As Texas Congressman and long-time libertarian Ron Paul comes under more and more scrutiny, more and more examples of his political hypocrisy come to the forefront.
The Presidential candidate who preaches austerity buys full-fare airline tickets so he can bump up to first class on his many airline trips. He talks about honesty in government but lends his name and Congressional cariier to newsletters that play on unproven paranoia to pad his own bank account. He talks about leadership but his own leadership skills are so bad that — if you believe his own excuses — a series of racist newsletters were published under his name for years without his knowledge.
Now we find out that his Congressional office and campaign operations were so lax that he double-billed taxpayers and campaign contributors for airline tickets.
But, if you believe the stuck-pig squeals from his small but rabid band of followers, it’s not that big of a deal because Paul’s malfeasance involved “only a few thousand dollars” while government is wasting millions and billions.
We’ve observed Paul’s political sideshow for a long time here at Capitol Hill Blue. There’s an old saying in politics. “You can’t be a little bit pregnant.” By the same token, you can’t be a little bit dishonest. You’re either honest or you not. One could argue that Ron Paul’s financial dishonesty involved “only a few thousand dollars” because that’s all the small-time Texas Congressman could pull off in his present position.
Each new revelation about Paul’s dishonesty points to a typical politician who talks out of both sides of his mouth. He fudges expense reports, offers lame excuses that he “didn’t know” about inflammatory rhetoric in his newsletters and converts millions left over from his failed Presidential campaigns to personal use — something that is technically legal but shows a continued pattern of political and ethical dishonesty.
None of this matters to the small but vocal cult-like following that rise up in righteous indignation every time another of Paul’s indiscretions comes to light.
The Paul minions no longer argue that Paul is honest. They now say he is just less dishonest than a politician who fleeces taxpayers for billions.
Perhaps Paul’s lower level is dishonesty — if there is such a thing — stems more from lack of opportunity. Paul is a pariah even in his own party and — in spite of his seniority in Congress — has never held any leadership positions in Congress. Two bit Congressmen from Texas have little chance to make it to the top tier of Capitol Hill crooks.
So Paul remains a small time crook, by Congressional standards, but in our book, a crook is a crook.
Winston Churchill once talked his pal George Bernard Shaw into the following exchange with his longtime nemesis Lady Astor at a dinner party in London:
Shaw: “Madam, would you spend the night with me for a million pounds?”
Astor: “Why yes, Mr. Shaw, I suppose I would.”
Shaw: “How about five pounds?”
Astor: “Mr. Shaw, what do you think I am?”
Shaw.” I’ve established that madam. What I’m trying to establish now is the price.”
We’ve established at this point that Ron Paul is a crookL A small-time crook, to be sure. The one salvation is that this petty thief has no chance to ever be President. Imagine how much he could steal if ever actually moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Related articles
- The hyprocrisy of Ron Paul and his supporters (capitolhillblue.com)
- Ron Paul Attempts to Win Maine, but Falls Short. (thepoliticalbreakdown.wordpress.com)
- Say what, Ron Paul? (freethoughtblogs.com)
- Strong Evidence That Ron Paul Really Did Write Those Racist Newsletters (theageofblasphemy.wordpress.com)
- Ron Paul Actually Thought Those Racist Newsletters Were OK, After All [Ron Paul] (jezebel.com)
34 thoughts on “The continuing hypocrisy of Ron Paul and his flock of sheep”
Ron Paul could be the pauper, the most personally honest man in Washington. So what?
If Paul is the above – and many claim that he is so much more…then why has he not relentlessly made his sole purpose, as an elected official, to eradicating the types of behaviors by government that it has engaged for decades in which it has exponentially increased its power and abilities to shun its responsibilities to the citizens for whom they were elected to serve?
It’s not rocket science in being able to recognize the systemic problems in both our political and government institutions.
After all, Paul has served in Congress three different periods. He first served from 1976 to 1977, after he won a special election, then from 1979 to 1985 and finally since 1997 represented Texas’s 22nd congressional district. That’s plenty time for him to have stood out as a crusader on behalf of the great citizens of this fine nation…right?
