Last
week I attended the 2012 Texas Republican Convention in Fort Worth, Texas. I
was a delegate for SD 29/CD 16. The convention started off well since I got to
listen to Ron Paul speak twice on the first day, once during the convention and
again at a concert later that evening. It was a thrilling experience to say the
least because Fort Worth was filled with enthusiastic Ron Paul supporters from
all over Texas. It was made apparent by the creative Ron Paul attire, bumper
stickers, signs, super brochures, pocket Constitutions, and freedom corvette! If
any of us were incognito, it must have been a small minority. Anyway, it is
always a pleasure to be surrounded by other enthusiastic Ron Paul supporters
because, since we share the same fervidness for the message, I feel normal
again!
After
the concert, though, I was disturbed by the rumor that Rand Paul had endorsed
Mitt Romney. Since I was out having dinner with fellow Ron Paul delegates,
enjoying the closing of our first day at the convention, I disregarded the
rumor. However, I was not able to ignore it for long because my twitter
timeline had blown up with tweets about it. So, I watched the infamous
interview with Sean Hannity and confirmed its truth. The news was obviously
disappointing because it was completely unexpected. I decided not to bad mouth
Rand Paul simply out of respect for Ron Paul. Since I would not appreciate
somebody speaking badly about one of my family members, I assumed Ron Paul
would not either.
In
the morning, I was able to process the situation a little better. After
listening to Jack Hunter’s take on Rand’s endorsement and speaking to other Ron
Paul supporters, I was able to come to terms with it. As I was sitting in a
small conference room, awaiting my SD caucus to begin, I pulled out my legal
pad and wrote two quotes on it.
“Any soldier knows that you
have to strategically lose some battles to win the war.”
“Elections are short-term
goals, revolutions are long-term projects.”
When
bad news arises, I try to remain positive. But I could not help thinking that
Rand Paul’s timing was horrible. How could he announce his endorsement for
Romney the very first day of the Texas Republican Convention? Didn’t he know
that my friends and I had invested so much time, money, and effort in making
our way to Fort Worth to become delegates for his father? Why did he have to
rain on our parade?
Now
that I have had time to process this a little more, I realize that there is
never a good time to deliver bad news. Rand Paul did what he had to do, and in
hindsight, it was perfect timing. In fact, being around Ron Paul supporters at
the Texas Republican Convention was very therapeutic because the Ron Paul signs
and stickers did not go away. Nothing changed from the day before other than
Rand Paul’s endorsement. This is great because it is a type of foreshadowing.
Our positions and involvement in the Republican Party are independent of the
outcome of the election! Republicans often questions Ron Paul supporters about
what we are going to do or where we are going to go once the election is over.
Personally, I am not going anywhere. You will see me at your GOP meetings,
parades, and the next convention in two years. While I admire and have nothing
but respect for Dr. Ron Paul, I realize that the message is greater than the
man. And that is a compliment to the message because Ron Paul is a valuable,
rare man.
I
had plenty of conversations with Ron Paul supporters from other districts in
Texas, and I perceived that we were all on the same page. The message Ron Paul
champions is truly the goal of this revolution. Even though the chances of Ron
Paul being our next president are getting slimmer and slimmer, he will always
remain the man that inspired an intellectual revolution. Promoting freedom on
all levels and teaching about the importance of adhering to the U.S.
Constitution should remain amongst our main goals. Oh, and of course auditing
and ending the Federal Reserve. END THE FED!
Ron
Paul has been championing his message of freedom (e.g., free market capitalism,
freedom of religion, small government, etc) for almost 40 years. Most of us
have barely scraped the surface of this message, but that should only motivate
us to continue educating others and ourselves. You cannot always get what you
want but you can choose to appreciate the good that has occurred as a result of
him running for president. I cannot deny that I had hoped Ron Paul would become
the next president of the United States, but now I can see that what he has
done is far more valuable. He reignited the revolution our Founding Fathers
began over 200 years ago.
“It’s not like I’m just
trying to win and get elected. I’m trying to change the course of history.” –
Ron Paul
