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During the semester, I shall post course material and students will comment on it. Students are also free to comment on any aspect of the presidency, either current or historical. There are only two major limitations: no coarse language, and no derogatory comments about people at the Claremont Colleges.

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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

SF Straw Poll Canceled

Below is a little piece on what's going on in San Fran with Ron Paul:

GOP goes wild: San Francisco Republicans have managed to prove that they can be just as wacky as the rest of the bunch.

It all started when the San Francisco Republican Alliance, one of many small GOP clubs in town, got together at the Holiday Inn at Fisherman's Wharf the other night for a little pre-election dinner and presidential straw poll.

The keynote speaker, Republican state Sen. Sam Aanestad of Grass Valley in Nevada County, delivered a long-winded speech on behalf of his candidate, Fred Thompson, leaving little time for other speakers.

But it did give Ron Paul backers time to put out a call for their supporters to show up - and the result was dozens of Paul's posse members trying to get in as Thompson's folks cried foul.

Club president Gail Neira, dressed in red and wearing a Santa cap, then got up and canceled the vote.

The stormy aftermath was caught on video by a Paul supporter, who promptly posted it on YouTube (watch here)


"This is why people are leaving the Republican Party," one Paul backer is overheard shouting. "You can't say, 'Come to a straw poll,' then cancel it."

"Yes, we can," one man replies.

"I want my money back," says another.

The video finishes with an older Paul backer angrily telling Neira, "You are a disgrace to the Republican Party."

What the tape doesn't capture is the hotel security guards who were called soon after to restore order and clear the room.

Neira says her phone has been ringing off the hook ever since from furious Paul supporters from all over the country. Still, rules are rules, and she was the one who got to make them. And as far as she's concerned, this was an invitation-only dinner.

"I don't believe in rewarding people who breach my protocol," she said.

No word yet on a plans for a sequel.


The article above can be found at sfgate.com.

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