Explain to me how US politics work pls

[daidalos]

Ron Paul said that he will not go for president if he doesn't get republican backing.... what does he mean....... who is supposed to back him republican politicians or republican voters ?

[Lackluster]

"Eplain to me how US politics work pls"

No one really knows.

[Libertarian_Guard]

It dosen't.

The money buys the votes.

Even still, it would be very unlikely to win, other than being the one candidate that represents the Republicans or Democrats.

Ron Paul is attempting to represent the Republican party in the november 08 election.

[RealityCheck]

Ron Paul said that he will not go for president if he doesn't get republican backing.... what does he mean....... who is supposed to back him republican politicians or republican voters ?

He needs to be nominated by the republican party.

[Anty Ep]

the major difference between the US and all the other western parliamentary systems is that the US is a two party "winner take all" system. there is never any "proportional representation" such as what gets the greens or reds or browns small seats in the lander or bundestag. in the US the system is rigged so that third parties are sure to lose 99.99% of the time.

that explanation is for europeans

americans may be interested to know that european parliamentary systems allow for much easier wins by third parties and for much easier amendments to constitutions by parliament; and these parliaments are also "supreme" not some body of unelected blackrobes aka "the Supreme Court" which is always telling the elected representatives of the people what they can and cant do.

in short if democracy means a more legitimate government, then the european governments are considerably more legitimate than our own.

[daidalos]

So for Ron Paul to win then the republican politicians need to back him ? or do the republican members ( simple people / voters of rep ) need to back him ?

[flash91]

So for Ron Paul to win then the republican politicians need to back him ? or do the republican members ( simple people / voters of rep ) need to back him ?

He is asking that the republican party nominate him for president.

The two party system means that third party candidates (those not nominated by dems or repubs) can't get onto the voting lists without insane amounts of work.

If you're not on the ballot, you can't win. Ron Paul is just stating the obvious.

[bjgnome]

So for Ron Paul to win then the republican politicians need to back him ? or do the republican members ( simple people / voters of rep ) need to back him ?

There is a Republican Primary vote, in which the people choose among the various republican candidates for who will represent the Republicans in the general election.

In some states I believe you must be a registered republican to vote in the republican primary. In other states, you may not need to be a member of that party. Our system is so full of inconsistencies it is positively third-world - or worse.

There are an infinite number of ways that the republican party insiders can hijack the process along the way, and deny the people the opportunity to choose. As we have seen, some members of the party are trying to eliminate Ron Paul already.

So, the answer to your question, is Ron Paul needs both.

[mozkill]

The money buys the votes.

This is not directly true but it is certainly true that the votes are purchased "indirectly".

[Corporate_slave]

Ron Paul will not win the Primary... this is plainly obvious.

However, in the main event, you can cast a "write-in" ballot, and you may elect anyone that you wish. I would imagine that Ron Paul's strategy will be to get as much attention as possible in the primaries; and then become a "I'm not running anymore" pundit on the shows. He will be invited by everyone and their brother because of his internet popularity; and will have even more freedom to say whatever he wants.

Meanwhile, back at the underground Ron Paul campaign headquarters, the movement will be going strong to push the agenda to vote Ron Paul on the write-in ballot.

There are already several websites dedicated to this cause. Ron Paul can say that he's out of the race until he is blue in the face (and he probably should,) but the people will still push the write-in agenda; and hopefully make Ron Paul the first "write-in" President in history!!!


What a great day for Democracy THAT would be...

[Sparky]

So for Ron Paul to win then the republican politicians need to back him ? or do the republican members ( simple people / voters of rep ) need to back him ?
The simple answer is that he means "wins enough Republican primary election votes" as voted by the "simple people" (to use your term), such that the Republican party would nominate him as their candidate for the general election against the Democratic candidate.

He is really saying: "I will not run as an Independent candidate (non-Republican) in the general election if I don't win the Republican primary nomination."

It is an answer he must give, otherwise he will not be taken seriously as a presidential candidate. My guess is that if he gets a lot of votes, but not enough to win the Republican nomination, he may still consider running as an Independent.

[Sukhoi_fan]

There are an infinite number of ways that the republican party insiders can hijack the process along the way, and deny the people the opportunity to choose.

One way works particularly well -

1980: G.H.W. Bushitler

2000: 'Big Dick' Cheney