Question: Vote for who “you” believe should be the next president or merely for whom you are “told” is electable?
Here we are, barely 1% of the way through the primaries, analogically at the kickoff of the big game and already being herded like dumb cattle to vote for a candidate Fox deems fit for us (e.g. is electable). From what I understand, and I may be wrong, this clip and many others were cut from the debate on 1/10. Copies have been popping up all over youtube about as fast as News Corp. has been able to bring them down. As such, I’ve included the transcript below.
Its sad, and I really mean very sad, to see so many willing to give up already. Give up on voting for the candidate they most like simply because they are being told he isn’t electable. Is this what we’ve become? Robots who push whatever button we’re programmed too? Aside from the fact that I don’t believe in trading my vote away because of perceived electability in principle (there is something that just seems wrong about it), I don’t necessarily buy the arguments for it either. Now it’s obvious that an even playing field doesn’t exist for Dr. Paul. Forget about the rudeness of the how the question was phrased or the immaturity of Giuliani’s giggle fit (how old is that guy again?), the fact that Paul’s answers are being censored smacks in the face of everything that this country stands for. And we should all be mad as hell!
No matter how much the media attempts to silence Paul’s message he will only prove unelectable for one reason: we who would have voted for him didn’t! It is that simple. For those of you who are afraid your vote won’t count if you place it with Paul I ask, what does it really count for at all then? For those of you who say you won’t vote for him because you don’t want a Democrat winning, hey, it’s only the primaries and not the general election (you’ll still have your shot). Personally though, I see little difference between the Democrats and Republicans today outside of their positions on gay marriage and abortion. They’re the same people! Case in point, today we have all the Democratic candidates telling us how they are going to get us out of this war … and yet, for the last two years our Democratic controlled congress has done nothing to take back their Constitutional war power and instead voted again and again to continue funding the war. 2+2=5?
I’m encouraging all my friends in California, right now, to join the Republican party before 1/21 and vote for Ron Paul on Super Tuesday, February 5th. Don’t be herded like cattle to vote for the lesser of two evils or for who we are told is electable. Vote your convictions! Imagine what can happen if everyone did just that. The outcome may be quite different from what we are being told it will be. Either way, I do know this, until we do so nothing will change and it will be our children and our children’s children who will be paying the price.
For those of you who support Ron Paul, it’s time for us to do what our fair and balanced media won’t: GET THE WORD OUT. Join me and our San Diego meetup group … come out with me to do some precinct walking … wave signs … blog this post … just do something to make people aware of who Ron Paul is and his position on all the issues. If you need information or materials, lmk, I can help.
I know Paul is a long shot. I’m a realist believe it or not. I also know I couldn’t sleep at night if I voted for anyone else but who I think would best execute his responsibilities as the President of the United States. And I can’t help but wonder just what might happen if we all did just that. For those of you on the fence, please watch that clip again. How sad is it that the only candidate defending the Constitution and traditional Republican values is deemed the kook and nutball of the GOP?
CAMERON: Congressman Paul, yet another question about electability. Do you have any, sir? There’s always the question as to whether or not…
(LAUGHTER)… you are, in fact, viable. Your differences with the Republicans on the — with the rest of the Republicans on this stage has raised questions about whether or not you can actually win the Republican nomination, sir.
PAUL: Well, we’ve only had two little primaries so far. So it’s pretty premature to decide which one is going to be the candidate.
But, you know, when you think about it, if you measured everything I’ve ever said, every vote I’ve ever taken against the Constitution, you know, I’m a strict constitutionalist.
Are you suggesting the Republicans should write me off because I’m a strict constitutionalist? I’m the most conservative member here. I have voted, you know, against more spending and waste in government than anybody else.
(APPLAUSE)
So you’re suggesting that I’m not electable and the Republicans don’t want me because I’m a strict fiscal conservative, because I believe in civil liberties? Why should we not be defending civil liberties and why should we not be talking about foreign policy that used to be the part of the Republican Party?
Mr. Republican Robert Taft didn’t even want us to be in NATO and you’re saying now that we have to continue to borrow money from China to finance this empire that we can’t afford?
Let me see if I get this right. We need to borrow $10 billion from China, and then we give it to Mushar-raf, who is a military dictator, who overthrew an elected government. And then we go to war, we lose all these lives promoting democracy in Iraq. I mean, what’s going on here?(APPLAUSE)
And you’re saying that this isn’t appealing to Republicans? Where did this come about? I think this is the Republican message. I defend the platform. It used to say we’d (inaudible) the Department of Education. It doesn’t say that now.
We, as Republicans, went and doubled the size of the Department of Education, so where have we gone? I think we’ve lost our way. And then the insinuation that I am less Republican because of that?
HUME: Congressman, thank you very much.
We have to take one more break. We’ll be right back, with one of the most contentious issues of the day. Stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
