Ron Paul, the ten-term Republican Texas congressman is creating quite a stir among his GOP colleagues during his run for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. While one would think he would have his party’s support; truth has it, the GOP wishes he would go away. However, that’s not likely to happen; especially after the attention he is getting both financially and from the rank and file citizenry who are fed up with the current neo-right Republican leadership.
Oddsmakers at different online gambling houses such as giants Bodog (Bodoglife.com) and Sportsbook.com have offered wagering odds on Paul’s chances of winning the nomination and they don’t agree.
Sportsbook.com is offering Paul at 4/1 odds to win the nomination while oddsmakers at Bodog aren’t as confident in his winning chances having installed him at 17/1. Oddsmakers at Betus.com don't consider Paul a viable candidate and don't have him listed amongst their wagering choices.
Most political watch-dogs don’t give Paul any chance of securing the GOP nomination; however, if the Ron Paul ‘08’ campaign can generate enough money and support, pundits think Paul could make some noise running as an independent candidate much the way of H.Ross Perot in 1992. In that election, Perot extracted many GOP votes allowing Democratic nominee Bill Clinton to slip into the White House.
During his campaign, Paul has generated strong support on the internet and is the top presidential candidate requested in internet searches. He leads other presidential candidates at YouTube, with over 30,000 subscribers. Supporters “guard his image against what they see as a “purposeful marginalization by the media” and cite his victories in four out of the first five GOP debate sponsors’ own online and phone text polls to argue he deserves more recognition.
While he places in the top tier in Republican straw polls and has fundraising receipts tantamount to those of the top Republican contenders, he has not polled highly among Gallup samples of Republican voters nationally.
In Tuesday’s GOP debate in Michigan , Paul drew the largest applause by voicing his opposition to the Iraq war. All the other eight candidates openly supported the war.
