Does anyone have information on Rep Paul from Texas

[jackster]

http://www3.capwiz.com/usatoday/bio/?id=567&lvl=C&chamber=H

In reading the dissenting votes in Congress this week, I noted that he stood out as a constant no. Although a rethug, he seems to have no problem bucking the staus quo.

[Richardo]

1. He's a staunch Libertarian

Runs as Republican because, you know, he's a Libertarian.

In Texas.

[crispini]

2. He's, basically, a maverick.

I like him.

[musette_sf]

3. Libertarian

associated with the Republican Liberty Caucus. This is the scheme where the Libertarians went "fishing where the fish are". Gee, I'll bet that scheme isn't working out so well.

[salvorhardin]

4. Ron Paul

is a libertarian and former Libertarian Party presidential candidate in 1988. There's a good article on him at wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Paul

You may also be interested in this floor speech he gave to Congress on April 22, 2004.
http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2004/cr042204.htm

Many true Libertarians hate the NeoCons as much as we do and on top of it, free market ideology aside, they're pretty rational people. I've thought for a long time that the Democrats could work with these people.

[jackster]

5. I got that he was probably

libertarian.

And agree, that while polar opposites on some issues, there are many points with which liberals and libertarians agree and should join together on.

What is his popularity in his home district now?

[pacalo]

6. I like his thinking...

George Orwell wrote about “meaningless words” that are endlessly repeated in the political arena. Words like “freedom,” “democracy,” and “justice,” Orwell explained, have been abused so long that their original meanings have been eviscerated. In Orwell’s view, political words were “Often used in a consciously dishonest way.” Without precise meanings behind words, politicians and elites can obscure reality and condition people to reflexively associate certain words with positive or negative perceptions. In other words, unpleasant facts can be hidden behind purposely meaningless language. As a result, Americans have been conditioned to accept the word “democracy” as a synonym for freedom, and thus to believe that democracy is unquestionably good.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul233.html

[jackster]

8. I too read that

This is the kind of republican I can have a measure of respect for and want to work with

he is not neoconservative or a christo-fascist - the two factions which now control the GOP

[slipslidingaway]

7. He introduced this in January, Parental Consent Act of 2005

to make sure that parental consent is obtained before any mental health screening. HR 181

http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2005/tst013105.htm

"Accordingly, the first bill I introduced this year bill forbids federal funds from being used for any mental-health screening of students without the express, written, voluntary, informed consent of their parents. The bill is known as “The Parental Consent Act of 2005,” or HR 181. This legislation strikes a vital blow for parents who oppose government interference with their parental authority, and strengthens the fundamental right of parents to direct and control the upbringing and education of their children.

It is important to understand that powerful interests, namely federal bureaucrats and pharmaceutical lobbies, are behind the push for mental health screening in schools. There is no end to the bureaucratic appetite to run our lives, and the pharmaceutical industry is eager to sell psychotropic drugs to millions of new customers in American schools. Only tremendous public opposition will suffice to overcome the lobbying and bureaucratic power behind the president’s New Freedom Commission.

Your help is needed. Please tell everyone you know about HR 181, and ask them to call their representatives and senators in Washington to voice strong opposition to forced mental health screening. Demand that the Department of Health and Human Services receive no tax dollars in this year’s appropriation bill for screening programs, and that states receive no federal dollars for programs of their own. Refer to my congressional website for articles from September 2004 about mental health screening, and sobering statistics about anti-depressant drugs and kids in the text of HR 181. Most of all, talk with your friends, family, and colleagues about the underlying issue of whether the state owns your kids. Remind them that freedom can be maintained only when state power is limited, especially when it comes to fundamental freedoms over our bodies and minds."

Other articles, speeches etc.

http://www.house.gov/paul/

[BuyingThyme]

9. Ron Paul is the real deal.

He told the world about the Neocon/PNAC plan for global domination long before 9/11.

He stands up against fascist imperialism to a greater extent than does ANY Democratic rep. (And that's disgusting.)

[jackster]

10. so does anyone think he'll run for the Senate in '06?

[crispini]

11. That particular rumor has not made the rounds yet.

But all the good scuttlebutt gets posted in the Texas forum, so check there occasionally.