"Where are medical decisions going to be made?" he asked reporters on a conference call.

There is little evidence veto power over medical decision-making has been an element of the current plans being discussed on Capitol Hill, but Price said that element would be a consequence, intended or not, of a new public option. "Any plan that results in a government takeover of any portion of it will push the crowd out, those in the plan who have personal private health insurance, into that government-run program," he said.

Sen. Lindsey Graham spoke at the South Carolina Republican convention on Saturday.

(CNN) – A combative Lindsey Graham got into a sharp back-and-forth with some audience members at the South Carolina GOP convention on Saturday as he made the case for an open-tent Republican party.

According to The State newspaper and video posted on YouTube, the South Carolina senator told the convention he wants to build a party that can compete in Pennsylvania and Connecticut as well as in his home state.

“You’re a hypocrite!,” one man in the audience yelled.

“I’m a winner, pal,” Graham retorted. Moments later, after saying he wants to the party to reach out to independent voters, he said: “Winning matters to me. If it doesn’t matter to you, there’s the exit sign.”

The crowd in Columbia also featured some Ron Paul supporters who offered several libertarian resolutions during the convention that were rejected by the state party.

During his speech, Graham told the audience, "Ron Paul is not the leader of this party." That remark drew a few jeers, with several people yelling, "Yes he is!"

“I’m not going to give this party over to people who can’t win,” Graham responded.

Dr. Rand Paul, the son of Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul, told CNN Monday that he is seriously considering a run for the Senate.

(CNN) – The son of former Republican presidential hopeful Rep. Ron Paul said Monday that he is primed to mount a bid for the Kentucky Senate seat currently occupied by GOP Sen. Jim Bunning.

"I am very serious about running for Sen. Bunning's seat if he decides not to run," 46-year-old Rand Paul told CNN.
"Until he makes a final pronouncement, I'm trying not to do anything formally but I'm very close to making a decision."

The younger Paul's views closely resemble those of his conservative father.

"I think the bank bailout was a huge mistake," Rand Paul said Monday. "We should not have the U.S. government buying stock in American industries – the financial industry or any other industry. Most of that money could have probably been burned in a furnace for all the good it's done." The Bowling Green, Kentucky ophthalmologist pointed to the federal government's support of embattled global insurance giant AIG, calling the company's "worthless" despite the billions in aid given to it since last fall.

Like his father, the son also favors notions of limited government. "Libertarian would be a good description," Rand Paul told CNN, "because libertarians believe in freedom in all aspects of your life – your economic life as well as your social life as well as your personal life."
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Tim Kaine, left, and Michael Steele are the heads of the DNC and RNC respectively.

(CNN) – Texas Gov. Rick Perry took heat last week after appearing to leave open the possibility of secession, but fellow Texas Republican Ron Paul says the notion is "very American."

"It is very American to talk about secession. That's how we came in being. Thirteen colonies seceded from the British and established a new country. So secession is a very much American principle," Paul said in a video posted on YouTube.

The self-professed libertarian, who garnered a substantial grassroots following when he ran for president last year, stopped short of endorsing secession for his home state, but said the idea is "worth a discussion."

"What about all the strong endorsements we have give the past decade or two to all the republics that seceded from the Soviet system? We were delighted about it," Paul also said.

A Missouri official apologized to Rep. Ron Paul for a report linking him to a militia group.

(CNN) — The head of the Missouri Department of Public Safety has apologized to U.S. Rep. Ron Paul and two other former presidential candidates for a state law enforcement report linking militia groups to the candidates. State officials killed the report late Wednesday.

The report connected the three to often-armed militia groups by saying militia members are "usually supporters of former presidential candidates Ron Paul, Chuck Baldwin and Bob Barr."

Paul, a Republican congressman from Texas, unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination for president then announced his support for other third-party presidential candidates. Baldwin ran for president on the Constitution Party ticket, and Barr was the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate.

The report, prepared by the state's Information Analysis Center, was sent to police departments around the state. Public Safety Director John Britt said the intelligence report, was intended to "identify certain traits that are sometimes shared by members of militia groups."

But it generated controversy when a copy of the report was leaked publicly.

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Ron Paul was a GOP presidential candidate in the 2008 campaign cycle.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Ron Paul says he may not make a third run for the White House.

