William Kelly

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CHICAGO, February 2, 2012―Tuesday’s headlines could have been written days ago: “Romney Wins Big in Florida.” Given the monolith of modern media culture, it probably was.

After outspending his biggest competitor, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, by a 4-1 margin with $15.3 million in Florida ad buys, Mitt Romney’s landslide victory this week was expected, predictable. 

Humdrum.

But the real story of the Florida primaries was not Mitt Romney. It was not Newt Gingrich’s tropical meltdown in the face of Romney’s not-so-friendly Super PAC fire. It was also not the concerns and good wishes for Rick Santorum’s hospitalized daughter.

The real story of the Florida primary and the elections to-date is the worried and weary dissatisfaction of the American electorate, more visible, due to the primaries, within the Republican Party's base. Over the last four months, GOP front-runner status has changed hands more quickly than a baton in an Olympic relay race.

But President Obama is not off the hook yet. Far from it. 

The other significant story coming out of Florida is Ron Paul’s rejection of conventional political wisdom. Paul skipped the Sunshine State altogether –  he didn’t book a TV ad or waste a single staffer in the winner-take-all delegate state. 

And, unlike Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, he didn’t waste a dime.

But, then again, everything about the Texas congressman – what he says, how he says it, and how he campaigns – is an act of defiance. A nose-thumbing of the status quo. 

Ron Paul delegate party. (Image: Carl Arriaza/@TWTC)

In the Florida results, Paul came in fourth place, garnering only 116,000 votes, or 7% of the vote.

But Florida never figured into Ron Paul’s strategy to begin with. Instead, Paul has set his sights on caucus states that award delegates proportionately and places where his ground game is strong. 

“Just a little while ago, I called Gov. Romney and congratulated him," said Ron Paul to his supporters at an event in Henderson, Nevada Tuesday. “I also said I would see him soon in the caucus states."

"Since Newt and Santorum are not on a number of primary ballots, it doesn't matter if he (Paul) came in fourth in Florida because he'll be picking up delegates in the other states! He's got this system down!" argues Maria Terziski, a Ron Paul supporter from Chicago. 

"Let's be honest. He (Romney) spent $15 million in Florida. He got 46% of the vote. Not even a simple majority," agrees Carl Arriaza.  

Paul’s strategy is based in amassing smaller victories, not big or flashy ones. Like a glacier slowly reshaping the surrounding landscape, he is making the kind of dent that you only notice over time.

At Chicago's Wise Fools Pub. (Image: Carl Arriaza/@TWTC)

According to campaign manager Jesse Benton, Paul’s goal is to “do well” in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Hawaii, Alaska, North Dakota, Idaho, Maine, Minnesota, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri and Washington state.” 

That just might make Ron Paul the most patient man in American politics.

Paul’s unapologetic rejection of the establishment may be the reason why - of all the GOP presidential contenders – he seems to have the most committed following. They are more than loyal. It is not just about whether they like or dislike Newt Gingrich or Mitt Romney. Paul supporters are personally committed to the man himself and view him as inseparable from the constitutional principles they feel he legitimately espouses.

Will Ron Paul’s delegate-gathering strategy succeed? How will he impact the Republican National Convention’s platform? If he fails to secure the GOP nomination, will he run third party? How will his supporters react?

Paul has also been highly effective at attracting young adults, aged 18-29, and initiating them into the political process. This is no small feat.

In New Hampshire, Mitt Romney received 39% of the vote, give or take, to Paul’s 23%. But Paul scored 46% of the youth vote to Romney’s 26%.  In South Carolina, Paul garnered 31% of the youth vote. Between October 1 and December 31, Paul raised $13 million – 56% of which were small contributions of $200 and less – besting Newt Gingrich’s fundraising efforts by $3.5 million.

A few weeks back, I wrote a story about a Ron Paul event at the Wise Fools Pub in Lincoln Park, Illinois. Ranging in age from 18-29, about 500 people attended the event. Since then, the regular grassroots events, organized by Forrest Jehlik, have gotten bigger with more than 800 attendees – all sporting buttons and signs with Paul’s signature “rEVOLution” slogan. Instead of TiVoing Snooki on “Jersey Shore,” they’re arguing about the constitutionality of “the fed.”

Who knew rabid constitutionalism could be this cool?

William Kelly with Paul delegates. (Image: Carl Arriaza/@TWTC)

It is a different kind of energy than you would find at a College Republican event. More social. More invested in a common cause. I approached three guys who were handing out literature with almost a messianic zeal and asked “What motivates you?”

“You lead by example,” said David Earl Williams, founder of a group called “Blue Republicans.” Williams, who used to vote Democrat, is now a passionate Paul convert. He started Blue Republicans to attract disgruntled Democrats to a more constitutionalist philosophy. In the Cold War era, the color red was synonymous with “communism.” Ironically, now the color has come to symbolize the modern Republican Party.

But Ron Paul supporters say they are guided by philosophy not party. If Paul fails to secure the GOP nomination, where will his votes go?

“I was told by a Ron Paul supporter this morning that if Paul does not win primary, he would vote for Obama out of anger and protest of the Republican nominee,” says Dan McIntyre, a member of the Northern Illinois Tea Party. 

“Wrote in Paul last time. Won’t waste my time voting this year,” says Paul supporter Roy Uber.

“I voted for McCain to cancel an Obama vote. I will support any of the GOP candidates. Anyone of them would be acceptable to me,” says Alan Warren, an Illinois voter.

“Ron Paul has held firm on everything,” says Peter Tauch from Palatine, Illinois. “There is nobody else but Ron Paul that can save this republic.”

All of this raises serious questions for the Republican Party’s future - its philosophy and its platform. Influencing the 2012 Republican Party platform - that is where Ron Paul and his patient process of delegate-gathering leading up to the Republican National Convention could really make his campaign count. 

After all, Ron Paul is a very patient man. And so are his much younger supporters. 

Conservative satirist and commentator William J. Kelly is also a contributor to Breitbart.com and edits the Tea Party Reports for the Washington Times Communities. He is a native from Chicago's Southside.

Email questions to him at williamjkellyrebuild@gmail.com.

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Read more of Bill Kelly's Truth Squad in The Communities at the Washington Times

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