Thread: Ron Paul on the Issues

Obama vs Romney

Last Updated: 9/4

State	Pollster	Poll Date	Obama	Romney
National	Gallup Tracking	8/28-9/3	47%	46%
National	Rasmussen Tracking	8/28-9/3	45%	47%
Michigan	PPP	8/31-9/2	51%	44%
Colorado	PPP	8/31-9/2	49%	46%
Florida	PPP	8/31-9/2	48%	47%
North Carolina	PPP	8/31-9/2	48%	48%
North Carolina	High Point/SurveyUSA	8/26-8/30	43%	46%
North Carolina	Elon Univ./Charlotte Observer	8/25-8/30	43%	47%
Missouri	PPP	8/28-8/29	41%	53%
Michigan	EPIC MRA	8/28-8/28	49%	46%
National	Democracy Corps	8/23-8/27	49%	47%
Nevada	PPP	8/23-8/26	50%	47%
Iowa	PPP	8/23-8/26	47%	45%
National	CBS News	8/22-8/26	46%	45%
Connecticut	Quinnipiac	8/22-8/26	52%	45%

More Obama vs Romney »
Rasmussen Tracking »
Gallup Tracking »


Battleground States: Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania.
General Election? Read the Karl Rove Playbook

Presidential Polls for 2012 Election - Latest Political National Polls

Here Comes Blowback! Virgil Goode on Virginia Ballot Despite GOP challenge

Submitted by moth on Tue, 09/04/2012 - 21:52
Daily Paul Liberty Forum
Virginia

Constitution Party presidential candidate Virgil Goode is officially -- for now -- on the presidential ballot in Virginia, a battleground state where he has deep roots and poses a real threat to Republican Mitt Romney.

More:
http://washingtonexaminer.com/board-puts-goode-on-va.-ballot...

Here Comes Blowback! Virgil Goode on Virginia Ballot Despite GOP challenge | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Here is why people are wrong in supporting traitor Flip Flopney and Paul Ryan for President.

Submitted by sharkhearted on Tue, 09/04/2012 - 22:29
Daily Paul Liberty Forum
DP Original

My letter to Dixie-Paleocon, after their appropriately downvoted "reasons" for supporting the Romney/Ryan ticket.

You can see their post here:
http://www.dailypaul.com/252600/i-endorse-and-intend-to-vote...

UPDATE: Here is a reason #5): Anyone who can possibly vote this rigged, fraudulent ticket, including Senator Paul, is sacrificing their principles and bowing down to the throne of Prince Machiavelli.

Remember this video? RNC Sham 2012 - YouTube

1) You are voting against your principles...which kind of cancels out your principles....much like when your VP choice whored himself out on the Congressional floor in defense of TARP (!) to the "madame" Speaker, with one of the WORST breaches of logic in recent history:
The Truth about Paul Ryan - YouTube

2) You are choosing the "lesser of two evils" (much like Roosevelt sided with Stalin to defeat Hitler)....although, aside from the millions of unborn children slaughtered (which is bad enough), there are not scores of millions currently being starved to death in gulags and, in a lesser number simultaneously roasted in concentration camps in Germany and Poland.

So, in essence, the lesser of two evils is not applicable here because it all balances out. HEAR ME CAREFULLY HERE: Hayek wrote that socialism brings the natural outgrowth of fascism.

And while Flip-Flopney may (may) slow down the socialism (and really straight up communism and marxism of Obama), Flip-Flopney will be powerless to slow down the FASCISM....as he is bought out by the same corporatist overlords that bought out and paid for Obama in 2008.

{And I don't need to refer you to opensecrets.org so you can see who the donors are/were....as I am sure you probably already know who they are.]

The sheer evils of the presidential-assasination wielding, ULTRA neo-con betrayer named Barak Hussein Obama...are now balanced out by the fact that the Romney campaign is now saying that Obama is too weak on foreign policy(!).

