Ron Paul’s Rally for the Republic
Today Rep. Ron Paul held a press conference about his Rally for the Republic that's being held at the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.
Paul says the rally is going to be positive and will promote the valuable form of republican (small "r") government. Among other values, they support small government, low taxation and protecting the constitution.
He's not urging his delegates to vote for McCain nor is he going to endorse a candidate. Paul is interested in changing the Republican Party from within and he's teaching his supporters how to do so by holding training sessions (that they have to pay for).
Paul says there are 40-50 delegates specifically supporting him but that there are hundreds of delegates who are sympathizers with the movement.
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So while he'll have supporters on the floor of the Xcel Energy Center, it is unlikely he'll make an appearance. In what he calls "a bit of a slight," his floor privileges at the RNC have been strictly limited -- he is not allowed to bring along staffers and he must be chaperoned.
The Rally for the Republic continues today featuring speakers such as Tucker Carlson, MN Congressional candidate Barb Davis White and former Gov. Jesse Ventura.
Ventura is scheduled to take the stage at 3:35 and you can watch a live stream of the event at the rally's website.
MPR reporter Curtis Gilbert sent along the audio of the press conference. You can listen here: