Though he is still polling well with Republican voters, Texas Congressman Ron Paul told Fox News this week that he wouldn’t rule out running for president in 2012 as an independent candidate.
During a round panel with reporters this week, Paul was pegged with whether or not he would consider running for president should the GOP give their nod to another candidate. "Everybody in this town thinks there is going to be a third-party candidate. An independent candidate,” Fox’s Juan Williams said during a broadcast of the station’s Special Report program. “If you don't get the Republican nomination, could that independent candidate be Ron Paul?"Paul responded by saying that it would undermine his current run with the Republican Party but he wouldn’t eliminate the possibility of switching affiliations later on in the race.Often overlooked by mainstream media, Congressman Paul has consistently polled well among GOP voters and has maintained support well enough to regularly be grouped among the top three Republican runners. Earlier this week RT reported that Paul took first place in a recent straw poll in the state of Ohio, only the latest victory for the iconic libertarian from Texas. Previously he had won straw polls in California, South Caroline and Washington, and following a recent GOP debate managed to poll first among Fox News’ online audience.Still, Paul’s acknowledgment among major news outlets often takes backseat to the campaigns of Mitt Romney and Herman Cain. Following Paul’s discussion with Fox this week, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if he decides to switch parties later on in the race.When Williams specifically called on Paul to acknowledge running as an independent, the congressman was quick to shoot down any hard confirmations. He did, however, acknowledge that it could be a possibility.“I'm running for president in the Republican party, I'm doing very well. And last time they wondered about it, but, you know the whole thing is, is boy the people are really frustrated,” he said. “You go to New Hampshire there are more independents then Republicans or Democrats.""But what you're saying is you are not saying that you will not run as an Independent,” asked Williams, to which the congressman responded, "I pledge that I have no intention of doing it."Upon further nagging, Paul said he is willing to waver and wobble in his life and could consider leaving the GOP if need be.Discussing his plans for the presidency earlier this month, Paul’s campaign unveiled a plan to save $1 trillion in spending during his first year in the oval office. Among Paul’s plans are to take an axe foreign aid, regulations and the presidential salary.