March, some of them carrying "Ron Paul for Life" banners.

Norma McCorvey (Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade) endorsed Dr. Paul for President yesterday.

Videos: Ron Paul update (EWTN, Fox Debates, Racism smears, etc.)

I've neglected posting about Ron Paul lately, but several recent stories aren't to be missed.

First, via Casey Khan over at Catholics for Ron Paul, Dr. Paul's pro-life record gets a mention on EWTN:

Second, in a typical and predictable dirty politics ploy, folks are trying to claim that Ron Paul endorsed racist, homophobic and suchlike notions almost a decade ago in his newsletter. Watch Ron Paul passionately defend his principles and character, leaving Wolf Blitzer sputtering in response:

Next, while I sadly missed tonight's GOP debate in South Carolina, from the early reports, it appears that Ron Paul held his own despite some underhanded questions, and came out ahead with a few zingers of his own:

Plenty of praise for his performance at the debate from USA Daily here and here.

Combining all these factoids together, I'm reminded of the initial reasons I like Ron Paul so much:

1. He is educated, and forms his political conclusions based on reading and reason instead of polling and "groupthink."
2. He holds to his principles, and never compromises them for expediency or convenience.
3. He is pro-life, and changed his position on the death penalty after reflection.
4. He understands the economy and related matters better than anyone (again, through study and experience), and also has an insider's perspective on medicine (actually has practiced medicine).
5. Tellingly, he is constantly malligned, marganilized and generally hated by the liberal media establishment, and most government officials even in his own party. That, to me, is very revealing of him and politics.

I don't think Ron Paul will become president, but I do believe it is important that he is in the race. And I hope that whoever eventually becomes president, if it is one of the men who shared a stage with him tonight, was listening to what he was saying, and resolved to take a few of Dr. Paul's "new-for-being-old" ideas to heart.

A catchy Ron Paul slogan

"BEE part of the solution! Paulinate!"

You have to admit, that's a clever slogan. Many more here.

Meanwhile, Ron Paul "surges" from 2%-7% in New Hampshire, with 60% of Republicans undecided. Fred Thompson is under 5% in NH. I know, "you can prove anything with polls", but when the selection of leading candidates is so mediocre, upsets and reversals are more of a possibility.

Update: A friend brought up this article, "Ron Paul's Jewish Problem", which claims that Ron Paul's campaign has not returned contributions made by notable anti-semitic figures. Daily Paul provides links to this Andrew Sullivan commentary in response.

In general, I find that AS and I don't see eye-to-eye, but I see his point on this one. While I would prefer that Ron Paul might quickly issue a quotation distancing himself from the such extremist views, I don't think you can reasonably come to the conclusion that Ron Paul endorses said extremism from the facts currently presented. Indeed, RP's public rhetoric on Jews and issues pertaining to the state of Israel seems honest and balanced. This feels like dirty politicking to me.

Guy Fawkes, the 5th of November, Ron Paul & $4.2 Million

Noteworthy Ron Paul news:

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, aided by an extraordinary outpouring of Internet support Monday, hauled in more than $4.2 million in nearly 24 hours.

Paul, the Texas congressman with a libertarian tilt and an out-of-Iraq pitch, entered heady fundraising territory with a surge of Web-based giving tied to the commemoration of Guy Fawkes Day.

Fawkes was a British mercenary who failed in his attempt to kill King James I on Nov. 5, 1605. He also was the model for the protagonist in the movie "V for Vendetta." Paul backers motivated donors on the Internet with mashed-up clips of the film on the online video site YouTube as well as the Guy Fawkes Day refrain: "Remember, remember the 5th of November." - Associated Press

Who's giving from among the 21,000 new donors, according to USA Today?

• The "Old Right," [such as] Robert Taft and Barry Goldwater Republicans.
• Gun-rights supporters (... Paul [is] "probably the strongest supporter of Second Amendment rights in the Congress").
• Progressives who want to end the Iraq war and are "sick of what they're getting from the Democrats."
• Social conservatives who oppose abortion.

This coming from Ron Paul spokesman Jesse Benton. Notice that last contingent?

The article also states that Ron Paul is "an outspoken opponent of abortion and the war in Iraq, and wants to abolish the Internal Revenue Service."

A clarification from the Ron Paul camp in the NYT:

Mr. Paul did not support blowing up government buildings. “He wants to demolish things like the Department of Education,” Mr. Benton said, “but we can do that very peacefully, in a constructive manner.”

