Ron Paul at His Finest in South Carolina Debate

Ron Paul gave one of his finest debate performances of the campaign, in South Carolina tonight. He was given a reasonable amount of time to speak, turned biased questions into opportunities to advance his limited-government message, strongly answered challenges from various rivals, and appeared presidential throughout. If the Ron Paul campaign is going to bounce back from two fifth place finishes in Iowa and New Hampshire, this debate will be viewed as the turning point.

Question 1: Ron Paul explains how government and central bank intervention leads to recessions, and prescribes freedom, smaller government, and lower taxes as the cure:

Question 2: Ron Paul dismisses an attempted smear and reminds Republicans how far they have strayed from their conservative ideals:

Question 3: Ron Paul questions the need to beat the war drum over a few small boats approaching a modern American warship, and reminds Americans that 50,000 troops were lost in Vietnam following a not-too-dissimilar incident, which turned out to be a sham.

Question 4: Ron Paul points out that Israel is quite capable of defending itself, and that we don’t do it any favors by arming Arab nations. John McCain attempts to mock him, but Ron Paul responds by reminding viewers that McCain wants to condemn young Americans to continue to die in Iraq for the next 100 years.

Question 5: Challenged on his electability, Ron Paul turns the question on Fox News, his fellow candidates, and the entire Republican Party — Don’t they want a candidate who defends the Constitution? Don’t they want a candidate who is a genuine fiscal conservative, with the voting record to prove it? Don’t they want a candidate who will defend our Constitutional rights? Have they forgotten what it means to be a conservative?

Question 6: Ron Paul explains how to reduce illegal immigration by reducing the incentives the government creates for it, and by saying no to amnesty.