On Sunday, Ron Paul spoke in front of a packed USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida almost as if he was riding off into the sunset after his last run for the Oval Office.
Unlike most unsuccessful candidates, he didn’t just suspend his campaign message and go away, he tried to ignite the crowd to carry on his message focused around the idea of liberty.
Paul has not been considered a serious candidate for the GOP nomination in 2012 by most mainstream media outlets, however he still packed an arena full of fiery supporters who vowed to carry on his message. Even some of the more hardcore supporters were still optimistic that he would receive the GOP nomination, although it is very unlikely.
Notably, a large portion of the crowd consisted of young people who were excited by the idea of liberty. Knightnews.com spoke to a group that drove down from California just to see the event, and another young man who drove all the way down from North Jersey by himself.
Many of the young supporters told us that there is no way they would vote for the likely GOP nominee Mitt Romney, but would think about voting for Ron Paul’s son Rand Paul in the future if he were to run. Fittingly, the crowd chanted “Rand, ’16” as he walked to the podium to give his speech.
The event included speakers Barry Goldwater Jr., son of ex-Presidential candidate Barry Goldwater, who told the crowd that, “Other than collecting taxes, the government doesn’t too much else well.”
Other speakers were Ron Paul’s son Sen. Rand Paul who spoke in favor of abolishing the TSA, Ron Paul’s official campaign blogger Jack Hunter, and Congressman Justin Amash.
Check out the video below to see the full event:
