COMMENTARY | There's nothing like a candidate who runs for an office he knows he cannot win. That's exactly the case with the feisty Texas Congressman Ron Paul. His campaign manager even disclosed a backup plan to spoil the Republican Convention -- how's that for a loyal Republican?
ABC News reported Paul's campaign manager, Jesse Benton, announced the campaign's strategy was to use any committed Paul delegates to drive a convention platform agenda that would include allowing the Patriot Act to expire and more closely examining the Federal Reserve. Both ideas have merit of their own -- to a point -- but a candidate that continues to amass delegates for the sole purpose of being a convention spoiler is not in the best interests of the party as a whole.
Benton said the campaign will focus on caucus states where delegates are easier to win instead of competing in all the primary states where he is unlikely to emerge the victor. That's a strategy for second-place and that's not what the Republican Party needs to defeat President Barack Obama in the fall.
But let me real for a moment: Paul isn't a Republican at all. His ideas are libertarian and he's masking them in a run for the GOP nomination. I've been impressed with some of them -- a few make a lot of sense. We need to cut out foreign aid. We should more closely examine the Federal Reserve and we've got to stop spending ourselves into the poor house.
The underlying problem I have with Paul is this: His presence in the race only helps Obama win another term. If Mitt Romney wins the nomination as most people expect, Paul plans to divide the GOP convention at a time when every needs to be uniting behind their candidate. If Paul makes a third party run, he will divide the Republican vote and Obama wins another term. And, unless Paul endorses the eventual candidate, his followers are unlikely to remain safely in the Republican column.
However you look at it, Paul is the spoiler in this year's election - something I'd bet delights his supporters to no end.
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