The Economy

Arguably the most prominent issue facing our country is the dire state of our economy. Our national debt continues to skyrocket to mind-blowing levels. Since the late 1970s, this disturbing trend has worsened, to the dismay of the American people. Spending is now at a record high under President Barack Obama.

Ron Paul is the only candidate who is willing to surpass party politics and implement the changes this country has needed for over 100 years. Unlike others, who preach false messages of “change”, Dr. Paul’s message has been clear since he entered politics in 1976: our economy is broken and it needs to be fixed.

The Federal Reserve — America’s central banking system — would be one of Ron’s top priorities. In addition to allowing billions of dollars to be funneled into bank bailouts, the Federal Reserve has continued to print money that this country doesn’t have. What’s the harm? Every piece of unfounded money the Fed prints off increases inflation and gets us closer to a total devaluation of the dollar. When our money is worth nothing, we face economic collapse.

On top of everything, the Federal Reserve operates in complete secrecy. The American have no idea where their money is being spent. When nobody else wanted to speak up, Ron Paul single-handedly introduced a bill to audit the Federal Reserve and make it accountable for its actions. To this day, the bill has 170 congressional co-sponsors.

Ron Paul is also sternly opposed the current practice of Keynesian economics — a belief that the government should be involved with the private sector. Instead, he believes in a completely free market and free trade (Austrian economics).

Voting Record:

• NO on increasing the debt ceiling (2011)
• NO on $825 billion in government stimulus spending (2009)
• NO on $15 billion government bailout of GM and Chrysler (2008)
• NO on additional $192 billion in government stimulus spending (2009)

War

The age old adage “war is hell” applies today as much as it ever has. Since 9/11, our country has lost thousands of American soldiers and trillions of taxpayer dollars to wars that seem to have no end.

Out of the 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, only six Republicans voted against the invasion of Iraq. Ron Paul was one of them. Had other Republicans listened to Ron, our national debt would be trillions of dollars lower than it’s current rate and thousands of military men and women would still be with us.

Our government approved the invasion of Iraq based on lies, greed, and faulty military intelligence. Now, every Republican candidate except Ron Paul supports repeating that very mistake by invading Iran — on the exact same charges. Ron Paul believes that no good can come out of disregarding another country’s sovereignty; and that another unprovoked war in the Middle East could very well lead to the fall of the American empire.

President Obama was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize early in his presidency, yet has started new wars in Libya, Yemen, Somalia, and Pakistan. Even a candidate who preached peace refuses the temptation to interfere in foreign conflicts and refuses to completely withdraw American soldiers from Iraq or Afghanistan. Now, a horrible new war with Iran looms on the horizon. Ron Paul has been actively spreading the same message for over 30 years: we need to mind our own business and use our military might to protect our own borders.

Ron Paul’s continuous popularity among active military members resonates clearly: he has seen more money from military donations than all other Republican candidates and President Obama combined. This isn’t just a numerical figure, it’s a message. Our troops are tired of these endless wars — they’re ready to come home. Ron Paul is ready to bring them home.

Voting record:

• NO on unprovoked military authorization to invade Iraq (2002)
• YES on redeploying troops out of Iraq (2007)
• YES on persuing Al Qaeda, but not invading Iraq (2008)
• YES on disallowing the invasion of Kosovo (1999)

Taxes

One of Dr. Paul’s most intriguing political stances is his view on income tax. Not only does he firmly oppose any form of income tax, but he would make it a priority, as Commander-in-Chief, to completely eliminate the income tax and abolish the IRS.

Not only would this allow Americans to keep more money in their pockets; it would also allow businesses to keep more of their revenue, hire more employees, and raise salaries. In all of his 11 terms in Congress, Ron Paul has never supported a tax increase.

Many people are unaware that income tax was not a permanent practice a century ago. Ron Paul believes that the introduction of the modern income tax in 1913 (via the Sixteenth Amendment) was unconstitutional. As president, he would support a Liberty Amendment to phase out the IRS and abolish the federal income tax.

A knee-jerk response is concern about how government could function without income tax revenue. Ron Paul’s solution is to decrease taxes while simultaneously decreasing bloated government spending. If the enormous size of the federal government was severely downsized, the United States would not require an income tax, but would be able to function on sales taxes and excise taxes.

Voting record:

• YES on $46 billion in tax cuts for small businesses (2000)
• YES on a package that included $958 billion of tax relief over 10 years (2001)
• YES on providing tax relief and simplification (2004)
• YES on abolishing the marriage penalty (2004)
• YES on abolishing the Estate Tax, or “death tax” (2001)

Abortion

Ron Paul is a firm opponent of abortion and considers himself a pro-life champion. He believes that abortion is murder.

Before his career in politics, Ron was an OB/GYN who delivered over 4,000 babies. His experience witnessing an abortion, in which he saw a crying child placed in a bucket and left for dead, was a key component in his strong opposition to the practice.

Dr. Paul believes we should appeal Roe v. Wade, thus removing the capability for activist federal judges to place this controversial standard into federal law. He has also voted against unconstitutional taxpayer funding for abortion procedures.

