The Road Ahead for Ron Paul

If Ron Paul is disappointed with the Super Tuesday results, his campaign isn't showing it.

Jesse Benton, Paul's campaign chairman, says he met with Paul Wednesday, and says the congressman remains committed to collecting delegates and spreading his "message of liberty."

"We are focusing on trying to save this country," Benton says. "We are in this for the long haul. We are looking down stream, even to the end to states like Texas and California."

Benton touted the seven delegates the campaign collected Tuesday from Vermont and Virginia as a victory. [See pictures of Super Tuesday voters heading to the polls.]

"We were right on target, and our strategy remains the same," Benton says. "We are focused on winning delegates as we always have been."

After eight days on the campaign trail, Paul stopped for a break Wednesday in Texas where he spent the day fixing his tractor and enjoying a long bike ride.

Benton said Paul won't stop for long and will head to Kansas Thursday to prepare for the next round of primary contests. The campaign is confident they will also do well in Hawaii and Missouri, which hold their caucuses next week.

But while the Paul campaign maintains that they are proceeding as planned, Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak says Paul's inability to win any state contests on Super Tuesday is evidence of Paul's slow demise.

"He will likely finish in fourth place in delegates, receive less attention with each passing week, and place a lesser role at the convention than he originally hoped," Mackowiak says.

Throughout the nominating process, even without any wins, Paul's supporters have remained committed to their candidate's message of less government and controlled federal spending in hopes Paul could make an impact at the Republican National Convention in August. Strategists have argued that Paul has failed to mobilize the general GOP electorate enough to do that, serving now only as a deterrent to Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich. [Read: Romney Coasts to Easy Primary Win in Virginia.]

"While he has vociferous supporters, Ron Paul's real impact on the 2012 race has been limited," Mackowiak says. "He's provided a very real in-kind donation to the Romney campaign by viciously attacking every other Republican candidate, from the right, both at televised debates and in paid media."

• Unexpected Hot Bed of Ron Paul Support in Virginia.
• See pictures of the 2012 GOP candidates.
• Polls a Lonely Place in Virginia's Capital.

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