We need a crusader…who is willing to sacrifice him or herself to genuinely bring about the “SYSTEMIC” changes in Washington necessary to begin a system that is truly adhering to the “intent” of the Constitution…as it relates to the rights and power of the people…not the government. The government’s existence should be there to SERVE not RULE via corruption and power mongering.
“We need a crusader…who is willing to sacrifice him or herself”…
just exactly what do you have in mind there, G?
Worth the time to watch simply for the history lesson.
According to USA Today: Ron Paul often says he’s careful not to waste money from his presidential campaign donors.
A peek into his final 2011 campaign finance report shows the extent of the Texas Republican’s frugality — or at least how detailed the congressman is when it comes to filling out these reports.
USA TODAY’s Gregory Korte found 164 separate entries for expenditures of $1 each in Paul’s report, which was filed yesterday with the Federal Election Commission. Gregory says that’s the most $1 campaign expenditures for any GOP presidential contender.
Paul bought value meals at a McDonald’s in New Hampshire, a truck stop in Iowa and a Circle K in Kansas. He bought three pieces of music through iTunes and office supplies from a Dollar Tree store.
Ron Paul (R-TX) returned $100,000 of his Congressional office budget to the United States Treasury. 2011 [he] is continuing to walk the walk, returning a whopping $140,000 in unused office funds to the U.S. Treasury for the purpose of paying down the national debt. The sum is nearly 10% of his office funds and a 40% increase over the $100,000 he returned last year. In 2009, Ron Paul returned $90,000 from his office budget, and in 2008, he returned $58,000. It seems that with each passing year the 2008 presidential contender returns a little more of his congressional office budget to the Treasury…
I think that probably covers the airline ticket issue. Just my humble opinion…
Even though I am against campaign donations (as the corporation or person who can donate the largest amount usually has the biggest voice while the little people who can donate the least are not represented), since the reality is campaign contributions do exist.
So, for those who care to take a comparative look at the candidates campaign contributions, here is a link starting with Ron Paul (since we are discussing him at the moment).
https://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/contrib.php?id=N00005906
In the purple box to the right you can choose “switch” and opt to view the campaign contributions to any of the other candidates.
Mitt Romney has Wall St. money, so when the time comes, who will Mitt Romney be indebted to?
And Jon ………. point made.
What’s striking is how those working in government (soldiers, secretaries, clerks, auditors, etc.) see Ron Paul as a viable candidate and send him money as demonstrated by your link, while those over government (Congress, Corporate Media, political operatives) see him as a kook, or at least try to portray him as such in public.
I’m unsure if I’ve ever seen such a disconnect in politics between those that have stars upon thars and those that do not and the portrayal of a Presidential candidate. Certainly this should deserve more investigation and reporting, but I don’t expect that would come from the corporate media as they appear to be the perpetrators of the disconnect.
The other thing I’ve noticed is look at the amounts collected. We are told to believe that Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum were able to mount campaigns good enough to compete with so little money, while Paul, with twice the money of Gingrich and 10 times more money than Santorum can’t get a single win in the primaries?
Santorum and Gingrich have either mounted the most successful campaigns in history so far as bang for the buck, or the primaries are entirely rigged. Yet no pundit, political paper, no one is talking about this?
Heck, I really just noticed it myself, and I like to think I’m informed. 😕
Hey Doug
Just curious, has there EVER been a politician at any level in government at any time that you have endorsed?
Anyone???
No.
Would you endorse me if I said I’d make an entire State of the Union address in doggerel poetry?
J.
I’ve not been elected yet, but that could change.
J.
My question is: Is there such thing as the Last Honest Politician/Elected Official Standing?
My issue is:
Nobody elected official Washington, in either Chamber, has been so bold as to call out any colleague on a public platform (TV, radio, or print)in such a profound way as to not only point the finger at a particular politician and expose them for abuse and exploitation of the American people, but to make the effort to bring some evidence along with them?
Because that’s not a practice…then those who know that don’t take public actions against those that are corrupt or have poor ethics…then they are just as guilty.
