Old-Fashioned DM Haunts, Helps Ron Paul Campaign
Though Ron Paul’s campaign has certainly demonstrated online fundraising prowess, good old-fashioned direct mail has played a highly unusual role in it, as well — at times both bad and good for the Republican presidential candidate.
First there was a controversy earlier this month over content in Paul’s old newsletters and direct mail pieces.
And now legendary conservative direct-marketing fundraiser Richard Viguerie has given the libertarian Paul a plug.
Viguerie, who invented political direct mail and who many credit with helping Ronald Reagan become president, last week announced the launch of a pro-Paul Web site, UltimateRonPaul.com.
“I remain uncommitted to any of the Republican candidates,” Viguerie said in a statement. “But it is clear that Ron Paul is truly a principled conservative in the grand tradition of Robert Taft, Barry Goldwater, and Ronald Reagan.”
Viguerie continued: “UltimateRonPaul.com is designed to meet their needs by giving [Paul supporters] everything they need to know about Ron Paul on one Web site.”
The announcement comes on the heels of a controversy that began when the left-leaning New Republic magazine published an article titled “Angry White Man,” exposing some racist, anti-gay, anti-Israel and anti-government conspiratorial content that appeared in various newsletters published under Paul’s name in the ’80s and ’90s and at least one pitch letter.
For example, the undated 8-page direct mail pitch letter hawking subscriptions to two of Paul’s newsletters says: “I’ve been told not to talk, but these stooges don’t scare me. Threats or no threats, I’ve laid bare the coming race war in our big cities. The federal-homosexual cover-up on AIDS (my training as a physician helps me see through this one.)”
Also, after an acquittal of four white police officers who were videotaped beating black motorist Rodney King sparked race riots in Los Angeles, the June 15, 1992 issue of “The Ron Paul Political Report” said: “Order was only restored in L.A. when it came time for blacks to pick up their welfare checks.”
The pitch letter went out on Ron Paul stationary and contained to be what is purported to be his signature. However, it was a classic piece of fear-and-greed direct marketing that reads as if it were written by an experienced DM copywriter.
Paul has denied writing the newsletters and the pitch letter and said he doesn’t know who did.
“Every body in my district knows I didn’t write them and I don’t speak like that,” he said in a Jan. 10 interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN.
When Blitzer asked how the comments ended up in his newsletters, Paul responded that publishers often don’t know the contents of their publications, and that the editor is responsible for day-to-day operations.
“People came and [went], there were some people that were hired, I didn’t know any of their names,” he said. “I absolutely honestly do not know who wrote those things.”
He also said Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks are two of his heroes because of their acts of non-violent civil disobedience.
“I honor and respect the civil rights movement and civil disobedience,” he said, adding that his promise to pardon all non-violent drug offenders would help minorities the most.
“The real discrimination in this country today has to do with drug laws,” he said. “What other candidate would take it upon himself to challenge this whole system of judiciary that is so unfair to minorities?”
Paul’s campaign recently reported drawing nearly $20 million mostly from small donors in the fourth quarter of 2007, more than half of which was the result of two, 24-hour online fundraising efforts organized by supporters.