The Republican congressman from Texas was asked by CNN American Morning anchor John Roberts if he plans to make another bid for the presidency in 2012. "I don't think so,” said Paul. “I'm not planning on that. It's a long way off. I hardly can visualize what the country is going to be like then."

Paul was a GOP presidential candidate in the 2008 campaign cycle. He also ran for the White House as a Libertarian candidate in 1988.

He tied for third place with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin in a presidential preference straw poll of conservatives attending the annual Conservative Action Political Conference this past weekend in Washington. Former Massachusetts governor and 2008 GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney came in first in the straw poll, followed by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.

While Paul was non committal on running again, the 11-term Congressman said his political organization continues to grow.

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Ron Paul is a Republican congressman from Texas who unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination for president.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (CNN) - Former presidential candidate Ron Paul criticized President Obama's economic recovery proposal, but said Saturday that blame for the financial crisis is deep-seated and includes Republicans who failed to hold the line on spending during the Bush administration.

He also offered a harsh critique of the three Republican senators who have said they will vote for the economic recovery proposal. A vote is scheduled for early next week.

Paul, a Republican congressman from Texas who unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination for president, said that while some people call Obama's plan to jumpstart the economy a "stimulus package" he thinks it is a "pure spending package,"in a new video message posted on YouTube.

Paul did praise his fellow House Republicans for unanimously voting against the plan, but expressed disappointment that three Senate Republicans "caved in and went with the Democrats."

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Watch Paul and Nader sound off on the two-party system.

(CNN) — Watch Rep. Ron Paul and Ralph Nader as they discuss what they think is wrong with the two-party political system and why they think third parties should get more attention in political dialogue.

Related: Paul urges voters to skip McCain, Obama

Watch Ron Paul address the National Press Club.

(CNN) — Republican Ron Paul is bucking his own party and urging his supporters to vote for third party candidates, at an event at the National Press Club.

Watch Ron Paul's event on CNN.com/live

Earlier: Ron Paul to announce presidential endorsement plans

UPDATE: This event has ended, but stay with CNN.com/live for all the day's events on the campaign trail.

Ron Paul is urging his supporters to pick a third party candidate.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul will call on supporters to back a third party candidate for president Wednesday, rejecting his own party’s nominee and offering equally harsh words for the Democratic candidate.

Paul, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican presidential nomination, will tell supporters he is not endorsing GOP nominee John McCain or Democratic nominee Barack Obama, and will instead give his seal of approval to four candidates: Green Party nominee Cynthia McKinney, Libertarian Party nominee Bob Barr, independent candidate Ralph Nader, and Constitution Party candidate Chuck Baldwin, according to a senior Paul aide.

The announcement will take place in the morning at the National Press Club in the nation’s capital.

While Paul failed in his bid for the Republican nomination, he found a large, diverse audience for his anti-war and anti-tax messages. The Texas congressman’s campaign was fueled by a successful on-line grassroots fundraising operation. Throughout the campaign, Paul supporters called on others to join the “Ron Paul Revolution.”

Paul will offer this open endorsement to the four candidates because each has signed onto a policy statement that calls for “balancing budgets, bring troops home, personal liberties and investigating the Federal Reserve,” the Paul aide said.

Watch Ventura discuss the Constitution on American Morning with John Roberts.

(CNN) – Rep. Ron Paul may have one more foot soldier in his "revolution" to protect the Constitution — former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura.

Ventura on Tuesday spoke at a "counter convention" for the Texas congressmen and libertarian presidential candidate in St. Paul, Minnesota, the site of the Republican National Convention.

"There were about 14,000 to 15,000 people there," Ventura told CNN's John Roberts on American Morning Wednesday. "That bodes well for the people who believe our Constitution has been violated too long." The former marine and pro wrestler accused both Democrats and Republicans of violating the Constitution "whenever the need serves them to do so."

"Revolution's in the air," Ventura said, a reference his book "Don't Start the Revolution Without Me."

Although Paul's new political action committee is trying to attract like-minded candidates for Congress, Ventura told Roberts he plans to remain in the private sector and try to carry out his own "revolution" from there.

While Republican delegates rallied in St. Paul, thousands of Ron Paul supporters cheered him on in Minneapolis. Photo credit: Jeremy Freeman/CNN

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Watch Ron Paul on American Morning Tuesday.