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000087239639044450600457761...

HUH?

(How does that offend your principles, Dixie-paleocon, with this bastardization of the peace-loving Old Right? Yeah I thought so. It offends mine, too.)

3) Paul Ryan voted for the NDAA, and then voted AGAINST (against! )the repeal of sections 1021 and 1022 of the NDAA.

He is no Ayn Rand disciple. Nor is he a "conservative". Voted for Medicare Part D, TARP, and the bailouts.

http://www.dailypaul.com/249218/paul-ryans-atrocious-record-...

4) Flip Flopney has a similar and equally sordid record.
Mitt Romney - Yes I would Sign NDAA - YouTube

I am not sure what further incontrovertible evidence you need but for all of the foregoing, you are wrong wrong wrong on this...and DULY downvoted.

For Lady Liberty,
Chris
Norfolk, VA

Here is why people are wrong in supporting traitor Flip Flopney and Paul Ryan for President. | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Farewell Ron Paul ...thanks for the ride!

Submitted by dexterszyd on Wed, 09/05/2012 - 11:12
Daily Paul Liberty Forum
DP Original

Ron Paul,
About 5 years ago I was walking down a dirt road in a dense fog. I was not the only one. There were so many of us lost and wandering down this road but we took comfort in being together in the same predicament. We would pass familiar signs and landmarks keeping us moving forward and reenforcing our way on the right path.

We were all too afraid to leave the road not knowing exactly what might be out there. I recall other saying if we veered or took a different path we would be sure to starve, freeze or worse.

As I was walking along the shoulder of this road something caught my attention down in a ravine. It was dim light flickering through the fog. I was comfortable up on the road but something inside me poked at my curiosity. A small group of fellows along the roadside were beckoning me to head down the ravine. They were the outcasts that we were told of...We just had it engrained in our heads that these people were fringe and crazy. But something happened to me. something called me. So when no one was looking I stepped off the road into the brush. It was the biggest moment of my life.

Little did I know that first step was off a steep grade of rocks, mud, thorns, thicket and tree branches. I must have slid a quarter of a mile or so tearing up my arms, legs and hitting my head. Up above on the road I could hear insults of how stupid I was, how I was a kook and then laughter. I tried to climb back up but realized it was useless.

Once at the bottom of this ravine I found you. You were holding a lantern on the edge of a dock where a raft was waiting with a few others that left the road. I was confused and in disbelief. You reached out and grabbed me, and helped me on the way to the raft. You showed me how the road I was following was a vicious circle full of deceit. You explained the best paths to take to break the cycle and forge a new path.

We set out over the body of water into the blackness. There were all sorts of creepy things along the way. Rough water, snakes, wind and hail. You never changed course. You stood firm and pointed this vessel to a point of light that was getting brighter and brighter as we approached.

Ahead was a beautiful sunrise penetrating the fog and trees. Once we made landfall we stepped off into a green meadow with spring buds and fresh aquifers running over the smooth rocks sparkling in the sunlight.

Over the course of the next 5 years, I made this trip back and forth with you. I stood upon the road and beckoned others. Each day you stepped onto that raft to head over to the dirt road to rescue more. Day in , day out, you were tireless.

Today I woke up to join you on the raft when I realized you were not coming. You had taken your last trip. As I pushed off to head into the blackness like we always have it hit me. This is what you wanted from us all along. We are now the raftsmen in the sea of despair. We are multiplying and rescuing more and more people. More than any one man could do. You have created an army of enlighten men and women.

You deserve to stay on shore. You did your part. I must say I am a bit sad to see you stay. I don't know how I can ever repay you. You have changed my life forever and the seed you planted will grow in my children and children's children for many years to come.

Salute Ron Paul!

The rEVOLution lives inside all of us and we are only getting stronger.

