Ron Paul 1988 presidential campaign
Ron Paul for President 1988 | |
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Campaign | U.S. presidential election, 1988 |
Candidate | Ron Paul U.S. Representative from Texas (1976–1977) (1979–1985) (1997-2013) |
Affiliation | Libertarian Party |
Key people | Andre Marrou (running mate) |
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U.S. Representative from Texas
Presidential campaigns
Published works
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The Ron Paul presidential campaign of 1988 began in early 1987 when former
Paul defeated Native American activist Russell Means at the Libertarian Party's National Convention in Seattle to win the party's presidential nomination. Former Alaska State representative Andre Marrou was selected as his running mate. After over a year of campaigning as the Libertarian Party nominee, Paul received very little media coverage and was excluded from presidential debates. On Election Day, he was on the ballot in 46 states and the District of Columbia, and finished in third place with approximately 0.5% of the vote, behind Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis and the winner Vice President George H. W. Bush.
Background
Paul was elected to
In January 1987, Paul officially left the Republican Party [5] to run for the Libertarian Party nomination after becoming disillusioned by the spending policies of the Reagan administration[6] and presumptive Republican presidential nominee George H.W. Bush.[3] On leaving the party, Paul remarked: "Ronald Reagan has given us a deficit ten times greater than what we had with the Democrats. It didn't take more than a month after 1981, to realize there would be no changes."[6] The Libertarian Party had courted Paul for the previous six years.[7]
Campaign developments
Libertarian Party nomination campaign
Ron Paul announced his candidacy for the Libertarian Party's presidential nomination on February 16, 1987 during a party luncheon in
Paul campaigned for the nomination for the most part of 1987, traveling to numerous state conventions.
By June, Paul was appearing at speaking events with Libertarian vice presidential candidate Andre Marrou.[12] Marrou had previously served as a Libertarian member of the Alaska House of Representatives.[13] The pair campaigned side-by-side in Idaho where Paul remarked "that a Libertarian can win the White House in the not-too-distant future." After that, Paul traveled west to address Libertarian Party officials in Washington and Oregon. By the end of the month, Paul had raised $200,000 for his campaign.[11] As the convention approached, Paul was one of seven candidates vying for the party's nomination. However, he and Means were the only candidates mentioned in the press. Speculation that Marrou could be chosen as a compromise candidate also surrounded the event, at which 800 attendees were expected.[14]
Libertarian National Convention
The Libertarian National Convention, formally called the Culture of Freedom Conference and Presidential Nominating Convention, was held from September 2–6 at the
Paul was nominated on the first ballot with 196 of the 368 votes cast, with his closest opponent, Means, receiving 120 votes.[17] He accepted the nomination and thanked the delegates with his wife, Carol, by his side.[18] Alaska state legislator Andre Marrou, one of the party's few elected officeholders, was chosen as the vice presidential nominee.[19]
General election campaign
Paul returned to the campaign trail and entered the General election stretch of the campaign a year ahead of the nominees for the two major parties. He traveled to universities[1][20] held press conferences[21] and filmed an eight-minute television advertisement, to be shown in small states and on cable television,[7] to help spread his message.[21] He focused on gaining enough support to win a place in the League of Women Voters-sponsored presidential debates.[17]
Spreading the message
Paul held one of his numerous press conferences in
[Paul's supporters are] a ragtag coalition of antiabortion activists, tax rebels, anti-war types, gold bugs and other anti-establishment, single issue voters
Texas Monthly Journalist Tom Curtis [7]
Paul was featured in the November 1987 issue of
Paul traveled to
In a 1988 interview with Alternative Views,[24] Paul described in detail his views on the Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, Federal Reserve system, and the American power structure.