Oh, I’m sorry…what the hell was I thinking. They’ve made their own corruption legal in Washington. We’d be sent straight to hell, but what the heck, they deserve to engage their little indiscretions, no doubt. Welp, my bad. Sorry.
While I’m here. So people believe that Ron Paul might be the last good guy elected official standing in Washington?
Hmmmmm….
I’m sure that most all in Washington would love to be perceived as pristine as Dr. Paul.
Go Ron, Go! Might as well…your a god among men.
I have never bombed any country at all
I have never debased a currency
I have never supported the Fed
I could see about abolishing the IRS
I have never supported a bill that places guilt before innocence.
I have never detained anyone.
I have never sent troops overseas.
I follow the law of the USA.
Vote for Jon!
Jon: For a second I was hoping you’d posted this in Dr. Seuss rhyme. 🙂
Ask and ye shall receive…
I have never bombed Iraq
I have never formed a PAC
I would rather be found dead
than give a bailout to the Fed
I can keep it in my pants
Without the need for surveillance
But I will have to raise your tax
For what will we do when Mars Attacks?!
Vote for Jon!
Mike,
Rand Paul?
Wow, Dr Paul brings the Haters out of the woodwork. Nowhere did the “Author” mention Dr Paul returning $140K of his congressional budget. Name one person in Congress who matched or even came near to that. Name the ones who returned anything.
Author, “did you bother to find out all the facts regarding your statement, “Now we find out that his Congressional office and campaign operations were so lax that he double-billed taxpayers and campaign contributors for airline tickets.” or did you just copy and paste it from some other Haters “Hit Piece”.
In keeping the election tradition of voting for the lesser of evils (and taking into account the elections are most likely rigged) Ron Paul seems to be the lesser of the evils.
*The least likely to bomb a country using preemptive excuses.
*The least likely to continue our currency debasement and bailouts of undeserving institutions which gambled and lost.
*Ending the Fed
*Abolishing the “supposedly” temporary IRS.
*The least likely to continue supporting bills which consider American’s guilty until proven innocent (although thanks to the MCA, Patriot Act and NDAA there will be no trial but rather indefinite detention .. as in forever).
*Bringing the troops home and closing unnecessary military bases the world over.
*Ending foreign aid to all nations and keeping American taxpayer monies at home.
*Following the “supposed” law of the land the US Constitution
The same cannot be said for even ONE of the other candidates running for president. Not one.
He (Ron Paul) may pay full price for a plane ticket BUT he doesn’t have a liquor bill and private jet on the taxpayers dime (ala Pelosi).
Just sayin….
IF our vote still counts (which it most likely does not) Ron Paul is the lesser of the “pre-approved” evil choices the American populace has been left from which to choose.
While there are many who oppose his candidacy, at least Mr. Paul offers voters a choice besides voting for yet another “Republicrat”.
I say, the more candidates who advocate breaking up this far too powerful Republicrat duopoly, the better.
Mr. Paul didn’t “leave” the Republican Party. To the contrary, the Republican Party has left HIM (along with a number of the rest of us).
To Sandy:
Your post doesn’t make sense to me. You believe in his values but not his party affiliation? Not voting will never help this country.
What you should have said is that a large percentage of republicans lie, cheat, and steal from the American people daily.
Its the same point the author seemed to miss- most if not all or politicians are in bed with lobbyists or special interests- receiving money or other perks in exchange of selling the American public down the river.
They want to take our sons overseas to die, or money here to extend their comfort. Ron Paul wants to change that- and he gets my vote. I’ll overlook the small mistakes.
You say you can’t be a little dishonest? Romney has led about his opinions on republican issues multiple times. Gingrich cheated on his wives. Obama promised to end his fight with states on medicinal marijuana. The whole lot is dishonest. At least Paul says he will change something.
I really enjoyed this article as it shed light on some issues I was previously unaware of. I would really enjoy a similar article for each and everyone of the other republican candidates.
As voters we have the right to know all we can about the people running for office.
There is much about Ron Paul that I do not like. He became a Republican and that did him in, in my book.
My world of American values got stolen by the Catholic Church and neither party will get my vote. Without a choice of improvement, I see no need to vote at all.