DEX

Farewell Ron Paul ...thanks for the ride! | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Vote Gary Johnson and not Obama,Romney or write in Ron Paul

Submitted by tuggy24g on Wed, 09/05/2012 - 04:42

View image: 199040 225780044215677 1818180835 n

Ron Paul supporters please hear me out on this. Ron Paul and Ron Paul supporters (also Liberty minded people) have worked hard this election cycle. We fought the media, statue Quo, and different people through out the country. We worked to hard to let the Republicans and Mitt Romney campaign take it all away from us.

So here is what I think we should all do to show how angry we are towards the Republican party and Romney. We should all rally together and vote Gary Johnson. That way we can boost him up on the polls. See a Libertarian party has not gotten more then 1% of the vote in any election.

Even when Ron Paul ran in 1988. So if we can get them anywhere from 5-10% voting that would show how angry we are with the two party system and especially Republican party! Since all the polls show only a 1-7% difference in every state are vote to Gary Johnson this election cycle could be big. Also since Gary Johnson has no chance to win why not use your vote as a protest vote to show how angry we are. Also to show that Ron Paul supporters are a tight niche group of people of that will not compromise are values to support a candidate in the same party.

Ron Paul supporters vote Gary Johnson and not write in Ron Paul - YouTube

Vote Gary Johnson and not Obama,Romney or write in Ron Paul | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Video: Ron Paul Rides Off Into the Sunset (Literally)

Submitted by P.Au.L on Wed, 09/05/2012 - 07:48
Ron Paul 2012

After Dr. Paul's appearance on the Jay Leno show, 9-4-2012:



Video: Ron Paul Rides Off Into the Sunset (Literally) | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Peter Schiff 'Undercover' At The DNC (Video)/ Democrats: Let's Ban Profits!

Submitted by myajace on Wed, 09/05/2012 - 20:30
Videos
Idea



Peter Schiff 'Undercover' At The DNC (Video)/ Democrats: Let's Ban Profits! | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

Morton Blackwell on the VILE Rules Changes at RNC Convention

Submitted by ausscyn on Wed, 09/05/2012 - 16:05
Daily Paul Liberty Forum
Nevada

From: Morton Blackwell
To: Members of The Republican National Committee
Date: Mon, Sep 3, 2012 at 3:12 PM
Subject: My Thoughts on the Rule’s Controversy

Dear Fellow RNC Member,
Now that the national convention is over, many delegates and others have asked me to sum up my views on the controversy at the convention regarding The Rules of the Republican Party and where we should go from here.

What happened regarding the party rules in Tampa was a totally unnecessary – but largely successful attempt – to concentrate and centralize more power at the top of the party and restrict or shut off opportunities for power in the party to flow from the bottom up.

The effort was led by Ben Ginsberg, a member of the Convention Rules Committee from Washington, D.C., who represented himself as the spokesman for Mitt Romney’s Presidential Campaign.

Earlier this year, Mr. Ginsberg worked for the Presidential Campaign of Michele Bachmann. In Tampa, he led the effort to make major changes in the party rules strongly opposed by Congresswoman Bachmann.

Mr. Ginsberg is simply a man unencumbered by principles.

For four years, the Republican National Committee’s Standing Committee on Rules carefully reviewed The Rules of the Republican Party and adopted changes to propose for adoption by the national convention.

Then the Republican National Committee voted unanimously to approve the new rules proposed by its Standing Committee on Rules and sent them on to the Convention Rules Committee.

Enter Ben Ginsberg.

At the Convention Rules Committee meeting, he proceeded to introduce and support many amendments to the newly-revised rules which had been approved the previous day by the RNC.

The changes he proposed shared a common theme: to concentrate and centralize more power at the top of the party, and to shut off opportunities for power in the party to flow from the bottom up.

Since these rules changes would go into effect for the 2016 presidential election cycle, none of Mr. Ginsberg’s power grabs would in any way help us elect Mitt Romney and defeat President Barack Obama in November.

And I’m sure you agree defeating Obama should be our top priority this Election Year.

