It is actually conceivable that Republican Presidential Candidate
for US President could win Washington State this weekend in
their Caucus. How?
Prior to Super Tuesday, the local media in the state had claimed
that Ron Paul was doing well there. With all the hoopla over
Senator John McCain "securing" the GOP nomination,
and both Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee (also remaining in the race)
seemingly an after thought, it seems logical that Republican
voters would just vote for John McCain.
Or they don't bother coming out at all!
Washington State is "Democratic" through and through.
The press there has suggested Paul's campaign had been doing
well simply because he showed up and spoke there.
Ron Paul's supporters (assuming they haven't given up) will
show up at the polls. McCain's simply may stay home.
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Gambling911.com believes that the long time Texas Congressman
intends to stay in the race until the bitter end. Assuming he
still has the support (and especially monetary), he could decide
to capitalize on the current disenchantment Conservatives have
with John McCain. Imagine a Presidential candidate who attracts
both Liberals, Conservatives and those who have never voted
before.
"Imagine if those who wanted to vote for Ron Paul actually
could," joked Payton O'Brien, Senior Editor of Gambling911.com.
"One thing that is not widely brought up is that those
registered as Democrats in many states holding Primaries cannot
vote for Ron Paul. In some states, Independents can't either.
The average voter was not aware that you would have to change
your registration status 20 days prior (i.e. Florida). It doesn't
take a genius to realize why there is such a disparity between
Ron Paul's Internet support, the money his campaign has raised
and the actual low vote totals. New Hampshire was a prime example
of this confusion and Gambling911.com was one of the websites
that first publicized it."
Paul will likely do well assuming his supporters do not throw
in the towel in Washington State. This is one of the states
whose citizens have been adversely affected by legislation that
prohibits them from placing bets online. A state law passed
in late 2006 makes it a Class C felony to bet over the Internet,
thus depriving hundreds of thousands in the state from betting
on a Super Bowl that last weekend brought in $92.1 million just
to Vegas. Online gambling sites don't report their figures but
you can add a few hundred million more to that figure.
States that are looking to benefit from the online gambling
industry or those that have been adversely affected by actions
trying to prohibit the activity have been especially favorable
towards Ron Paul since he is an advocate of legalized online
gambling. Ron Paul's campaign has failed to fully reach out
to the millions of online gamblers that are out there but he
has had some support from this group. Look at the states where
he has performed well. Nevada, Louisiana (state has made headlines
for its attempts to quash online gambling activity despite no
clear laws), North Dakota (the first state to propose licensing
online poker rooms) and Minnesota (a state whose former Governor,
Jesse Ventura, acted as a spokesperson for the online gambling
website, BetUS.com).
"I would guestimate that only 2 percent - if that - of
the online poker playing community even knows about Ron Paul's
platform," claims O'Brien. "Aside from the Gambling911.com
website and some savvy posters on various other websites like
TwoPlusTwo.com, the powers-that-be within the online gambling
community have not widely promoted Paul either."
Specifically, the nearly million member Poker Players Alliance
which worked desperately to obtain meetings with Barack Obama's
representatives while ignoring Ron Paul during a recent Washington,
D.C. rally. Ron Paul took it upon himself to meet with industry
leaders (poker players) who were present. And unlike a certain
Senator who claimed he had to "go vote" when there
was no blinking red light indicating a vote was taking place,
Ron Paul was in no hurry to avoid the poker crusaders.
On that front it might be helpful if a recognized name like
former Republican New York State Senator, Alfonse D'Amato, were
to endorse Ron Paul. D'Amato is the Chairperson of the Poker
Players Alliance and served nearly 20 years in the US Senate.
The Ron Paul campaign notified Gambling911.com Thursday evening
that they are taking the necessary measures to move forward.
This is far from a conventional campaign, therefore, it is not
always practical to review past election historical data as
it applies to Ron Paul, of this entire election process for
that matter.
University of Chicago professor Robert Pape joined the Ron
Paul 2008 campaign as a foreign policy advisor on Thursday.
Dr. Pape is the foremost expert on suicide terrorism and the
founder of the Chicago Project on Suicide Terrorism. He is also
the author of Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism
and has published numerous articles on suicide terrorism and
the use of air power in war.
Regarding the campaign, Professor Pape said, “Ron Paul's
campaign is making a lasting contribution to the security of
the United States and its allies. Indeed, I often tell audiences
‘Ron Paul has the right foreign policy to safeguard America.’”
Middle East expert Leon Hadar and national security analyst
Ivan Eland also joined the Ron Paul campaign as foreign policy
advisors Thursday.