Ron Paul is not a bigot

There was an article in the New Republic bringing up allegations that Ron Paul is a racist, bigot, and anti-semite. These are old allegations based on writings that appeared in a newsletter using Dr. Paul's name. He did not write them nor edit them. Even the author of these allegations agrees that Ron Paul has never said anything that would appear to be racist.

These newsletters were written in the years when Dr. Paul was out of Congress and busy delivering babies for people who didn't have enough money to pay themselves (he refused payments from the government). He took "moral responsibility" for not paying closer attention to these newsletters several times over the past decade. The timing of this smear attack, the night before the New Hampshire primary, was intended to attack his credibility without leaving time for him to counter it. Clearly, the New Republic did not learn of this story the day before the election. It had been known for over a decade.

I do not believe for a moment that Dr. Paul is a bigot. I have been following him for two years after learning about his views on monetary policy when I started becoming interested in Austrian Economics. I have read dozens of his essays and speeches and not once did I ever see a hint of bigotry. Since I am Jewish, this is especially important to me.

I am disappointed that Dr. Paul would even be associated with bigots, but I can see how this could happen. I have had friends utter racist comments before and this was in New York City which is very diverse. Unfortunately, in less diverse parts of the country, this may be more common. I once visited the family of a girlfriend in a mid-western city and one of her relatives uttered an anti-semitic comment. This was disappointing but I didn't draw the conclusion that my girlfriend was anti-semitic nor that her relative was a bad person, just ignorant. It is the job for all of us to stamp our bigotry wherever it exists.

I am only writing this entry because I know people will ask me about this anyway,

The statement from the campaign:

ARLINGTON, Va.--(Business Wire)--In response to an article published by The New Republic, Ron Paul
issued the following statement:

"The quotations in The New Republic article are not mine and do
not represent what I believe or have ever believed. I have never
uttered such words and denounce such small-minded thoughts.

"In fact, I have always agreed with Martin Luther King, Jr. that
we should only be concerned with the content of a person's character,
not the color of their skin. As I stated on the floor of the U.S.
House on April 20, 1999: 'I rise in great respect for the courage and
high ideals of Rosa Parks who stood steadfastly for the rights of
individuals against unjust laws and oppressive governmental policies.'

"This story is old news and has been rehashed for over a decade.
It's once again being resurrected for obvious political reasons on the
day of the New Hampshire primary.

"When I was out of Congress and practicing medicine full-time, a
newsletter was published under my name that I did not edit. Several
writers contributed to the product. For over a decade, I have
publically taken moral responsibility for not paying closer attention
to what went out under my name."

Ron Paul 2008 Presidential Campaign Committee
Jesse Benton, 703-248-9115

UPDATE (1/10/2008) Ron Paul responds to allegations on CNN