Voting record:

• NO on federal funding for abortion (2000)
• NO on human embryonic stem cell research (2005)
• YES on banning partial-birth abortion – unless used to save mother’s life (2003)
• NO on federal funding for Planned Parenthood and similar organizations (2007)

Immigration

It has been estimated that as many as 20 million illegal immigrants now reside in our country. For many years, Ron Paul has continued to call for desperately-needed immigration reform. In fact, he was given a perfect 100% rating by FAIR, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, for his unwavering views on protecting our borders.

He strongly believes that the immigration issues facing this nation are largely a result of our country’s welfare system. America continues to reward illegal immigrants on your dime. In addition to supporting the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, Dr. Paul has also endorsed the termination of all incentives and amnesties for illegal aliens.

Ron Paul is also a firm believer that our military presence overseas continues to hinder our ability to protect our borders at home. He, along with millions of other Americans, continue to wonder why we spend billions of dollars protecting borders in the Middle East, while hordes of illegal aliens continue to successfully live in our own country without a hitch. To this day, Dr. Paul remains the only candidate who promises complete withdrawal of American troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Voting record:

• YES on building a fence along the Mexican border (2006)
• YES on declaring English the official language of the United States (2007)
• YES on reporting illegal immigrants who receive hospital treatment (2004)
• YES on increasing the number of legal immigrant visas for highly skilled workers (1998)

Civil Liberties

Whether you know it or not, your constitutional liberties and freedoms are infringed on a daily basis. Increasing technology has inevitably led to an increase in how much the details of your life are under surveillance. Ron Paul believes the Patriot Act is an outright violation of civil liberty and the Fourth Amendment by allowing federal officials to track our online activity without a warrant.

In recent years, the TSA, or Transportation Security Administration, has tested our ability to be violated in the name of temporary security. Ron Paul believes the atrocities conducted by the TSA are not only unconstitutional, but criminal. In response, he has openly called for the elimination of the TSA and the initiation of privatized airline-employed security measures.

“Children molested; disabled people abused; men and women subjected to unwarranted groping and touching of their most private areas; involuntary radiation exposure. If the perpetrators were a gang of criminals, their headquarters would be raided by SWAT teams and armed federal agents. Unfortunately, in this case the perpetrators are armed federal agents. This is the sorry situation ten years after the creation of the Transportation Security Administration.”

Ron Paul has stated that violations like the TSA and the Patriot Act are precursors to an authoritarian, Orwellian government in which we are constantly under some form of surveillance.

Dr. Paul also believes that financial and medical privacy have diminished over recent time, with financial records being available for government officials and medical records being sold to insurance companies for substantial profits.

Voting record:

• NO on making the Patriot Act permanent (2005)
• NO on allowing electronic surveillance without a warrant (2006)
• YES on permitting airline pilots to carry guns (2002)

Healthcare

As a constitutional expert, Ron Paul does not believe that Americans have a right to federally-funded healthcare. Thus, saying he opposes Obamacare is a vast understatement.

As of 2010, Medicaid and Medicare accounted for 23 percent of America’s federal spending. Numbers-wise, this totals out to an astounding $793 billion. When Obamacare takes effect, these numbers will skyrocket beyond comprehension. Dr. Paul strongly supports the non-mandated pro-bono medical care of years past, as opposed to unnecessary federal intervention. In his book, The Revolution: A Manifesto, he goes into detail:

“In the days before Medicare and Medicaid, the poor and elderly were admitted to hospitals at the same rate they are now, and received good care. Before those programs came into existence, every physician understood that he or she had a responsibility towards the less fortunate and free medical care was the norm. Hardly anyone is aware of this today, since it doesn’t fit into the typical, by the script story of government rescuing us from a predatory private sector.”

Federal healthcare policies have only opened the door for greedy bureaucrats, HMO monopolies, and unthinkable increases in the cost of decent medical attention. As a doctor, Dr. Paul knows the medical field inside and out. As president, he will use that unmatched knowledge to make the tough decisions that are necessary to repair our broken healthcare system.

Voting record:

• YES on abolishing federal Medicare and leaving it to the states (2000)
• YES on establishing tax-exempt medical savings accounts (1999)

Marriage

As a Christian, Ron Paul has openly expressed his support of the traditional definition of marriage: between one man and one woman. Accordingly, he believes that marriage should be left as a religious institution and the federal government should have never gotten involved.

Dr. Paul is a proponent of the idea that the legal definition of marriage should be resolved on a state level. He supports voluntary associations and believes that people in a truly free society would be able to join however they want and call it whatever they want, since this union would not infringe upon the rights of those not involved in the union.

In conjunction with the Constitution, these views help decentralize the “moral definitions” of the federal government and further localize the ever-relevant issue of marriage.

Voting record:

• NO on constitutionally defining marriage as being between man and woman (2006)
• NO on Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage (2004)
• YES on eliminating the “marriage penalty” (2004)