Should Ron Paul stop speaking at Colleges for large crowds that aren't voting?

[coffeewithchess]

I thing a big part of it is costs at this point. He is spending a lot less money. when he goes to a high school, it isn't to get the high school to vote, it is to get a cheap/free auditorium.

If Rick Santorum was holding cheap town hall events when he had no money, RP can do the same thing.

 

[Tod]

Would the time spent talking to the older crowd be productive? Would he be able to change their minds about the stupidity of the wars (empire, drugs, poverty, etc) and other topics? Or are too many of them too set in their ways?

 

[coffeewithchess]

Would the time spent talking to the older crowd be productive? Would he be able to change their minds about the stupidity of the wars (empire, drugs, poverty, etc) and other topics? Or are too many of them too set in their ways?

Well, it's either preach to the choir, or try to reach new converts. I think a few simple things the senior crowd would hear from RP's own mouth at the town hall events, such as keeping Social Security secure...and that he isn't a pacifist and would deal with threats to national security, would help with some of them. You gotta open their eyes/ears somehow...and believe me, I know how many are brainwashed by Fox News/talk radio...

 

[sailingaway]

If Rick Santorum was holding cheap town hall events when he had no money, RP can do the same thing.

He did it at high schools and pizza restaurants. Ron could not possibly fit in a pizza restaurant. Santorum was drawing maybe 20 people.

 

[alucard13mmfmj]

Would the time spent talking to the older crowd be productive? Would he be able to change their minds about the stupidity of the wars (empire, drugs, poverty, etc) and other topics? Or are too many of them too set in their ways?

Yeah, but getting only 10-15% of the older crowd votes hurt us A LOT.

 

[sailingaway]

Well, it's either preach to the choir, or try to reach new converts. I think a few simple things the senior crowd would hear from RP's own mouth at the town hall events, such as keeping Social Security secure...and that he isn't a pacifist and would deal with threats to national security, would help with some of them. You gotta open their eyes/ears somehow...and believe me, I know how many are brainwashed by Fox News/talk radio...

I'd love that, and Ron has done that, but when he goes for one day, I think it is his GOTV in states where he doesn't have phone from home. It would take a lot of that. He could in maybe, California, where he has time, or Connecticut, I guess.

 

[morely webb]

No, don't stop. Keep drawing crowds, attract the young, independents, and disillusioned Democrats. Work to get more publicity for these rallies on local TV and the networks. If there is a brokered convention, Ron has to be ahead nationally in the polls against Obama, say by six to ten points, with the other candidates losing to Obama. Then we make the argument to the Republican convention: "Do you want to win against Obama with Ron Paul or lose to Obama with Romney, Gingrich, or Santorum?"

 

[sailingaway]

Would the time spent talking to the older crowd be productive? Would he be able to change their minds about the stupidity of the wars (empire, drugs, poverty, etc) and other topics? Or are too many of them too set in their ways?

He could very easily debunk the notion that his 'wanting to end social security' would mean pulling the rug out from under them when they rely on it, instead of letting the young opt out.

 

[coffeewithchess]

He did it at high schools and pizza restaurants. Ron could not possibly fit in a pizza restaurant. Santorum was drawing maybe 20 people.

Again, RP should hold TARGETED events...age specific. "60+ How we Protect Our Grandkids"
"50+, Will Social Security be there for you?"

Stuff like that...when you have students showing up that can't vote, and taking up seats of potential CURRENT voters...there is a serious problem there.

 

[kathy88]

sorry but I don't buy the "they don't vote" bullshit, how is possible they are willing to go to these rallies but not bothering to vote? BS, I actually think they are voting or at least TRYING to vote. how is it that the other candidates only dream of getting all this support but get thousands and thousands of more votes than ron? where's the hardcore romney supporters? where's the hardcore santorum supporters? it just doesn't make sense to me, it's completely mind boggling and I refuse to believe that our supporters aren't voting AT ALL.

If they aren't registered republicans in closed primaries they obviously are not voting. A lot of our support comes from people new to politics, formerly apathetic or young. They weren't registered republicans prior, and they miss deadlines.

 

[VinnyG]

Stop? No. But he needs to focus on smaller venues for older crowds more. If that means cutting back on the college campuses, then so be it. A rally with 300 40-50 somethgins is going to yield more votes than a campus rally with 1000 college kids. Especially with caucuses, though those are pretty much over.

 

[Okie RP fan]

When I went to Oklahoma City to hear Dr. Paul speak, two college aged kids in front of me were talking and saying "I'm a registered Democrat" and the other said " I am too."

