Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Republican Liberty Caucus endorses Rand Paul

Rand Paul wins support of GOP ‘liberty’ caucus - The Washington Post - David Wiegel:

January 12, 2015 - "The Republican Liberty Caucus, a 25-year old union of the GOP's libertarian-leaning activists, has endorsed Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) for president over Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.). Coming just hours before Paul gets a Senate vote on his legislation to audit the Federal Reserve, his campaign is calling this a victory in the 'liberty lane' of the Republican primary.

"'Senator Paul is the candidate of choice among our state charters and membership at large,' said RLC National Chairman Matt Nye in a Tuesday morning statement. 'Senator Paul has been a consistent favorite with our members since he announced his candidacy."

"As Paul's presidential campaign has worked to regain footing in the primary, it's beseeched libertarian-leaning Republicans not to join Cruz's bandwagon. That effort has largely succeed, with some close calls. In October, the Paul campaign worked hurriedly to win a straw poll at the RLC's New Hampshire-based convention, where Cruz made a surprise appearance. When a confusing two-ballot system handed Paul the win, Cruz's campaign declared partial victory anyway, noting that "51 percent" of the combined ballots were marked for Cruz.

"In the ensuing weeks, despite well-received debate performances, Paul continued to lag behind Cruz. On Jan. 3, RLC National Director Steve Hoffman told the blog Conservative Fifty that he was personally switching from Paul to Cruz....

"Paul has sharpened his rhetoric about Cruz; in a series of half-festive, half-revealing New Years tweets, he resolved 'to give @TedCruz more lead time before I announce my policy positions, so he can replicate them faster.' Had the RLC issued no endorsement, after endorsing Paul's father in the 2012 primaries, it would have hinted at serious defections from his base. But two-thirds of RLC members, many of whom entered or re-engaged with politics because of Ron Paul's presidential campaigns, prevented catastrophe.

"Cruz's campaign, which has alerted reporters to any defections from Paul's camp, was sanguine about the RLC vote....

"Paul's campaign, meanwhile, was boasting of an unconditional victory.

"'As the only liberty-minded candidate,' said Paul spokesman Sergio Gor, 'Senator Paul is very pleased and grateful to the Republican Liberty Caucus.'"

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/01/12/rand-paul-wins-support-of-gop-liberty-caucus/
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