Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Rep. Ron Paul talks with the press after a town hall meeting at the University of Maryland.
It's the eve of another big day of Republican presidential primaries, and long-shot candidate Ron Paul hopes to capture a solid share of nominating delegates in all five states.
Paul told a big, enthusiastic rally outside Independence Hall in rainy Philadelphia Sunday that he won't give up despite falling far behind frontrunner Mitt Romney in the delegate counts of major news organizations, including CNN and the Associated Press.
"When you run, you run to win," he said, adding: "It is obvious that we need to change our foreign policy because of the cost. Our foreign policy is a schizophrenic foreign policy—it is on again, off again."
[See pictures of Ron Paul on the campaign trail.]
But he took the long view. "We do know that the continuation of the spirit of liberty will persist no matter what, and that is what really counts."
Paul, a GOP congressman from Texas, linked his campaign to Revolutionary War themes, noting, "In our early history, we had a major undertaking overthrowing an empire. And in some ways, that is what we are doing now."
In the past few days, he has made appearances in New York and Rhode Island, where his campaign is running a TV ad calling attention to his libertarian views. The turnout in all five primary states is expected to be low Tuesday, which might magnify the impact of Paul's core of supporters, who tend to turn out no matter what.
[Read Ron Paul Still Raking in Big Fundraising Bucks.]
But his big goal is to win the Texas mega-primary on May 29. It's his home state and his strategists think that Texas pride and his brand of libertarian conservatism will enable him to make a good showing.
Paul has enough money to continue competing. His latest financial disclosure report says he raised $10.4 million in the first quarter of 2012. He had $1.8 million in cash on hand and no debt. These totals don't include the $1.4 million he raised after the quarterly reporting period ended March 31. That money was collected in conjunction with a fund-raising push that coincided with April 17, when federal taxes were due.
The states holding primaries Tuesday are Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.
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