"Kamikaze" campaign
Paul arrived in North Florida for a campaign event in early January 1988, with ten months still remaining until the election. The event was chronicled by a journalist for the
Paul had received little media attention during the early stages of the Democratic and Republican primary contests. But as
During a July press conference in Spokane, Washington, while lobbying for ballot access, Paul promised that as president he would veto spending increases for both domestic programs and the military. He asked in reference to the portrayal of his party's plank, "what's extreme about a balanced budget?" Paul conceded that he would not win the election but explained that votes for his ticket would give a bigger voice to Libertarian issues in American politics, and that he would only be disappointed if he did not receive at least 5% of the vote in the state.[35] A few weeks later, The New York Times discovered that many former members of the Pat Robertson campaign were helping Ron Paul's candidacy. They found that the campaign workers were disseminating literature in Michigan that criticized Bush, and stated that Paul would "carry the standard" of the free market. Paul commented in a San Diego Union interview that he "identif[ied]with Robertson" although "he's not a libertarian." Paul spent the beginning of August, campaigning in his home state of Texas.[36]
Final stages
We like Dan Quayle...George Bush and Mike Dukakis. They have been the best recruiters we have.
Ron Paul[37]
In August, Republicans began to argue that a vote for Paul would equate to a vote for Dukakis.[38] Later in the month, Republicans grew weary of Dan Quayle as the party's vice presidential nominee. Paul commented that "we like Dan Quayle. We also like George Bush and Mike Dukakis. They have been the best recruiters we have."[37] He explained that the Libertarian Party was receiving around 100 calls a day from people interested in the party because "a large number of Americans are disenchanted with the choice they have."[37] Paul held a rally in Salt Lake City that drew 200 supporters, and proclaimed that he "wouldn't be surprised if we got 20% of the vote in Utah."[37]
By October 1988, the campaign had secured ballot access in 46 states and the District of Columbia,
Results
Paul finished in third place on Election Day, far behind Dukakis and the victorious George H.W. Bush. He received 431,750 votes, which made up 0.5% of the overall vote. He received 203,639 more votes than the Bergland/Lewis ticket four years prior. The largest percentage won by Paul came in Alaska, where he received 2.7%. In Washington, he missed his goal of 5% with a 0.9% showing. In Utah, Paul received 1.2%.[42]
Aftermath
After the election, Paul was speculated to run for president in
References
- ^ a b c Rosenthal, Andrew (October 17, 1988). "Now for a Real Underdog: Ron Paul, Libertarian, for President". New York Times. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
- ^ Burton, Danielle (March 23, 2007). "10 Things You Didn't Know About Ron Paul". usnews.com. U.S. News & World Report, L.P. Archived from the original on 17 May 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- ^ a b Fund, John H. (January 13, 1997). "The Libertarian Congressman Is Back". Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- ^ a b c Toth, John (February 17, 1987), "Ron Paul seeks to be Libertarian Party presidential nominee", Houston Chronicle, Houston, Texas, p. 11
- ^ a b c "Also running". The Ledger. Lakeland, Florida. May 10, 1987. p. 10.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Wrong Paul". FactCheck.org. Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. February 11, 2008. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Curtis, Tom, A Man for All Reasons, Texas Monthly, (Nov. 1987)
- ^ Anderson, Jack; Van Atta, Dale (June 15, 1987), "Water thicker than oil?", Ellensburg Daily Record, Ellensburg, Washington, p. 4
- ^ Gibson, Brad (April 2, 1987), "Libertarian hopefuls visit Penn State", The Daily Collegian, University Park, Pennsylvania, p. 20, archived from the original on October 23, 2017, retrieved March 26, 2022
- ^ Anderson, Jack; Spear, Joseph (June 25, 1987), "Ministers dispute Jesse Jackson's start", Ellensburg Daily Record, Ellensburg, Washington, p. 4
- ^ a b "Texan sees a Libertarian president in political stars", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, p. 8, June 29, 1987
- ^ "Indian activist asks Libertarians for nomination", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, p. 6, June 27, 1987[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "History of the Libertarian Party". Libertarian Party of Hawaii. Archived from the original on 21 January 2010. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
- ^ a b "Hot contest among Libertarians expected to draw heavy turnout", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, p. 7, August 29, 1987[permanent dead link]
- New York Times, September 4, 1987.
