Paul's Pullout, Obama's Opportunity

Ron Paul is not going to be the Republican Presidential nominee, so his decision not to seek re-election to the House of Representatives is really the announcement of his retirement. Obama has, so far, missed the opportunity presented by the chance to do what the GOP has never done and nominate a white Evangelical to the Supreme Court. He should not miss this one, too.

No Republican nominee is ever going to make the Old Right any sort of offer, but what if Obama offered, say, Deputy Attorney General to Andrew Napolitano in order to help repeal Bush's assaults on constitutional liberty, Deputy National Security Advisor to Philip Giraldi, and comparable positions of their own choosing to Pat Buchanan and Paul Craig Roberts? All within the discipline of not commenting outside one's own sphere of responsibility, the discipline that enabled Buchanan and Roberts to serve under Reagan, which involved little or no more compromise on their part, or indeed on his.

Plus others to figures from that same constituency, thus covering the full shared agenda of fair trade, repealing much or all of the USA Patriot Act, ending completely the neoconservative war agenda, strict campaign finance reform, a crackdown against corporate influence generally and corporate welfare in particular, tax cuts for the poor and the middle class, halting and reversing the national emergency of unrestricted and illegal immigration (a hugely popular cause with Obama's black base), and making English the only official language of the United States (likewise). Made such an offer, what would the paleocons say, and why? After all, they managed to serve under Reagan.