For my part, I feel it's almost obligatory as the AmericanPapist to laud the Ron Paul campaign's choice to embrace a famous papist plot as a spur to their own endeavours, but sadly certain inescapable historical particulars make such a reckless blanket endorsement from me far from laudable.

If you want a more intellectual treatment of this particular question, however, Catholics for Ron Paul has several excellent posts on the topic. See? This is why CFRP is such a useful endeavor. Praise and encouragement to all my fellow contributors. And let's continue to honestly discuss Ron Paul and the merits of his candidacy and platform.

Sam Brownback, Pro-Life Pres. Candidate, will bow out

The Associated Press reports:

Republican Sen. Sam Brownback, the Kansas conservative who struggled to raise money and gain recognition in the 2008 presidential campaign, will drop out on Friday, people close to him said Thursday.

Money was a main reason for his decision, said one person close to Brownback who requested anonymity because the candidate had not yet announced his plans. Brownback is expected announce his withdrawal in Topeka, Kan.

It's widely anticipated Brownback will run for Kansas governor in 2010, when his term — his second — expires. He had promised in his first Senate campaign to serve no more than two terms.

Best of luck to him in the future!

Brownback recently won the AmP reader poll: "Who conforms best to Catholic Social Teaching?" with 48% of the vote. Ron Paul placed second, with 21% of the vote, and Alan Keyes was 3rd with 10%.

Well, let's take a longer, harder look at #2.

Video: Chris Matthews surprisingly fair to Ron Paul

Topics treated include Iran, fearmongering, and declaring war:

I was surprised to see CM so open to hear what RP had to say.

Oh, and Ron Paul has moved to 5th in the National Journal ranking.

CFRP: Benedict XVI & Ron Paul

Over at Catholics for Ron Paul, the newly-joined contributor Casey Khan of AnarchoCatholic offers a very thought-provoking essay charting the similarities between Pope Benedict and U.S. presidential candidate Ron Paul. I think he makes some very compelling arguments and connections.

Here are some other highlights from the past week over at CFRP:

• Video: Mitt Romney's pro-abortion past
• Rosary for Ron Paul's campaign begins today
• CFRP asks the question, Is Non-Interventionism the same as Isolationism?
• My post: Ron Paul astounds with $5 million raised in 3rd quarter
• CFRP discusses Ron Paul's opposition to the Death Penalty

I'll soon be contributing to Catholics for Ron Paul

At the invitation of the webmaster, I'll soon be contributing to the Catholics for Ron Paul blog. Here are a few quotations from CFRP which I cite to explain my carefully-made decision to join their efforts in the upcoming months:

"This website is a place for ordinary Catholics who are serious about the wholistic body of principles known as the Social Doctrine of the Church to examine how Ron Paul's message and public policy proposals square up against these natural principles.

... This blog is a place to learn about Catholic Social Teaching and to examine these principles and in light of the practical proposals Ron Paul is making.

... At Catholics for Ron Paul, we are faithful to the Magisterium and the Social Doctrine of the Church; if there are areas where Ron Paul's policies don't square with CST, we will not jettison CST to promote Ron Paul but will examine the issues.

... It is our contention that Ron Paul's candidacy has the most reality based understanding of the problems facing America and his policy proposals are profoundly in harmony with CST.

Over the course of the coming weeks and months, this blog will take up the work of making that case."

With these important considerations in mind, I eagerly look forward to making my contributions. Currently, besides the webmaster, the other member of this group blog is Thomas E. Woods, perhaps best known for his recent title How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization. So I'll find myself in good company.

Of course, living in Washington DC I hope to enjoy unique opportunities to follow Ron Paul's campaign and provide timely, accurate evaluations of his message. In turn, I hope to deepen my understanding of the relevant issues in this upcoming presidential election so that I can pass them on to the CFRP (and AmP) readership.

Whatever the results of this election, may good come about!

Update: For those interested, my first day on the job at CFRP:

• Video: Ron Paul at the Value Voters Debate
• Alan Keyes makes 3rd bid for presidency
• Ron Paul's views on homeschooling
• Ron Paul Roundup (9/12/07)
• Clinton: health care a requirement before work

Also, those interesting in contributing to CFRP or joining the list of Catholic bloggers who support Ron Paul, feel free to email me. The same goes for those who have blogged about Ron Paul (including critically) - let me know!