- ^ "Libertarian delegates hear party candidates debate", The Bulletin, Bend, Oregon, p. 3, September 4, 1987[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b Turner, Wallace (September 6, 1987), "Libertarians Pick Ex-Congressman in '88 Bid", New York Times, New York, New York, p. 35
- ^ Slater, Wayne (September 7, 1987). "Disputatious Delegates". Dallas Morning News. The Dallas Morning News Co.
- ^ Cross, Sue (February 23, 1988). "Marrou hits trail again". Anchorage Daily News. Associated Press. Retrieved May 8, 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Libertarian candidate to speak at the U", The Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, p. 8, November 1, 1987[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c "Libertarian candidate calls for drastic steps", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, p. 5, November 8, 1987
- ^ Meuller, Paul (November 12, 1987), "Libertarian candidate extols party's options", Rome News-Tribune, Rome, Georgia, p. 3
- ^ "Libertarians say party could make difference", The Free-Lance Star, Fredericksburg, Virginia, p. 16, December 1, 1987
- ^ "'Ron Paul talks about American power structure, FED, Trilateral Commission and CFR (1988)' by AlternativeViewTV (YouTube)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-11-17.
- ^ Davis, Buddy (January 15, 1988), "Ron Paul: Political kamikaze with a cause", Ocala Star-Banner, Ocala, Florida, p. 9[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Ron Paul 'the only game in town'", The Ledger, Lakeland, Florida, p. 14, February 20, 1988[permanent dead link]
- LewRockwell.com
- ^ a b Caldwell, Christopher (July 22, 2007). "The Antiwar, Anti-Abortion, Anti-Drug-Enforcement-Administration, Anti-Medicare Candidacy of Dr. Ron Paul". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- Washington Post
- ^ Stoffer, Harry (May 2, 1988), "Bush, Dukakis face same dilemma", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, p. 3[permanent dead link]
- ^ Sobran, Joseph (May 15, 1988), "Place a Lid on Federal Taxes", The Victoria Advocate, Victoria, Texas, p. 4A
- ^ Moore, Carrie (June 19, 1988), "Libertarian Candidate Puts Stress on Tax Limit", Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Sunday", The Ledger, Lakeland, Florida, p. 30, June 18, 1988
- ^ Paul's speech to NORML (June 17, 1988)
- ^ Camden, Jim (July 27, 1988), "Libertarian is happy to be on ballot", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, p. B2[permanent dead link]
- ^ King, Wayne (August 10, 1988), "Some Republicans Back Foe of Bush", The New York Times, New York, New York
- ^ a b c d Davidson, Lee (August 25, 1988), "Libertarians say Americans want voting alternative", The Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, p. B5[permanent dead link]
- ^ Torry, Jack (August 14, 1988), "Michigan delegation faces task of unifying party", Toledo Blade, Toledo, Ohio, p. 9A[permanent dead link]
- ^ Kilpatrick, James (October 15, 1988), "The nutty sanity of Dr. Ron Paul", St. Petersburg Times, St. Petersburg, Florida, p. 19A[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Whatever Happened to Noriega?; TV Should Report Third-Party Votes", The New York Times, New York, New York, November 3, 1988
- ^ Ely, Jane (November 2, 1988), "Campaign '88/Libertarian Party Candidate unfazed by certain loss, hopes 'truth wins'", Houston Chronicle, Houston, Texas, p. 8A
- ^ "1988 Presidential Election Results". President Election Polls. President Election Polls.com. 2008.
- ^ Dondero, Eric (2008-01-07) Ron Paul on the Verge of Going Third Party?, National Ledger
- ^ Allan, Sterling D. (2001-12-11). "Ron Paul's Response to "Ron Paul for President 2004" Petition". Draft Ron Paul for United States President 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-07-22. Retrieved 2010-05-07.
- ^ "Representative Ronald Ernest 'Ron' Paul (TX)". Project Vote Smart. 2008.