The House voted 405-1 today for a resolution in support of the Iranian dissidents and condemning the ruling government. And the one man who opposed it was...Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX). Paul said in his floor speech that he was in "reluctant opposition" to the resolution -- that he of course condemns violence by governments against their citizens. On the other hand, he also doesn't think the American government should act as a judge of every country overseas, and pointed out that we don't condemn countries like Saudi Arabia or Egypt that don't even have real elections. http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/...om-resolution-supporting-iranian-protests.php
I actually like Ron Paul because he is truly one of the only honest men in Washington. He's a strict non-interventionist.
It's not about being different. It's about sticking to principles and the Constitution. He's one of the few in Washington who does. I applaud him
The one thing I love about Congressman Paul is that he's a purist. He sees things in the manner that he believes the founding fathers would have seen them. Now, I'm sure he won't agree completely with how this administration is handling the whole Iranian situation, but I'm not shocked that he wants to stand aside and "wait and see" what happens. I saw the live assembly that the Ayatollah gave the other night on CNN and felt it was politics as usual in Iran. But those people have a right to feel the way they do one way or the other because of their history with the west. I'm convinced this is a turning point in historical dealings with Iran as well as a crossroads for the country in terms of where they go from here. The Obama admin. is completely correct to stay out of this and let it play out. Sure, Iranians getting hurt or dying in the streets is horrible, but it may ultimately result in a better end in the long run.
After what we did by murdering their democratically elected president and installing yet another monarchy (Iran/Persia has spent the vast majority of its history under the thumb of a shah) with the Pahlavi royal family in the 50's, the last thing we need to do is stick our noses in this fight. Regardless of who comes out on top, we are still going to have to do business with Iran.