Ron Paul: The World's Most Popular U.S. CongressmanRecently by Ron Paul: Leave Iran Alone!
Months after his long-shot bid for the Republican presidential nomination ended, Rep. Ron Paul has become a hot ticket on the international stage. Unlikely as it may seem, Paul, a Texas Republican, is the most popular member of Congress outside the United States, if foreign television appearances are any indication. Paul expected his international influence to diminish after the quixotic presidential campaign. In fact, it's gone the other way. "It's actually building," he told the Huffington Post. "It really truly baffles me. I see myself as somebody who's been saying the same thing for about 30 years and not too many people paying any attention."
Paul says he doesn't go looking for the appearances. "I have a low resistance, because they pester me to death and I usually get talked into it. I don't usually look for 'em, but if somebody wanted to honestly ask me questions and express myself, because they relate to international affairs, I'm on [the] international relations [committee], and so they ask me," says Paul, pausing, probably realizing there are 46 other members of that committee who get nowhere near the number of foreign requests. "I don't know how it came about," he concludes. "It certainly isn't planned, because I'm not looking for more interviews." Turn on Russia Today any given afternoon and you're likely to see Paul waxing political. A Paul-seeking viewer could also find him on the BBC and other outlets in Great Britain – "too many to count," says the spokesman, Jesse Benton, for his ongoing Campaign for Liberty – or on stations in Canada, Holland, Sweden, Australia, Brazil and Argentina. He's also routinely asked to appear in person. "Dr. Paul currently has invitations to speak all over the world, including Turkey, The Czech Republic, the U.K and Hong Kong," says Benton. "Yes, we do get more foreign media requests than we can accommodate," affirms Rachel Mills, his congressional spokeswoman. In the last month, she says, he's appeared on Italian National Television, Russia Today, BBC and Iran's Press TV. A number of others were declined for lack of time, she said.
Told of Paul's foreign popularity, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) lets out a chuckle. "He's a great member of our caucus," he says, smiling. Stepping back, it's not hard to guess why Paul is so popular among foreign producers. He's a fierce critic of American policy from top to bottom – foreign policy, fiscal policy, monetary policy, civil liberties. And he's popular with audiences.
June 23, 2009 Dr. Ron Paul is a Republican member of Congress from Texas. Copyright © 2009 Huffington Post
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How
much international media does a typical member of Congress do? "Practically
none," says a top House GOP communications aide. Foreign media
appearances are so rare, he says, that the party doesn't track them.