But Ben Ginsberg’s efforts predictably enraged conservative Republicans who treasure the protections long incorporated in our national party rules.

The record will show that during the Conventions Rules Committee meeting, as a member of that Committee from Virginia, I repeatedly warned Mr. Ginsberg that his power grabs would hurt the Romney campaign by outraging grassroots conservative and libertarian activists whom we want to support our candidates this year.

Unfortunately, Mr. Ginsberg continued on his path.

There are some folks who, if you give them a fur coat, think they’re King Kong.

As anyone with relevant experience should have foreseen, when the Rules Committee report was presented for consideration to the National Convention, a thunderous “NO!” vote arose from the convention floor.

Most of the news media and those of us in the convention hall agree that the vote on adopting the Rules was obviously close. Some believe the “NO” vote was louder, but Speaker Boehner ruled that the “ayes” had it.

I was the youngest elected Goldwater delegate at the 1964 national convention. I have attended every national convention since, and I’ve represented Virginia on the RNC since 1988.

Nothing like this has ever happened before in living memory at a Republican National Convention.

When they were presumptive Presidential nominees – and when they were Presidents of the United States – neither George H.W. Bush nor George W. Bush ever attempted to undermine the means by which power within the Republican Party structure can rise from the bottom up.

The operatives whom the Romney campaign put in charge of Rules matters seem to want the power to rule the national Republican Party, as Nelson Rockefeller used to run the New York State Republican Party.

These operatives should be repudiated – and it’s not too late to do so.

Later in this email, I’ll discuss some of the awful changes Mr. Ginsberg supported.

But first, it’s necessary to stress how important I believe it is to elect Mitt Romney and defeat Barack Obama in November.

My wife and I have supported Republican candidates every year in our 40-year marriage. This year, my wife and I have contributed at least five times as much money to Romney Victory, Inc. as we have ever given to any other campaign.

Four years ago, I predicted in a posting which still can be seen on the website RedState, how bad a President Barack Obama would be.

He has been even worse than I predicted.

Barack Obama is a leftist ideologue who has filled his Administration with other leftist ideologues, and their policies are bankrupting our country and destroying many of our liberties.

Mitt Romney strongly supports conservative principles – and he would undo the damage Obama has done.

He would end the slide into national bankruptcy, restore threatened liberties, and put our country on the path toward economic growth and more job opportunities.

It’s little short of tragic that some of his operatives blundered by setting up an entirely unnecessary, major controversy with grassroots Republicans at our national convention.

Undoubtedly, the worst power grab initiated by Mr. Ginsberg was his ramming through a change in the Rules of the Republican Party, a new Rule 12, which permits the Republican National Committee to change national rules between conventions.

The Democrats have had such a rule for years, and those in power in their party spend the periods between their national conventions fighting in their national committee over rules changes to benefit this or that faction, or this or that potential presidential nominee.

We Republicans have avoided that by prohibiting changes in the rules between our national conventions.

The office of the RNC Chairman is – and has to be – very powerful. A National Committee of 168 members, which meets for a few hours two or three times a year, can’t micro-manage the RNC.

The RNC Chairman has the immense power of the purse and a large staff to influence the decisions of the RNC, so an RNC Chairman can get the votes of a super-majority of the RNC for just about anything he or she desires.

But until now, the fact that the RNC Chairman must abide by stable party rules has served as the main protection for input by grassroots conservatives and libertarians.

For practical purposes, the new Rule 12 adds to the power of the RNC Chairman (or to the White House when there’s a Republican President) the ability to change party rules at will.

Over a number of election cycles, our party has struggled to avoid the front-loading of our delegate selection process, moving us closer and closer to a single national primary as states race to the head of the line to hold their primaries.

Yet prudence dictates that there should be a reasonably long nomination process in order to properly vet all of our candidates.