ST. PAUL, Minnesota (CNN) – Texas Rep. Ron Paul said Tuesday that he was told he could go to the Republican convention floor under restricted conditions, but he'd have to pick up his pass at the gate and he couldn't have any guests.

"Republican congressmen should have a pass to the floor but they said, 'Your pass will be at the gate and we'll pick it up when you leave and you can't take anybody with you," Paul said on CNN's "American Morning."

Supporters of the former Republican presidential candidate are holding their own counter convention in Minneapolis. The "Rally for the Republic" marks the official start of Paul's new political action group, the "Campaign for Liberty."

More than 10,000 tickets to the rally have been sold. Tucker Carlson, Jesse Ventura and Grover Norquist are among the speakers who will appear before Paul, who is scheduled to address the rally at 8:05 p.m. ET.

Paul said his rally will be a positive event that focuses on the issues he thinks other Republicans ignore -"the spending problems, the deficit, our foreign policy, our national defense, our monetary policy."

"We're Republicans – we believe in limited government and personal liberties. We ought to be talking about these things," he said.
Paul has been critical of presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain and Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee.

Asked if there is anything to like about the presidential contenders, Paul said "not a heck of a lot."

"I like it when they shift their positions, but then you don't know where they are," he said sarcastically. "John McCain used to be for taxes – now he's against taxes. Obama talks about less military intervention, but he's the first one to say we should increase the troops in Afghanistan."
Paul did have kind words for Sarah Palin, McCain's vice presidential pick. He said he was "delighted" to hear she said positive things about him in a recent interview.

"I hope she puts the right kind of pressure on our platform," he said.

Ron Paul's rally will go on as scheduled, his campaign said.

St. Paul, MINNESOTA (CNN) — The convention for former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul will go on as planned, the campaign said Sunday, despite the RNC’s decision to truncate their program.

With Hurricane Gustav approaching the Gulf Coast, Republicans announced that they would hold an abbreviated session Monday and determine the rest of the week’s schedule on a day-by-day basis.

Paul’s campaign said it decided to stick with their schedule because it didn’t want to have to turn down the 10,000 people expected to attend the three-day event.

The “Rally for the Republic” kicked off Sunday with a training class for those interested in learning the skills needed to be an activist, according to the convention’s Web site.

Monday’s schedule includes musical performances from Rockie Lynne‚ Aimee Allen‚ Mark Scibilia and Rick Ellis, and late-night speech by Paul.

The main event takes place Tuesday at the Target Center in Minneapolis. When planning for the event began earlier this year, it was originally scheduled to take place at the University of Minnesota, but due to a “strong initial response,” it was moved to The Target in Minneapolis, which can house up to 18,000 people.

Speakers Tuesday include NBC’s Tucker Carlson, former Minnesota Gov. Jesse and another appearance by Paul.

The rally will officially launch Paul’s new political action group: the “Campaign for Liberty.”

"The Rally for the Republic will send a powerful, positive message to the Republican Party that there is an army of grassroots activists across the country ready to work with them if steer back to their traditions of limited government and personal liberty," said Campaign for Liberty spokesman Jesse Benton.

Ron Paul's wife was taken to the hospital Monday.

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Rep. Ron Paul's wife was hospitalized Monday at a Houston-area hospital, a spokesman for the Texas Republican confirms to CNN.

"Carol Paul has been taken ill and is currently in the Critical Care Unit at a Houston area hospital," Jesse Benton, Paul's spokesman, said in an email statement to CNN. "She has had several abdominal surgeries and remains in serious but stable condition. Dr. Paul appreciates the outpouring of concern and good wishes during this difficult time."

Benton did not name the hospital or provide further details about the hospitalization.

Paul unsuccessfully sought the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, developing a loyal following among people who support limited government as well as among anti-war activists. Paul was the only Republican presidential candidate who opposed the Iraq war.

A plane carrying Ron Paul and six other congressmen made an emergency landing Tuesday.

(CNN)— A plane carrying Texas Rep. Ron Paul and six other members of Congress was forced to make an emergency landing Tuesday due to mechanical issues.

According to the Federal Avaiation Administration (FAA), Continental Airlines flight 458, a Boeing 737 en route to Washington, DC from Houston made a rapid decent in New Orleans when the pilot reported pressurization problems.

