Ron Paul in Orlando, FL
Congressman Ron Paul bases his foreign policy on strict adherence to the Constitution of the United States. That is what separates him from the other seven candidates with whom he shared the stage for Wednesday’s GOP debate. Yet, MSNBC, which aired the event, completed its round of foreign policy questions without acknowledging Dr. Paul.
Hosts Brian Williams and John Harris also failed to ask him a question about jobs, although all the other candidates were invited to speak on the issue. MSNBC put Mitt Romney and Rick Perry front and center, and focused on their confrontation. The debate was about fifteen minutes old before Ron Paul was even given a chance to speak
Let’s be honest. Airing a Republican debate on MSNBC is like broadcasting a Ron Jeremy film festival on the Trinity Broadcasting Network- there is going to be some conflict. But, what reason would MSNBC have for not asking Paul about foreign policy?
Consider this. Ron Paul takes in far more money in military donations than any other Republican candidate, and he may have drawn in more than then-Senator Barrack Obama during the 2008 campaign.
Obama, as president, has not won over the anti-war crowd with his hawkish foreign policy. One can make a strong argument that there is very little difference between Obama and his predecessor George W. Bush when it comes to making war.
Maybe MSNBC felt it was protecting Obama by not giving Paul a forum from which to inform Americans of his approach to foreign policy. What did America miss out on? Here is what Ron Paul had to say last month in Orlando, Florida, about what his approach would be as president:
MSNBC conducted an online poll asking who won the debate. The results showed Ron Paul winning easily, garnering more votes than all other seven candidates combined, and with four times as many votes than runner-up Romney. It was interesting to note the bar graph made voting appear much closer than it actually was, with Romney’s bar closer to half the size of Paul’s, not a fourth the size.
Of course, we should keep in mind that MSNBC thought it was a good idea to bring a Cuban-American journalist, Jose Diaz-Balart, onto the broadcast to ask the candidates questions strictly about immigration (and failed to provide him a seat beside Williams and Harris, instead choosing to have him remain standing to pose his questions).
Typical of the mainstream media coverage of the debate, was the article by James Oliphant of the Los Angeles Times. Focusing on Perry and Romney, Oliphant amazingly omits any mention of Ron Paul until the 20th of his 21 paragraphs. And when he did mention him, is was simply to discredit him, writing, “And there was little sign that Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who continues to fare well in some polls, was any closer to breaking out as a mainstream threat.”
And the mainstream media appears to be doing its best to insure he will not.