After special studies and much consultation, many serious party leaders finally came up with a workable solution. Party rules were changed in this cycle to prohibit winner-take-all primaries in March of presidential election years.

March primaries had to in some way allocate delegate votes proportionally to the popular vote.

The new system worked, and Mitt Romney is a better presidential candidate because of that experience.

Mr. Ginsberg gutted the hard-won reform by ramming through a change in the rules to permit winner-take-all primaries in March.

When I asked him why he did this, he replied to me, “It wasn’t our idea. We did it as a favor for some friends.”
That’s a far cry from a process in which the best interests of our party are carefully discussed and considered.

I have innumerable times over the years recruited new participants into the Republican Party by stressing the fairness, openness, and stability of our Republican rules compared to those of the Democratic Party.

The way to treat newcomers to our party is fairly, politely, and even cordially.

That’s what we do in Virginia. And that’s how to build and sustain a majority party.

Among the many still-not-publicized rules changes rammed through the Convention Rules Committee by Mr. Ginsberg was one to raise from five to eight the number of states a presidential candidate would have to win in the nomination contests in order to have his or her name formally placed in nomination before the convention.

Raising the bar was a gratuitous slap at prospective new participants in our nomination process.

Despite his success in recruiting new volunteers, Congressman Ron Paul won a majority of the delegate votes in nowhere near five states this year.

To discuss all the power grabs the rules suffered this year would be tedious in a letter, so let me mention only some of them, including the one which resulted in a “compromise.”

Mr. Ginsberg got the Convention Rules Committee to pass a rule change which would allow presidential candidates to remove national convention delegates who were legally elected under the party rules and laws of the respective states. This caused such a furor that a Minority Report to the Rules Committee Report seemed certain.

That would have forced a debate on the convention floor and a vote of the entire convention body.

A valid Minority Report required the support of 28 members – or 25% – of the Convention Rules Committee. Well over 35 signatures were certain, despite all available arm-twisting of Mr. Ginsberg and those who supported him on everything else.

State parties, including Virginia’s, fiercely defended their right to elect their own delegates. The “compromise” was for Mr. Ginsberg to agree to take out the provision which would have given candidates the power to disavow and remove legally elected delegates.

In place of that obnoxious provision was inserted a guarantee that delegate votes would go to candidates who won those delegate votes in binding presidential primaries, a matter which would have been routinely enforced under the existing rules.

Conservatives continued to mount efforts to file two Minority Reports, but in the end, enough Rules Committee members were persuaded not to sign them or to remove their signatures.

Neither had the required 28 signatures and one wound up with 27 valid signatures.

Therefore no Minority Reports reached the convention floor.

I should mention that Mr. Ginsberg moved one rules change which would have required the signatures of 40% of future Convention Rules Committees for a Minority Report to be considered on the convention floor.

That would have rendered future Minority Reports virtually impossible because the signatures would have to be obtained and the Minority Report filed within one hour of the adjournment of the Convention Rules Committee.

The opposition to this attempted power grab was so intense that Mr. Ginsberg withdrew his motion.

There circulated in the media coverage of the Tampa convention a report that a late and wayward bus deliberately prevented the Virginia Delegates from arriving at the convention hall in time for me to take part in the final (usually pro-forma) meeting of the Convention Rules Committee held as the convention began.

It is true that our Virginia bus got our delegation to the convention hall after the Convention Rules Committee meeting adjourned. But I never for a minute believed our bus had been deliberately delayed.

One should not attribute to conspiracy what can adequately be explained by incompetence. You will recall that staggeringly bad transportation arrangements inconvenienced most of the states’ delegations that day.

All in all, in most ways our 2012 convention was a roaring success.

We presented great speeches by Mitt Romney and his brilliant choice for running mate, Paul Ryan. Other great speeches by Anne Romney, Marco Rubio, and a galaxy of others put our party’s best feet forward. The 2012 Republican Platform clearly expressed our conservative and liberty-loving principles.