I feel very sorry for Catholics and Evangelicals who need the government to legislate the rules by which they live. One man this morning on Morning Joe did not want his wife to be exposed to any Drug Store who would suggest birth control. Did he marry a truly stupid female? The Planned Parenthood, Republicans for Choice, and a hundred other groups will become active now and the choice of news for the masses (television) will be inundated with the best birth control the insurance companies can buy.
Ron Paul is no Ross Perot and lost me when he did not follow the scientific rules of evolution.
He has become the voice of the latest generation who have no respect for our federal government. The only way to improve America is to dump the GOP once and for all. Send them back to church and learn right from wrong. Santorum stated this morning that he will go after Romney until he crawls back to Salt Lake City. Good, let Santorum be the voice of the religious right and stand tall for a white supremacy America. It will prove my point that Christian Americans are bigots and racists.
“He has become the voice of the latest generation who have no respect for our federal government”
In order to gain respect, you must give it. Our government has done NOTHING to earn my, or anyone else’s respect. Unless of course you consider taking our rights away little by little in secret and waging war after war on the american people reasons for respect.
Thanks Cassie for your spot-on, “fire in the belly” demonstration of old time, down home moxie as to how our parasitic government is destroying the host; I.E., “We the People”. : |
Carl Nemo **==
I know huh Doug,
You sound like criminal lawyer, let’s prosecute and convict him of the crime!
That would solved all our trouble of criminal dishonesties, doesn’t it?
Oh wait, there’s more…
Of course, if Ron Paul’s followers are as skilled as they like to think they are, exit polling for the Presidency could show 49% for Governor Romney, 49% for President Obama, and 2% for Representative Paul, who nonetheless takes the electronically tabulated vote by 98% to 1% and 1% respectively…
*sour grin*
J.
Yeah, because the exit polling of the corporate media can’t be manipulated even though it has been in the past.
And typically we see this go exactly the other way, where the exit polls are largely for the populist candidate, but magically change over night and are explained away by finding additional data if there is any explanation at all.
Check out “Corporate Media Collusion in Vote Rigging” if you would like to learn more.
What’s important to take away is how it is accomplished:
1) manipulated public opinion polls
2) election day “exit polls”
3) computer-generated vote counts
Corporate entities control all three aspects. Is it any wonder that corporations are legally citizens with unlimited “free speech” via graft and no accountability or tax burden in many cases?
Um, actually, if you look at elections and those charged with monitoring them in the 3rd World, exit polls that dramatically differ from the result are considered pretty much impregnable evidence of fraud.
Citations upon request.
Jon
Yeah, and you probably believe color revolutions are completely spontaneous and driven internally by dissatisfied citizens.
Maybe you watched the Firdos Square, Iraq incident and believed it was multitude’s of Iraqi’s ripping down the Saddam statue and not a cordoned off event sponsored by the US military. This video doesn’t even indicate the sinister reasoning behind the media and government collusion in the lie. It simply points out it happened. Here’s a hint, this show
Maybe you believe we are in a recovery while jobs are lost, housing continues to decline, and banks continue to siphon off huge profits from the real economy.
Maybe you believe every vote counts while hundreds of thousands of votes are discarded, people leave in disgust at excessively long lines, and unverified machines with no paper trail tell us the winner.
Things are not what they appear to be and they have not been for a long time.
Hehe, I left out my hint: This media show was for the American audience back in the States. Does that tell you anything about how far your government and media will go?
Here is Firdos Square from start to finish showing how the psyops teams condoned off the square and called out the crowds. That whole censored images series is pretty good. I highly recommend watching each part.
Close your eyes and bury your heads in the sand ostriches. But realize you lose your claim to humanity in doing so. Just a bunch of crazy flightless birds clawing and pecking each other.
You have thrown the baby out with the bathwater.
There are events orchestrated and financed by vested interests (See: The Tea Bagged) and there are those that are not (Occupy some public space until the police throw you out).
They are not the same.
Jon
Trust is earned and I won’t depend on government or corporate media to tell me the truth as they have been proven to lie on numerous occasions. They no longer have credibility on any topic.
Deny… deny… deny…
https://www.theburningplatform.com/?p=29386
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