CONCORD – U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, brought his anti-war and limited government message to a gathering of largely like-minded activists here yesterday, and condemned the Republican establishment for forsaking principles it claims to uphold.

RON PAUL

Paul, who ran as the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate in 1988, is now exploring a run for the Republican Party's presidential nomination. Should he decide to enter the race, he would prove a long shot at best, and run at a considerable disadvantage in terms of fundraising. The Texas congressman said yesterday he believed his message would garner support from those upset about how the nation is now run.

"The message is always the same - government intrusion into our lives is way too much," said Paul prior to his talk. "I think the Republicans have failed to live up to their commitments to smaller government."

On the national scene, Paul, a physician, largely toils in obscurity, although The Washington Post last year wrote a profile which mentioned his nickname, "Dr. No." This sobriquet referred to Paul's general opposition to spending proposals and other measures he considers outside the government's Constitutional scope.

Paul - who had been in New Hampshire since Thursday - found himself treated like a rock star at yesterday's event, and a couple of hundred people were on hand to hear him speak at the Free State Project's New Hampshire Liberty Forum. About half the 350 people who attended the days-long conference, at the Holiday Inn on North Main Street, were from New Hampshire, organizers said.

Paul, who received a standing ovation before and after his remarks, touched on many points during his address. For instance, he noted his long-standing opposition to the war in Iraq, which he said stemmed from his belief there was no security threat to America and the vote authorizing the war represented an illegal transfer of power to the president. He also called for the United States to withdraw from Iraq.

"The worst thing that could happen to al-Qaeda is for that war to end," Paul said.

Among other issues, Paul also voiced support for abandoning the war on drugs, allowing gold and silver to serve as legal tender, repealing the Seventeenth Amendment €" which lets voters directly elect U.S. Senators €" and ending the practice of withholding taxes from one's pay. Instead, taxpayers would have to actually write checks to pay their taxes, a move Paul figured would soon end what he called the present tax-and-spend philosophy of government.

Yesterday, Paul said he planned to take part in a debate among Republican presidential candidates scheduled for Apr. 4. However, he said he was still unsure about whether he would actually throw his hat into the ring.

"If this exploratory committee doesn't go well, maybe I ought to consider moving here and running (in) a statewide race," Paul said, to cheers.