The Real Ron Paul Story: 8/19/2011 update

Rick Santorum is characterized in this Washington Post write-up by Jennifer Rubin as a principled conservative, which I think is a somewhat fair assessment. He is, on many issues, a faithful adherent to rightwing ideals. And he seems to legitimately believe in those ideals. I would argue that his foreign policy is neoconservative vice traditional or paleo-conservative, but my point is that the author is generally correct in that Santorum stands on the right politically on many issues.

She is also correct that his campaign is not receiving a lot of attention.

But her attempt to impugn Ron Paul's support to promote Santorum's is shameful.

Checkout the first sentence of Rubin's post:

The most ignored man in the presidential race isn’t Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.), whose rabid followers have elevated a marginal figure with untenable positions to the front pages of newspapers.

Is it really fair to call the second place finisher in the Ames Straw Poll "marginal" or his followers "rabid?" And what precisely about his positions is so untenable?

Is it the idea that the GOP needs to return to its American-centric policy of the past? Or that the Federal Reserve might not just be as helpful as Bernanke and friends make it sound? Or maybe it is the idea that the federal government is not supposed to control the everyday life of citizens (that is the issue Santorum seems to find most repugnant; the former Senator holds a strangely left wing view of the 10th Amendment which would allow Washington dictate morale standards to the states and people).

The reality is the status quo, even amongst conservatives, is not what the country needs right now. America voted for change in 2008 and now they really need it- and Ron Paul is the only real choice.