Reps. Ted Poe, Nick Lampson, and Henry Cuellar, Solomon P. Ortiz, John Carter, and Ciro Rodriguez were among those aboard the flight. The FAA says the plane had a safe landing in New Orleans with no injuries.

Update: Trevor Kincaid, a spokesman for Rep. Nick Lampson, tells CNN the congressmen are being rebooked on two different flights from New Orleans to Washington, D.C.

Kincaid said Lampson told him, "there was a minor technical failure with the pressure" and there was "a slow gradual descent, no nosedive." Lampson told him in a phone conversation that, "some people didn't realize there was a problem until the gas masks came down." Lampson said there was no panic on the plane and praised Continental Airlines for their handling of the situation.

Ron Paul will hold his own Rally August 31 through September 1.

(CNN)— Former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is moving forward with plans for his own rally during the Republican National Convention —and is moving his location to a larger arena to accommodate the unprecedented response.

The three day event called ‘Rally for the Republic’ will officially launch Paul’s new political action group: the ‘Campaign for Liberty.’ When planning for the event began earlier this year, it was originally scheduled to take place at the University of Minnesota, but due to a “strong initial response,” it was moved to The Target in Minneapolis, which can house up to 18,000 people.

"The Rally for the Republic will send a powerful, positive message to the Republican Party that there is an army of grassroots activists across the country ready to work with them if steer back to their traditions of limited government and personal liberty," said Campaign for Liberty spokesman Jesse Benton.

Paul, who has often voiced his differing policy views from presumptive Republican nominee John McCain, has made it clear in past interviews with CNN his supporters won’t be in Minneapolis to interfere or cause problems for the Republican Party.

“We’re not going to disrupt them,” Paul told CNN last month. “We’re not going to demonstrate as much as present a positive case for values that we believe should be the Republican values.”

From August 31 through September 1, the former presidential dark horse will hold a series of grassroots leadership and training events culminating with a “celebration of traditional Republican values,” where Grover Norquist, Tucker Carlson, Gov. Gary Johnson, Barry Goldwater Jr. and Bruce Fein are expected to speak.

Ron Paul is suspending his presidential campaign.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Texas Rep. Ron Paul announced Thursday he is suspending his bid for the Republican presidential nomination to focus his time on building an organization to help recruit and elect “limited government Republicans.”

“We want to elect constitutionalists, limited government Republicans across the country at the state and federal level,” said Paul spokesman Jesse Benton.

The congressman will speak about his political plans at the Texas Republican State Convention being held in Houston. Late Thursday afternoon, Paul launched a Web site for his new organization where he explained the decision to suspend his presidential campaign and form “Ron Paul Campaign for Liberty.”

“With the primary season now over, the presidential campaign is at an end,” Paul said in the letter. “But the larger campaign for freedom is just getting started.”

Arizona Sen. John McCain locked up the GOP nomination back in March, but unlike his fellow Republicans running for president, Paul never abandoned his White House bid.

Paul’s decision to leave the race is an acknowledgment he had no chance of winning the GOP nomination. But even in loss, Paul is one of a handful of candidates who walked away from this presidential contest a winner. His presidential campaign had a broad base of support that included traditionally fiscal and socially conservative Republicans to young people who were angry about the U.S. decision to wage war against Iraq.

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Watch Ron Paul's interview Thursday.

(CNN)— Rep. Ron Paul had some words of praise for recently declared Libertarian presidential nominee Bob Barr Thursday, calling him a ‘very positive’ influence on the presidential race.

Paul, who never officially ended his own Republican presidential bid, told American Morning Anchor John Roberts, “[Barr] talks our language, so I do really believe that he can have a very positive effect in this campaign and let the people know that limited government is a very, very important message.”

Echoing the principals he based his own presidential run on, the Texas congressman said Americans’ voices will be heard with Barr, and he “gives everybody a choice in the matter.”

Barr, who was a former four-term Republican congressman from Georgia, left the GOP to join the Libertarian Party in 2006 and officially won the its presidential nomination late last month.

Asked of speculation surrounding the creation of his own convention in September, Paul said he and his supporters won’t be there to cause problems for the Republican Party.

“We’re not going to disrupt them,” he said. “We’re not going to demonstrate as much as present a positive case for values that we believe should be the Republican values.”

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What would you ask Ron Paul?

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul will be in “The Situation Room” Friday. What would you like to ask him? Put your question on video and you could be featured on CNN.