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My hopes are the Ron Paul will continue the conversation he began by running for office with voters who believe in him and those who question him. I saw people who were Republican, Democrat, and Independent become extremely excited about what he had to say. I also spent hours listening to people who disagreed, but were completely enthralled. Oftentimes, I found myself educating people about what it truly meant to be a Republican. Ron Paul embraces that. Unfortunately, there have been so many crooks in office that have been destroying the very ideology behind Republican beliefs.

Ron Paul should have hired a PR person. Ron Paul was not a great public speaker, either. That is true, but this man did an extraordinary thing for the people of this country. He single handedly made voters young and old excited about making the REAL CHANGES that need to be made in government. Remember, he did not take money from private interests. He raised more money than was though possible just by reaching out to voters and taking a very risky stance.

Don’t kick Ron Paul while he is down. This is a man who has triumphed against the system. Ron Paul gave so many people hope. He will not be forgotten, and I think his true impact on this race has yet to present itself.

The main lesson is that a candidate has to actually WANT to be in the race; otherwise he exercises NO oversight over the actual operation of the campaign.

And in this case, the $32 Million was squandered by a bunch of amateurs who had no clue how to run a campaign (jeepers, the campaign manager’s MAIN “business experience” is in MLM sales of vitamins!) — no clue how to get EFFECTIVE TV ads made (or even how much to pay for them) — no clue how to buy airtime or mailings at appropriate costs, etc.

Plus, the campaign MUST have either COMPETENT staffers or a firm on board to handle effective media relations (you know, PR).

Finally, the candidate has to actually get out and CAMPAIGN — you know the old “pressing of the flesh” — which is important not only because voters expect it (especially in Iowa and New Hampshire) but also because THAT is what keeps the reporters happy and writing stories about you.

You can’t expect to just give 1 speech a week to a captive audience of college students to suffice as “campaigning” — just doesn’t cut it.

Oh, and it helps to have a bus or airplane for the “embedded” reporters to ride along on… provided you have events for them to report on, etc.

ad nauseum.

Oh, for what might have been! Nevertheless, I say that Ron Paul’s campaign was a success. It galvanized a lot of people who had been politically apathetic. Many of them will fade away, but a core of dedicated activists will continue to push the rEVOLution, both within and outside of the Republican Party.

This is the beginning, not the end.

“Unlike Barack Obama, the Paul campaign was never able to translate their vast Internet support into votes. The difference between the two campaigns is simple. Obama’s message was crafted to appeal to Democratic voters, while Paul was trying to take his party in a direction that they didn’t want to go in.”

That is exactly right, the Republican party is now a Socialist-War Party and no longer concerned with the Constitution or the average American.

“…Ron Paul’s message never appealed to enough Republican voters. This fact may say more about the state of the Republican Party, than the campaign of Ron Paul.”

Another sane point, it’s not the fault of Dr. Paul’s campaign (or supporters) but the identity crisis in the Republican party. They have chosen War over Values, may God have mercy on us all because the Democrats or the Republican choice is not going to save us now.