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Ron Paul's Iowa Surge Brings Mixed Reaction

Texas Congressman Ron Paul taking the stage at a Florida debate in September. Two new polls have Paul leading the Republican presidential pack two weeks before the Iowa GOP caucuses.
Photo by Ben Philpott/KUT News
Texas Congressman Ron Paul taking the stage at a Florida debate in September. Two new polls have Paul leading the Republican presidential pack two weeks before the Iowa GOP caucuses.

Thetwo most recent polls on the Iowa Caucuses have Texas Congressman Ron Paul winning the 1st GOP nominating contest.

Not doing well, but still behind. Not getting set to play a spoiler role. Winning.

The Paul campaign points to the fact that it's been working to win Iowa since before the 2008 Presidential caucuses. When a New York Times poll asked caucus-goers which campaigns they had been contacted by this year, 60 percent said the Paul campaign, more than any other candidate.

But with the high poll numbers comes higher scrutiny.

The latest issue of The Weekly Standard, a conservative publication, is reminding it's readers of offensive articles published in Paul's newsletters. The story was 1st reported during his 2008 Presidential run.

And some Iowa Republicans have begun to worry that a Ron Paul win could lead to GOP leaders striping the state of its "First in the Nation" election status.

Ron Paul and his supporters think that kind of talk is a fear tactic to keep people from voting for him. Whether Paul is able to cross over and pick up more main-stream support in Iowa is still a question, but those already backing him won't waiver. As one pundit told the New York Times, Ron Paul's people will turn out no matter what on January 3rd. And Paul's campaign is hoping for a blizzard to keep the rest of the turnout low.

Ben Philpott is the Managing Editor for KUT. Got a tip? Email him at bphilpott@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @BenPhilpottKUT.