We have problems all around. Going to these colleges and what not is a noble idea in some senses, stupid in others. The campaign, if they were truly trying to win, would have learned by now that they aren't effectively GOTV while Dr. Paul speaks at these colleges, or these kids really don't care.

Without going any further into the college issue that so many on here seem to hold to heart.

 

[RDM]

If they aren't registered republicans in closed primaries they obviously are not voting. A lot of our support comes from people new to politics, formerly apathetic or young. They weren't registered republicans prior, and they miss deadlines.

Yeah, and whose fault was that?

 

[Carson]

Should Ron Paul stop speaking at Colleges for large crowds that aren't voting?

Are you serious?

What a collage student might look like;

 

[parocks]

This was from Daily Paul:

"However this does not take away from the incredible organization of the Youth for Paul
chapter at KU (packed the house, overflow areas, and turned people away) and the passion of a
small minority of Ron Paul supporters that travel and are getting out to these events."

Ok, here's the problem. The people, the YFP at KU, wasted time hyping the rally. They should've focused on getting people to vote on Saturday.

It appears that the problem isn't young vs old. It's rally vs voting.

"incredible organization" - this "incredible organization" was able to work hard to "pack the house". But, who cares? They shot their load on a rally, instead of shooting their load on election day.

I would rather hear that the "incredible organization" at KU was able to get VOTES ON ELECTION DAY. All the time, all the money they spent to hype the rally was not spent getting people to the polls.

If there was NO RALLY, NO MONEY, NO TIME spent, would we have done worse than 173 votes in Douglas County? Who knows? But there are 10K+ students there.

There should be a GOTV system, formula, plan, that colleges can just implement. And all the time they spent on the rally, all the money spent on the rally, would be used to maximize turnout on election day.

Huge rallies at colleges don't help turnout at those colleges. GOTV at these colleges is essential, and it seems like they're doing things that could help turnout, might help turnout, but don't necessarily.

 

[r3volutionpaul91]

If they aren't registered republicans in closed primaries they obviously are not voting. A lot of our support comes from people new to politics, formerly apathetic or young. They weren't registered republicans prior, and they miss deadlines.

makes sense, damn so how can we help turn it around? it pisses me off to know paul has so much support and it isn't translating into votes at all.

 

[FindLiberty]

A few passionate but un-registered RP supporting college students could use the voter walk list to select weak voters (who only show up at POTUS elections, etc.), AND THEN GO DOOR TO DOOR and sincerely plead their case, pointing out there own inability to vote themselves because they became aware too late (issues, war deaths, MSM bias and lies, etc.) to save the country from this madness (determine voter's hot-button issue and offer RP solution to that ONE area. e.g., "saving Social Security while bringing our troops home to protect America" should work on some older voters).

Bring along several high resolution photos of crowds at recent, high attendance rallies. A slip of paper with a "Media lies about RP" themed URL might work on a younger voter. I like the irony of the MSM providing us positive RP promotion tools by using their own lies! I'm finding this is turning a lot of heads to give RP a look, "try listening to the only guy who's making any sense" and ignore the MSM propagandists.

A few thousand students all doing this WOULD have an impact on the primary/caucus results in that area because so few bother to vote in these kinds of early elections. Too much enthusiasm or drama could see nutty, but the offer to provide transportation on Election Day might line up another vote or two that would have otherwise been absent.

 

[RDM]

Sounds to me, the YFP drive or organization was poorly planned from the get go of this election. What a wasted effort.

 

[TL789]

I don't understand why there is still a debate about people at rallies. It isn't fraud, it isn't that the people who go to the rallies don't vote. The registration issue is minor. If you were so dedicated to Paul, don't you think you would make sure you were properly registered and knew the deadlines? The problem is that we have no soft voters. Just because someone votes doesn't mean they are going to rallies screaming and waving signs. Romney and Santorum may only have a couple hundred people at rallies, but will have hundreds of thousands of soft voters in the primary. Most voters could probably care less about politics and don't even know who to vote for, so they just vote for Romney because the media mentions him the most. We may have a large core base, but have almost no soft support. People here are to obsessed with the size of rallies meaning something. What needs to be done is we need to gain MORE votes. Focus more on the older people. Too much time spent on here is worrying about making sure people show up to vote instead of convincing more to vote for Paul.

 

[kathy88]

Yeah, and whose fault was that?

I'm not sure what you are getting at?