Foot soldiers for the Ron Paul revolution

The freewheeling tactics of his supporters have made the GOP candidate an Internet sensation and an unlikely phenomenon.
By James Rainey
Los Angeles Times

The late-fall night fairly crackled with energy -- from a persistent Santa Ana wind, the high-tension power lines overhead and, especially, from the crowd packed inside the living room of a ranch house at the west end of the San Gabriel Valley.

Eighty people sat elbow to elbow on tight rows of folding chairs, chattering with enthusiasm and ideas. They would produce wall calendars and a concert. They would reenact the Boston Tea Party on the Santa Monica Pier. They would write to every independent voter in Iowa.

The foot soldiers of the Ron Paul Revolution, Pasadena Division, were only getting started.

Founded nine months ago by one of the first followers of the Texas congressman and Republican presidential candidate, the Pasadena "meetup" spawned more than 1,200 similar groups that claim nearly 77,000 members nationwide.

These fervent supporters and their freewheeling tactics have helped turn Paul into, first, an Internet sensation and, now, this political season's most unlikely phenomenon.

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