Paul's New Direction

So Ron Paul officially ends one campaign while kicking off another.

Today he launched the "Campain for Liberty," an organization dedicated to:

1. Promoting candidates for public office who share our commitment to freedom.
2. Gaining a foothold in political life at every level of government by expanding our precinct leader program.
3. Educating the electorate and lobbying against harmful or unconstitutional legislation.
4. Encouraging the formation of discussion groups and book clubs at the local level to help people learn more about our ideas.
5. Establishing a speakers bureau to give presentations around the country about the great principles we champion.
6. Developing materials for homeschooling families, to help them educate their children in history, sound economics, and related fields.
7. Featuring written as well as video commentaries on the news and issues of the day.

To me what will determine the level of success of Paul's organization will be the extent to which he and his group's leadership are willing to integrate their core principles with the reality of 21st century American government. Paul had found quite a following over the last nine months, and his overarching message is one that now appeals to many right-wingers. But he ran almost an absurdist campaign based on infeasible, unrealistic policies. And of course he did so to make a point about the state of right-wing politics. But in order to effect real change, he'll have to take a more realistic approach to turning the right back towards its roots.