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Paul backers vote selves onto island
A group of strange political bedfellows rally in high traffic area for presidential candidate

By HELEN COLWELL ADAMS, Staff writer
Sunday News

Published: Dec 23, 2007 12:20 AM EST

LANCASTER, Pa - Shawn Patrick House is the one-time chairman of the Lancaster County Libertarian Party.

Ken Brenneman was registered in the Constitution Party.

Amy Mink is a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat.

So why were all of them standing in the middle of traffic outside Park City Center in a biting wind three days before Christmas, waving signs for a Republican presidential candidate?

Two words, two syllables, one name:

Ron Paul.

The Texas congressman may be a long shot for the GOP nomination, but for a growing and passionate band of supporters in Lancaster County, he's the glue that holds together an unlikely ideological coalition.

"They're an eclectic mix of people that on many things would not agree," said Franklin & Marshall College pundit Dr. G. Terry Madonna.

"Ron Paul really has brought a very diverse group of people together for a strong message of freedom," said Nicole Quinn, an assistant organizer for the Lancaster Meetup.com group.

"Although our various groups may have minor differences of opinions, we all share the main core principles of liberty."

Across party lines, across gender lines, across generational lines, the underdog candidacy of a limited-government crusader has energized the grass roots.

Paul has more than 1,400 Meetup groups across the country, more than any other candidate. He set a one-day record for campaign fundraising, pulling in $6 million earlier this month.

So, as the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses loom on Jan. 3, Paul's people are on a mission to spread the good news — by word of mouth, by "sign wave," by Internet.

Brenneman, a military veteran who re-registered Republican to vote for Paul, said the enthusiasm reminds him of John F. Kennedy's 1960 candidacy.

"It's a grass fire," he said.

Signing up
Saturday morning, as cars backed up on Harrisburg Pike, about 20 members of the Ron Paul Meetup walked the island at the Route 30 ramps, waving signs and giving literature to drivers stuck in traffic.

Mink, who lives in Neffsville, was dressed as the Statue of Liberty. Her hand-lettered sign read, "Lost: Constitutional rights. If found, please return to American people."

House donned a red Santa hat to go with his sign, "Why Ron Paul?"

There were a few boos and thumbs turned down from motorists, but House estimated that about 90 percent of the reactions were honks of support.

"It's keeping us going," House said.

Patrick Kocher of Gordonville, organizer of the Lancaster Meetup, is from a politically active family in Delaware County. He's no campaign newbie.

"The guy's got integrity," Kocher said. "I re-registered Republican from the Constitution Party for this."

Brenneman met Paul, a Pittsburgh native, when he spoke to the Constitution Party in Lancaster three days before 9/11 in 2001. "He not only says what's on his mind," Brenneman said, "but he actually follows through."

"By watching the debates, I saw how very good he was on foreign policy," said Matt Boyer, a Democrat, "which I think is one of the major issues today."

The district sales manager for Lancaster Newspapers' circulation department started researching Paul's positions and liked what he learned.

"I certainly don't agree with everything he says," Boyer added, "but he's on the right track. He's genuine and consistent."

Boyer found out about Paul by seeing the sign waves outside Park City and connecting with the Meetup.

The Lancaster Meetup, which can be found at http://ronpaul.meetup.com/926, lists 87 members, and it is cloning replicas in Oxford-Solanco, Ephrata and Elizabethtown. The organization is outgrowing its meeting room at the Lancaster Public Library.

Paul supporters have been doing "sign waves" near the mall every Saturday in December. They started on one of the islands on Plaza Boulevard, but mall security chased them off.

They christened the Harrisburg Pike median "Liberty Island."

"These grassroots volunteers from all over the country will stand in the rain, sleet and snow to share the message of freedom," Quinn said.

Crossover voters
Libertarians and Constitutionalists make for strange political bedfellows. So do Democrats and Republicans.

But when the object is Ron Paul, political affiliations don't matter.

"We all have a lot of common ground," House said.

"Because Ron Paul's principles support individual freedom, it's only natural that we have respect for others, even when we disagree," Quinn added.

Madonna said some Paul support comes from his antiwar stand and some because "he's more a Libertarian than a Republican." Others like the obstetrician because he's "against the grain of the establishment."

The coalition crosses age lines, too.

"It's so great to see the different generations coming together," Mink said. "It's inspiring. That's why I'm here."

Members of the Lancaster Meetup know that Pennsylvania's primary, on April 22, probably will be too late to have any effect on the nomination. To compensate, they're writing letters of support to Republican voters in the early caucus and primary states, like Iowa and New Hampshire.

A spokesman for Paul's campaign wasn't available for comment late last week. Not a problem: The Lancaster Meetup is more than happy to explain why Paul is going to surprise pundits.

"Ron Paul's integrity, principles and dedication are very hard to find in the political arena," Quinn, a Libertarian and a Realtor, noted. "... Ron Paul is so true to his beliefs that he is willing to turn down personal benefits [including a congressional pension] simply because it goes against his principles."

"He won't vote for anything not in the Constitution," Brenneman said. "He wants to keep us sovereign and free."

His Texas district keeps re-electing him, Brenneman said, even though Paul rejects "pork" projects.

House, who runs a hemp products business, Hempzels, has been a fan of Paul's for years after Paul introduced legislation that would differentiate industrial hemp from illegal marijuana.

Paul's supporters have been annoyed at the lack of mainstream media attention. They've been bombarding pollsters, like Madonna, asking for Paul to be included in polls.

"We'll include all the candidates who file [for the Pennsylvania ballot], as we always do," Madonna said, "and everybody who intends to file."

Paul supporters argue that his voters aren't being polled. Madonna noted Paul is drawing 6 to 10 percent support in some state polls, and 6-7 percent nationally.

"He polls so low that, I think, it's pretty hard to get at that group," Madonna noted.

But even if pollsters and media are ignoring Paul, his strange bedfellows are making sure his name is heard.

Some have taken to using a blimp as an airborne billboard (see www.ronpaulblimp.com). Meetup.com groups and YouTube videos also help.

It's beginning to pay off. Paul set the single-day fundraising record on Dec. 16 with more than $6 million in 24 hours. According to www.ronpaul2008.com, Paul has raised nearly $18.53 million for the fourth quarter of 2007.

"The stars and the moon are lining up," House said.

Quinn agreed.

"I think we've been building a huge snowball that is about to come down the hill," she said.