Ron Paul Volunteers, Supporters Keep Plugging Away

A recent meet-up at was a bit thrown together.

The restaurant didn’t know the supporters were coming. Some folks were hanging around, wondering where everyone was meeting, mingling with the regulars who enjoyed “happy hour” drink specials and appetizers.

But revolutions and movements always start with at least two people and in the case of this particular meet-up, three guys quickly, during the course of 20 minutes, grew to 15 people, all wanting to get involved.

Kevin Bloom of Concord, one of the three original guys, said he’d been a fan of Paul’s since 1988 and worked on the 2008 effort. Bloom, an undeclared voter, worked for Reagan in Michigan in 1980 while in college but later, shifted to more libertarian leanings later in life.

“[Paul] reflects most closely my own political beliefs, certainly the closest thing to a saint the Republican Party will ever have,” he said. “Obviously, he has the integrity and consistency we really need. Nobody is better.”

Nicholas Nann-Johnson of Concord, said he registered Republican this year in order to vote for Paul. Like a lot of folks these days, he’s a boomerang resident, having lived in Concord for years, moving away, but now returning. He said he hadn’t been politically involved before but was drawn to Paul because his viewpoints really struck home with him.

“I’m really putting in the footwork to try and get him elected,” he said.

Nann-Johnson said he was concerned about monetary policy, eliminating federal departments to save money, and wanted to end the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Reserve. He added that for all the attacks on his foreign policy positions, all of the military donations Paul received “really let’s you know what the troops want.”

Nann-Johnson added, “he’s the one candidate who is worth my time.”

Merle Burke of Bedford, has a long history of Republican politics, including working for Pat Buchanan, dozens of political campaigns, and being involved in the state committee. He came up to Concord for the meet-up, said he was “fed up with the political establishment, quite frankly.” The bailouts, he said, was the last straw.

“I can’t say I’m no longer a Republican,” he said, “but I’m a libertarian Republican.”

Burke said he was concerned about the direction the nation was headed in, including wasteful federal spending and foreign aid. Burke said it was shocking that America had “homeless people in the streets” and yet the country was giving away billions to other countries and wasting money on the wars overseas.

“I honestly believe that our country has been taken over by plutocracy,” he said. “It’s captured both political parties. Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney are part of the club. Ron Paul is not part of the club.”

Ron Paul

Paul Campaign Says Wife Shoved by Reporter