My strong advice is for all of us to work tirelessly and give generously to our national campaign. Everything is on the line this year.

And there’s another reason for solid conservatives to contribute more time and money now.

I believe we shall win this election, and then there’s the important matter of staffing a new Administration.

I worked full-time in the Presidential Personnel Office of President-elect Ronald Reagan and then for three years on his White House staff.

Personnel is policy.

An incoming administration tends to hire people who contributed significantly to winning the election.

If we expect a new President to hire a lot of principled conservatives and libertarians, we should maximize the number of principled conservatives and libertarians who have credentialed themselves by taking part in the Mitt Romney campaign.

And then, in 2016 we can work to repeal the current Rule 12 – and reverse the other mistakes incorporated in the new rules last week.

Cordially,
Morton Blackwell
National Committeeman, Virginia

Morton Blackwell on the VILE Rules Changes at RNC Convention | Peace . Gold . Liberty | Revolution

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

By Chuck Baldwin
September 6, 2012
NewsWithViews.com

Believe it or not, I was thinking that my column of two weeks ago was my last column in which I would focus on Congressman Ron Paul--that was before the Republican National Convention in Tampa took place. I have never seen such a disgusting display of chicanery and duplicity in all of my life. So, in spite of the fact that I have written so much about The Greatest Congressman In US History (my title for Ron Paul), here I go again.

First, a report on Paul Fest: I was honored to be one of the featured speakers for the event, which drew thousands of Ron Paul supporters from all over the country. I was able to meet and speak with hundreds of these wonderful people, as they came up to me before and after I spoke.

Not only was I surprised at how many of these people read this column, but how many are watching our Sunday services that we livestream each Sunday afternoon. I am convinced that there are hundreds of thousands of patriot Christians who are fed up with mainstream churches and pastors, who are hungering and thirsting for patriot pastors who know what's going on and are not afraid to speak the truth. Not able to find such pastors where they live, they are tuning in to our services on the Internet.

The service at Liberty Fellowship is broadcast live each Sunday at approximately 2:30pm Mountain Time. To access the service live this Sunday, click here.

To watch my archived messages online, click here.

Next, the thought of Ron Paul no longer being our champion on Capitol Hill is extremely disconcerting! There is sadness in my heart at Dr. Paul's departure from Congress that I don't think I've ever felt. The only instance I can think of that comes close is when Helen Chenoweth of Idaho term-limited herself in order to fulfill her word of honor to her constituents. (It was even sadder to hear of her untimely death a few years ago.) But Dr. Paul's absence in Congress will leave a void that is difficult to describe. Suffice it to say, as Congress is currently comprised, there is no one on Capitol Hill who comes close to taking his place. But it is the way that this champion of liberty was treated by the GOP establishment that has my blood boiling!

Anyone who has paid any attention to what the Republican Party has done to Ron Paul and his supporters must be thoroughly outraged at the injustice and injurious treatment inflicted, not only upon Ron and his followers, but also upon the integrity of a free and fair political process. In short, we don't have a free and fair political process in America anymore! What we have is a Soviet-style political apparatus that thrives on manipulation, intimidation, and downright dishonesty.

The RNC was so blatantly manipulative and crooked that the Republican governor of Maine, Paul LePage, justifiably boycotted the convention--and the Maine Ron Paul delegation understandably all left in protest. The video tribute the RNC played at the convention in honor of Congressman Paul (while very good as far as it went) was shown in an attempt to placate Ron's millions of supporters.

However, in actuality it was the height of hypocrisy, as the RNC had pulled out every underhanded and unethical trick in the book in order to make sure that Ron Paul was never given a chance to prevail as the Republican nominee for President. Of course, the national propaganda press corps was a willing accomplice to the RNC destruction of Ron's campaign.

