Dr. Ron Paul, Champion of the Constitution

I have followed Dr. Paul's positions for many years, and have found that we share a good majority of ideological and practical positions on various issues. I was happy I finally had the opportunity to meet him.

As I asked him my questions, he had a very relaxed manner, which surprised me, and yet set me at ease as well. He came off almost as an older friend. His demeanor was very calm and he reclined across his chair with him leg hanging over the arm of it, almost as a teenager would. To anyone else, this might seem unprofessional, yet I viewed it as a refreshing change of pace from the tight necktie, starched suit world of the rest of the capitol. Even in his office, he came off as a maverick to the status quo, and that really impressed me.

When I asked him on what he based his personal philosophy, he said he supported the political golden rule: individuals and governments cannot use force to bring about rules or changes. There has to be a voluntary exchange and agreement for the new law or procedure to be legitimate. He stressed that this did not imply he was a pacifist, as he viewed force in self-defense as an important aspect of his philosophy. Being a libertarian myself (as I knew he is as well), I found myself in agreement with his views thus far. He continued that government should act as a referee when one is attacked; either physically or through fraud or coercion.

On the subject of persuasion, he suggested it was best to set an example. He said that if someone lives by example, this is far more persuasive than telling others what they should or should not do. He illustrates this principle on the personal level by stating that someone who does not smoke or take drugs as an example has a greater impact on another than someone who tells another they should not do either. He said that this can also be applied to government as well, particularly in foreign policy. He stated that the U.S. should serve as an exemplary nation to the rest of the world, and that this would help alleviate some of our problems in the realm of foreign policy.

When I asked him about when he thinks he made a mistake in trying to influence others and what he did afterward, he said he simply backs off when he realizes he may have pushed too hard, given offense, or gone too fast on an issue. He suggests that one should not be argumentative. The most important attribute to being influential is simply to be educated about the issues and know how one's position would solve our problems. He told me that many of his colleagues look to him for advice and look up to him for his knowledge on certain issues, such as monetary policy and constitutional issues. For his part, he attempts to get people to ask him questions about what he thinks on an issue rather than telling them what he thinks. He made it clear that to do otherwise would be akin to use of force, which he opposes.

When I asked him who some of his heroes were, or those he looked to as examples, he said he respected many of the Austrian School economists, such as Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, Hans Sennholz, and Murray Rothbard. This school of economics took a rational approach to economics by attempting to determine how individuals would act logically in an economic context, rather than the classical scientific approach of controlled experiments and collecting and comparing statistical data. Ultimately, Austrian economists believe that everyone is better off in a voluntary exchange, otherwise they would not have bothered to exchange anything in the first place. This ties in directly with a great deal of Dr. Paul's personal philosophy of voluntary exchanges and contract freedom.

One of his other heroes includes the late economist Milton Friedman, who came from the Chicago School of economics. He was a great supporter of free market libertarianism, and opposed excessive government and government control of monetary policy. This philosophy is directly reflected in the ideals of Dr. Paul and his approach to allowing the market to handle most government functions, particularly commerce and monetary policy. Telling, Dr. Paul often calls for a return to the gold standard and the elimination of income tax and the Federal Reserve. Another of his heroes was the late Leonard Read, who was the founder of the Foundation for Economic Education, the first libertarian think tank in the United States. Dr. Paul stated that Read was deeply committed to education and that the world is moved by ideas. He supported the free exchange of ideas as a benefit to humanity.

Dr. Paul stated that he was not much of an avid reader while growing up and going through medical school until his mother, who read voraciously, sent him the Boris Pasternak novel Doctor Zhivago. It was then that he realized just how bad a totalitarian and authoritarian government could be. From that point, he went on to read many of the aforementioned authors as well as objectivists such as Ayn Rand.

I next asked him if he knows when he has been successful when influencing others. He said that no one really knows how successful he or she is without some sort of feedback. He used me as an example. I told him it was an old fund-raising letter first interested me in his views and approach to legislation. However, he never knows for sure whom he has influenced unless they contact him in some way. So as a result, he simply tries to be a good example and hope to influence as many as possible through that method. He slightly echoed Ronald Regan when he told me that everyone is an ally at different times depending on the issue. Sometimes we have to be willing to agree to disagree on one issue but maintain a healthy relationship so that we can gain support on another issue later on.

Even though I have studied Dr. Paul for years, I decided to ask him what some of his core beliefs are. He told me it all comes down to the fact that liberty is always superior to authoritarianism. He explained that people are born wanting to make their own decisions. He lamented the fact that, unfortunately, fear pushes people towards authoritarianism, such as the events and general public attitude after the attacks of 9/11. He stated there is a great temptation to give up liberty in order to feel secure.

My final question to him was what sort of multipurpose advice on influence he would give to others. I also asked him what has worked and what has not in his experience. As for the advice, he reiterated that education is of the utmost importance. He said that it is vital to become informed and that it is more important to know what you believe in and match those values to our American ideals. Ultimately, he said what works best is to just be honest about your position and have a good explanation to back it up.

Overall, I would have to say that Dr. Paul's advice was very valuable and directly applicable to me. I'm thinking of new ways now I can approach discussing issues I hold important with others without pushing them too hard or otherwise being too aggressive. I know for my part it will take some unlearning and relearning how to approach others if I want to have my voice heard and achieve some of my goals.