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Ron Paul’s path in politics A look at the Republican presidential hopeful’s rise to power through the years.
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) is in his third stint in the House of Representatives. In July, he announced he would not seek reelection in 2012 regardless of the outcome of the presidential race.
Melina Mara
/
The Washington Post
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After receiving his medical degree from Duke University, Paul joined the Air Force as a flight surgeon, serving at Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio.
Courtesy of Ron Paul
Feb. 1, 1957
Paul met his wife, Carol, at Gettysburg College, and they married the year he graduated, 1957.
Courtesy of Ron Paul
Paul, with his wife, Carol.
Courtesy of Ron Paul
April 25, 1979
Paul, second from left, with Rep. George Hansen (R-Idaho), left, and other members of Congress, gathers around a truck loaded with 44,300 simulated gold bricks in Washington. The men were showing their strong opposition to the estimated $4.1 billion it would cost the U.S. taxpayers to give away the Panama Canal. Long before Paul discovered Friedrich Hayek and other free-market economists, he got a lesson in sound money from his oldest brother, Bill. At the height of World War II the Paul boys were laying aside quarters from their Pittsburgh Press routes and pooling pennies earned from pulling dirty milk bottles off the line at the family dairy to buy war bonds. One day, Ronnie asked: "Why doesn’t the government just PRINT this money?" Well," Bill responded, "then the money wouldn’t have any value."
Bob Daugherty
/
AP
Aug. 26, 1988
Paul, as the Libertarian nominee for president in 1988, is interviewed by Dave McNeely on Austin Cablevision. He received 431,750 votes, never posing a serious threat to winner George H.W. Bush.
Karen Warren
/
American-Statesman
Sept. 2, 2008
Paul shakes hands with supporters after speaking during his Rally for the Republic at the Target Center in Minneapolis. The protest convention was held on Day 2 of the Republican National Convention, which took place in nearby St. Paul, after Paul lost the Republican nomination to Sen. John McCain. Paul used the rally to launch his new political and education group, the Campaign for Liberty.
Keith Bedford
/
Bloomberg
Sept. 2, 2008
Paul speaks during his Rally for the Republic. Although Paul remained in the Republican Party, he refused to endorse its 2008 nominee, John McCain, and instead asked his supporters to back third-party candidates.
Keith Bedford
/
Bloomberg
Sept. 2, 2008
Paul takes the stage during his Rally for the Republic. After losing the Republican nomination to John McCain, Paul endorsed Chuck Baldwin, the candidate of the far-right Constitution Party.
Keith Bedford
/
Bloomberg
May 18, 2010
Republican Senate candidate Rand Paul, bottom, reacts with his father, Ron Paul, as he arrives for his victory party in Bowling Green, Ky. The younger Paul surprised Kentucky’s Republican establishment by riding a wave of tea party furor to beat Secretary of State Trey Grayson in the Senate primary.
Ed Reinke
/
AP
Feb. 11, 2011
Paul addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington. A dozen potential Republican presidential hopefuls were set to address CPAC, the largest gathering of conservative activists in the country. The next month, he would form an exploratory committee for a second run at the White House.
Chip Somodevilla
/
Getty Images
May 13, 2011
Paul speaks at the town hall in Exeter, N.H., where he announced his plans to seek the Republican nomination for president.
Michael Seamans
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Demotix/Corbis
June 17, 2011
Paul speaks at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans.
Patrick Semansky
/
AP
June 22, 2011
Paul speaks with his son, Rand, during a news conference on Capitol Hill. A number of Republican congressional members joined the Cut, Cap, Balance Pledge Coalition at the news conference "to oppose any debt ceiling increase unless a “’Cut, Cap and Balance’ plan is passed.”
Alex Wong
/
Getty Images
Aug. 13, 2011
Paul prepares to take the stage to address the Iowa Straw Poll in the Hilton Coliseum at Iowa State University. Nine GOP presidential candidates were competing for votes in the Iowa Straw Poll, an important step for gaining momentum in a crowded field of hopefuls. Paul would come away with 28 percent of almost 17,000 votes, a close second to Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.).
Chip Somodevilla
/
Getty Images
Aug. 27, 2011
Paul listens to a supporter at the Polk County GOP summer picnic event held at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines.
Nati Harnik
/
AP
Oct. 11, 2011
Paul makes a point as former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney listens, during the presidential debate sponsored by The Washington Post and Bloomberg at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H. Talk show host Charlie Rose moderated the event, featuring eight Republican candidates. Romney and Herman Cain took much of the spotlight.
Toni Sandys
/
The Washington Post
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