But the establishment's ultimate insult to the twelve-term congressman occurred as Ron Paul and his wife tried to leave Tampa using a private plane. Lew Rockwell posted this: "Ron, Carol, and one of their granddaughters left the GOP snake pit yesterday afternoon, but the State was not yet through with them. At the little airport in Clearwater, 8 TSA agents descended on them and ordered them not to board their private plane. First, the pilots, the airplane, and the passengers would have to be screened in great detail, because Romney might be nearby. After a long examination of the pilots and their credentials, the agents said they had to check the plane for explosives.

One of the pilots noted that the plane, full of gas, was already a bomb. Then Carol Paul, who has a heart pacemaker, refused to be screened, and an aide started taking video of the whole rotten proceeding. At that point, the TSA backed down and let them through."

Such is the way a totalitarian-state-in-the-making treats a 76-year-old congressman with more than two decades of seniority and three-time candidate for President of the United States! Welcome to the United Soviet Socialist America!

Now, with millions of so-called Christians and conservatives lining up in support of the phony conservative Mitt Romney, the American people are once again left with the choice of Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum. No, I don't buy the "anybody-but-Obama" mantra, either!

In many ways, an unprincipled, compromising pseudo-conservative Republican is worse than an obviously liberal Democrat.

The patriots of 1776 had far more to fear from Benedict Arnold than they did King George. An enemy easily identified is much less formidable than one who marches in the uniform of an ally.

That being said, where do we go from here?

Regardless who is elected President in November, nothing will be done to stop, or even slow down, America's lust for foreign entanglements and wars. And that means nothing will be done to stop or slow down the burgeoning police state that is enveloping our nation. By 2016, there won't be many liberties left in this country, regardless which party captures the White House. That is an absolute certainty!

With the approbation and blessing of both Romney and Obama, the police and warfare states--not to mention the size and growth of government--will continue to accelerate at an unprecedented scale.

At this point, I am going to borrow from notable researcher and analyst Joel Skousen. In my opinion, his analysis regarding the "Where are we going" question is absolutely spot on. Here I share with readers Skousen's sagacity. My condensed version of his comments follows.

"1) The [American] people are no longer worthy of liberty. Americans as a whole are soft, materialistic and too content with life to fight, let alone recognize the loss of liberty. As long as they are allowed to go to church and buy what they want, they think they are free. But the noose is tightening.

The youth are even softer, so the trend is in the wrong direction. Americans may still consider themselves a religious people, but religion, for the most part, doesn't change their little bad habits, so at some point their religion is not leading to righteousness. They stop listening to the refining voice of conscience. Religious people don't even honor the Sabbath anymore.

"To the Lord, listening to the personal promptings of conscience is where the real test of religiosity lies and most Christians are chronic violators of conscience in the 'little things' relative to weight control, nutrition, recreation choices, use of time and failure to discipline children. Trouble is, this callous disregard for the 'still small voice' leads to bigger problems and worse decisions. That is why immorality and divorce are high even among church goers. There are notable exceptions, but in general America is getting more unworthy to be saved by God.

"2) Americans are lazy about finding truth. Today, more than ever with the vast information on the web, the truth is out there (except for most of the deepest and darkest secrets of conspiracy), and if people don't find it, something is wrong with them relative to the workings of conscience and self control. That's my point. Far too many people have become immune to the faint warning signals that something is wrong, or if they do hear it, they are too busy searching for material welfare to care.

"[3] States have become corrupt too: It is only partially true that state and local governments are easier to reform than the federal government. All state governments have corruption problems and some states like California, Illinois and New York have corruption machines that rival the mafia. Most large cities are also totally corrupt inside. That said, some states are clearly less corrupt than others, but there is an establishment good 'old boy network, closely allied with the liberal press in every major city that works together to make sure than no Ron Paul or free market revolutionary gains control.

