So, What Happened to Ron Paul?

(bettertrades) - The phenomenon that was Ron Paul has faded from the American landscape. With the overwhelming election of Barack Obama and the Republican Party left in shambles, Paul's grass-roots Revolution will be left for wanting.

A disappointing aspect of Obama's tidal wave victory is that critically-thinking conservative questions posed by Paul's revolution will likely be relegated to the back burner. Considering the current upheaval of the American financial system, one is left to wonder if Ron Paul was right all along.

During House Banking Committee testimonials, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke must cringe each time it's Ron Paul's turn to question him. Paul is arguably the biggest opponent of the Fed, leading the anti-monetarist charge in addition to being against the federal income tax. Libertarian conservatives like Ron Paul argue the Fed imports inflation in fulfilling its mandate to supply a steady growth in the money supply. They believe expansionary monetary policy, such as printing money in open market operations and lowering interest rates, causes massive fluctuations in the business cycle. Paul is an anti-monetarist, favoring hard money in place of the fiat currency system.

In addition to his staunch conservative and constitutionalist views, Ron Paul advocates a policy of non-intervention, including total withdrawal from NATO and the United Nations. Paul was the only Republican presidential candidate to vote against the Iraq War Resolution. A major cause of strife within the Republican Party is the massive growth in government spending that has taken place in the past 8 years. Federal spending causes a crowding out effect where interest rates become artificially inflated due to governmental borrowing. Paul is on record stating he will never vote for a budget deficit.

If fiscal conservatives are to remain the core of the Republican Party, Paul's rapid growth in popularity amongst traditional conservatives may not be short-lived. Despite the groundswell grass roots movement for Paul, his antipathy for the neo-con movement and a lack of national name recognition compared with Senator John McCain and Governor Mitt Romney translated into a failed Presidential nomination bid.

So where is Ron Paul now? Following his defeat in the Republican primary, Paul co-authored the New York Times #1 bestselling book The Revolution: A Manifesto. Upon returning to Congress, Paul continues to fight for Constitutional rights and states' rights. Most importantly, Paul's efforts for fiduciary reform remain at the forefront of his political platform. As Treasury grapples with systemic risk and the Fed tries to fight the business cycle, Ron Paul remains the strongest voice for fiduciary reform and accountability.