Ron Paul

Ron Paul: Donald Trump is ‘desperate’

Rep. Ron Paul said Monday that Donald Trump is the ‘desperate’ for attention.

Mr. Paul, who is expected to announce the formation of a presidential exploratory committee Tuesday, said Monday that Mr. Trump’s pursuit of the President Barack Obama’s birth certificate shows how “desperate” he is for attention.

“I understand he has sent out some detectives to find out,” Mr. Paul said. “I haven’t invested in any of that, so I guess I’ll have to see what he does.” Mr. Paul added that Mr. Trump’s speculation over Mr. Obama’s birth certificate is likely a bid for attention as the NY Republican considers a run for president.

The Texas Republican’s comment comes as Mr. Trump told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he thinks Mr. Obama’s birth certificate is missing. “Well I’ve been told very recently…that the birth certificate is missing,” Mr. Trump said. “I’ve been told that it’s not there or it doesn’t exist. And if that’s the case it’s a big problem.”

Mr. Paul is the latest public figure to challenge Mr. Trump’s allegations. A number of celebrities have chimed in on the issues, which has drawn public responses from Mr. Trump. The real estate mogul slammed Robert De Niro Monday, saying the actor is “not the brightest bulb” after Mr. De Niro said Mr. Trump should tone down the political rhetoric.

Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American Medical Doctor and Republican U.S. Congressman for the 14th congressional district of Texas. Paul serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the Joint Economic Committee, the Committee on Financial Services and is Chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy where he has been an outspoken critic of current American foreign policy and the monetary policy. He has gained prominence for his libertarian positions on many political issues, often clashing with both Republican and Democratic Party leaders.

Paul has run for President of the US twice, first in 1988 as the nominee of the Libertarian Party and again in 2008 as a candidate for the Republican nomination. It is widely expected that he will run again in 2012 as a Republican. A 2010 scientific poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports among likely voters found Ron Paul and President Obama to be statistically tied in a hypothetical 2012 presidential election contest.

Paul is the founder of the advocacy group Campaign for Liberty and his ideas have been expressed in numerous published articles and books, including"Liberty Defined: 50 Essential Issues That Affect Our Freedom"(2011), End The Fed (2009), The Revolution: A Manifesto (2008), Pillars of Prosperity (2008), A Foreign Policy of Freedom: Peace, Commerce, and Honest Friendship (2007), and The Case for Gold (1982). According to a 1998 study published in the American Journal of Political Science, Paul had the most conservative voting record of any member of the Congress since 1937. His son Rand Paul was elected to the US Senate for Kentucky in 2011, making the elder Paul the first Representative in history to serve alongside a son or daughter in the Senate.