"What about the God is in Control argument? Optimistic Christian conservatives always throw out the argument that 'God is in Control' and so we don't have to worry. He has the power to change things. As a believer, I agree. He does have the power. But the real question is will He intervene to save us? And, is America worthy of being saved by God? I don't think so anymore. That doesn't mean all is lost for everyone, but it does point to us heading for a great period of tribulation and the loss of liberty at the national level as it morphs into the NWO. I'm a religious person, and keep my eyes open constantly searching for signs that God is intervening as he did in the nation's founding-- allowing a set of leaders to rise to positions of influence where they can turn the tide, or even allowing major financing to come to principled people so they can bypass the establishment media, or schools, and fund a national movement to renew America. Nothing has happened. The big money only goes to ineffective or mainstream causes. We do have ample numbers of great thinkers with ideals and principles as profound as America's founders, but none have been allowed to rise in power. Ron Paul got the closest. Those ministers who have achieved great wealth and fame in televangelism have done so by singing the easy gospel that people want to hear. Those that have been granted access to the White House prayer breakfast meetings during the Bush administration were those who refused to speak up or criticize the big government or war agenda. All the real champions of freedom have been left on the sidelines.

Ron Paul is the only one to even get close to a run at the presidency and he has been shut down--but not without building the movement.

I've seen God's hand helping to gather the remnant, but no indications of any real optimism toward beating the mammoth evil that is growing even faster than the Liberty Movement.

"Considering the overwhelming moral evil in our nation that burdens the Lord's sense of justice, I think He is bound to let the sword of justice fall. You can't just manufacture specific faith in a proposed event by hope only or wishful thinking. For specific faith in a hoped for event to be valid, you have to have the spiritual confirmation that it is the Lord's will, and that must come from God and not rosy-eyed optimism. While the Lord might certainly want the nation to be saved, God himself cannot arbitrarily disregard the decree of justice upon which the universe operates. Only upon terms of repentance and change of heart can condemnation be averted, and I don't see that happening. I'm keeping an open heart and mind that it might, but the signs aren't good.

But is Skousen's conclusion that truly speaks to my heart. He writes:"We can still fight for liberty to gain a minority foothold within the nation--a resistance movement, if you will, even if we can't win back the whole. But when you are dealing with a minority of good people, to exercise any power at all, you have to congregate together so that you have a majority in a region or local area. Our greatest problem in a losing battle of attrition is that we are spread out uniformly across the nation--dispersed in a sea of humanity where none of us constitute a majority.

"If there is any hope for liberty it will be because pockets of liberty and resistance form during the next war when government itself is busy saving itself and not targeting freedom-loving dissidents--yet. I think you'll see the time, when crisis comes that the social unrest will drive people out of their current places and the Lord will inspire those who can listen to go to places of refuge where other like-minded people are also gathering. Some will be inspired to go to safe places before the crisis, and if you are one of those, heed the promptings."

My take differs only slightly from Skousen's: I believe when the crisis comes, people will not be able to relocate, which is why the Lord is inspiring people to relocate NOW, and why the gathering of eagles is already taking place here in Montana's Flathead Valley and in other places.

To subscribe to Joel Skousen's World Affairs Brief (highly recommended), click here.

If my understanding of scriptures is close to accurate, one of the signs that God is giving a nation or people over to judgment is a dearth of principled leadership. Ron Paul's departure from Congress--along with the way the Republican Party, the national media, and the American people as a whole, rejected his message of liberty and constitutional government--make it appear that judgment has already begun.

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© 2012 Chuck Baldwin - All Rights Reserved

Chuck Baldwin is a syndicated columnist, radio broadcaster, author, and pastor dedicated to preserving the historic principles upon which America was founded. He was the 2008 Presidential candidate for the Constitution Party. He and his wife, Connie, have 3 children and 8 grandchildren. Chuck and his family reside in the Flathead Valley of Montana. See Chuck's complete bio here.

E-mail: chuck@chuckbaldwinlive.com

Website: ChuckBaldwinLive.com

Chuck Baldwin -- Where Do We Go From Here?