Ron Paul: Going Against Popular Belief

A Story by Eric Shomo

Why I think the media ignored Ron and what I would have done differently if I was running his campaign

I’m going to be honest with you. I feel bad for Ron Paul. The guy has all the political guts and genius anyone could ever have, a tremendous amount of support from youngsters all around the nation, and an understanding of how the economy really works. So what is he lacking? Well, besides a few policies that some people may cringe at…really, not that much. But one thing is for certain �" the media is not on his side.

A few months ago, if you were to watch any news channel covering the caucuses, primaries, and debates the only candidates that were mentioned were Santorum, Gingrich, and Romney. Ron Paul was hardly ever recognized, even if he completely made other candidates look like fools. The media brushed off his wit, his humor, and his argumentative tactics as if he had no significant impact. You know it. I know it. Everyone knows it.

Perhaps even the sadder part was that nothing was really done to change this. The damage was already done. It is a shame because Ron Paul brings a lot to the table of politics. However, his views and policies are different than most other candidates. This is exactly the reason why he received almost zero publicity and few votes. If the media did a single thing for Ron Paul, it was to portray him as an extremely liberal crazy man. My point being, the media did more bad than good for him.

The media does way too much these days to try to sway peoples’ votes one way or another. There are more televised debates, more interviews with candidates, more news updates, and more negative campaigning. I won’t say that it was solely the media’s fault for Ron Paul’s image, but it certainly did play a factor.

The other thing I will be honest about is that I do not believe Ron Paul’s campaign was run to its fullest potential. He could have raised just as much money as his opponents, and he could have done a better job of defending his public image. The latter is what gets me so riled up about the entire issue. Ron Paul seems to be the type of person who could take a beating and not care one single bit. Maybe it’s because he is old or because he doesn’t really want the job as President of the United States. But if I was him (or someone advising him) I would stay away from looking defenseless and insecure. He had a chance to come forward and really tell people what he stood for. And he did; but he told his “story” in a way that was unapproachable and confusing. In what he called in his campaign “the fight for liberty,” there was hardly any fight at all on his behalf.

It is quite unfortunate that he came across the media that way, because Ron Paul would have been a great President. If he was on a ballot I would vote for him. If I was his advisor, I would do anything and everything to make sure he got recognition and respect from everyone. And let me tell you why I would do those things. Ron Paul is a very intelligent man who sheds light on what our Founding Fathers wanted for our country. He reverts back to policies that worked back when the economy was booming and when the United States was a peaceful country. It is said that new policies need to be implemented as the world changes. But it is not the policies that need changing. The change needs to occur in the leadership provided by the people who go about implementing these new policies. Ron Paul most certainly could have been the leader that could have restored America’s liberty and hope, even if it meant re-establishing older, uncharacteristic policies.

It seems as though it becomes increasingly harder to vote for the right candidate every term. My fear is that we have passed up a viable option in Ron Paul. He was simply overlooked because his policies were contrary to popular belief. But hey…there’s always Rand…