Rand Paul and Rick Santorum have decided to withdraw from the 2016 presidential race. For both it was the right thing to do; their poll numbers were not going to get any better, and their hopes have been dashed.

For Santorum, who had obviously hoped for a repeat of 2012 in Iowa, he had no other opportunity to gain ground on Trump and Cruz.

Rand Paul’s story is more complicated. In my opinion, he was the only candidate who could have saved the GOP. Although no nation in the world has benefitted from a pure Libertarian philosophy, many of his concepts gave credence to his candidacy, and offered freedom for all of our nation’s people.

Maybe the junior Senator from Kentucky reached his peak too early. Immediately after he took the oath of office in 2011 he began his presidential campaign. It seems as though not a week ended without him being in the news. Although he often made a fool of himself, he maintained the rule that ‘any press is good press.’

During six Republican faux-debates; (he was not allowed to participate in the sixth, but once again rejoined the clown car in the seventh); he remained the only candidate who stood up to the unqualified moderators and discussed the issues.

More importantly, Paul was the only GOP candidate who opposed another unwinnable war in the Middle East. Unqualified presidential wannabees have continually suggested that we send our military to their deaths once again without the hope of achieving our goals.

While Paul suggested diplomacy with our allies as a means to defeat ISIS, a growing ‘hawkish’ GOP ostracized the first-term Senator.

“It’s pretty obvious that his approach, which is basically non-intervention, the weight of that approach was diminished by San Bernardino and terror attacks. There’s just no doubt about it,” said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

“It’s good to have a unified field in the strong national defense argument,” said Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), who’s endorsed the far more hawkish Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).

When will our nation’s leaders learn that a rush to war is ignorant? Have we learned nothing from Afghanistan and Iraq? Our losses in those two failed wars remain an embarrassment and a blight on our nation. Allowing thousands of our military and tens of thousands of innocent men, women, and children to die for nothing cannot be allowed to happen again.

Our government cannot listen to war mongers such as John McCain, or the rants of a young man who has no experience and no knowledge of world affairs such as Rubio.

Rubio has based his campaign on a single issue; defeating ISIS. He fails to understand what that means, and how American intervention in the Middle East offends our allies and strengthens the terrorist group. This is their war; not ours.

Cruz has suggested ‘carpet bombing’ ISIS. He fails to understand the situation. ISIS is located in many civilian areas, and mass bombing would kill more innocents than it would members of the terrorist group.

Unfortunately, being logical, and being right does not create a viable presidential candidate. It appears that the GOP will be cursed with Cruz, Trump, or Rubio.

Op-Ed

By James Turnage

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Photo Courtesy of DonkeyHotey

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