Donating to Ron Paul's presidential bid is like paying homage to that part of you that will never forget what it was like to be the last one picked in third grade kickball. In a country of self-loathing former underdogs, it's no wonder that Paul's long shot campaign for the White House managed to rake in nearly $20 million from eager contributors in the last quarter alone.

At a Friday campaign stop in Denver, the Texas Republican Congressman spoke to a standing room only crowd of 2,000 supporters—nearly double the number that came out earlier in the day to cheer on ordained front-runner Mitt Romney.

Paul's speech was greeted with the eagerness of a religious revival. One supporter broke down in tears at the microphone as she described Paul as her "hero." Sitting next to me in the front row was a 61-year-old lifelong Republican. She said she had never missed an opportunity to vote in her four decades of eligibility. Without Dr. Paul (this is how the obstetrician's supporters affectionately refer to him) she said she would have sat this election out. She says she is most motivated by his anti-war stance. When greeted by a 20-something activist, they both nod in unison about their frustration with the drug war.

The interaction is a familiar one. This is not your father's Republican party.

Dred-locked hippies stand united with Christian homeschoolers. Democrats and independents also pepper the crowd, proclaiming our need for renewable energy initiated within the private sector. There are no staged applause lines. On multiple occasions, an impromptu chant begins, "Ron Paul Revolution! Give us back our Constitution!" On stage, Paul is greeted by a drum line dressed as Revolutionary War soldiers.

Outside such venues, it's tempting to write Paul off. Despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of voters supported him in this week's "Super Tuesday" caucuses and primaries, he still failed to register on the national radar. His exceptional support in Western states, including Montana, where he came in second only to Romney, and Arizona, where he garnered nearly 20,000 votes, pales in comparison to the millions of votes the GOP's other candidates, including Romney, John McCain and Mike Huckabee, received.

So why pay attention to Paul?

The people are listening. In the fourth quarter, he topped all other GOP candidates in fundraising. His $19.9 million was trailed by Rudy Giuliani's $14.4 million, Romney's $9.1 million, Fred Thompson's $8.9 million, McCain's $6.8 million, and Huckabee's $6.6 million.

People are writing checks as a way to tell the establishment to stick it. They are also sending in their dollar bills because Paul has managed to communicate a message that his party has long failed to articulate. While once the GOP proudly touted its mantra of individual rights and responsibility, it has succumbed to the sucker punches of liberals of late who preach that conservatives don't care about the poor, the disenfranchised or - at times - even our nation's children.

Liberals are, of course, wrong. But in this election, Dr. Paul is the only one willing to take them on. In the aftermath of George W. Bush's failed presidency, he is, ironically, the shot in the arm many Republicans need to help build back up their confidence.

He believes—as all Republicans should—that government is an impediment to growth, liberty, and progress—not the provider of it. Also important in an era when Republicans are torn about social issues, including gay marriage and abortion, Paul believes we can have morality without government forcing it upon us.

When asked what makes him so popular, Paul shrugs his shoulders. "Freedom is popular," he responds, obviously humbled by the crowds who gather to greet him in city after city.

While the message is appealing, the messenger is not always as polished as he should be. At times, Paul comes off like an angry grandfather at Thanksgiving dinner. The other candidates try to nod and smile politely at his conspiracy theories on U.S. foreign policy. Someone then passes the gravy. Both literally and figuratively, as Paul's fellow candidates eagerly outline their agendas for an ever-larger federal government.

Republican insiders will tell you that Paul can't win. At this point, they're right. But his actual support is largely downplayed due to the fact that many Republicans who say they identify with his values are scared to support his candidacy. They hold back because they believe he's too radical to win a general election.

This is a sad indictment of the era we live in. A push for smaller government is considered radical. Indeed, a closer look reveals that Paul is a revolutionary not because the content of his libertarian ideas are extreme. It's because the time in which he is espousing them in is plagued with bi-partisan apathy toward our ever-growing federal debt and deficit.
[0]Jessica Peck Corry is a public policy analyst with the Independence Institute in Golden, Colo.

While a growing number of Americans are identifying consistently with Paul's message, it would be naïve to suggest that his candidacy could lead to the emergence of a viable third party. Just ask Green Party candidate Ralph Nader and Reform Party candidate Ross Perot about that. Third party candidates are, plain and simple, spoilers.

Paul's chances for victory may be non-existent, but his impact could still be immense. Libertarianism will no longer be relegated to the side stage. It is front and center as Americans become increasingly frustrated with the nanny-statism propagated by both the Left and the Right.

On an optimistic day, perhaps we can hope Paul's candidacy will remind his fellow Republicans of the values they proclaim on their party platform. Regardless, in the aftermath of his great adventure, each of us—well, at least the third-grade versions of ourselves—can say a little cheer for the kid who made it past the first cut.

Editor’s note: Jessica Peck Corry's weekly blogs are part of a feature on PoliticsWest called "Diary of a Mad Voter." The group blog, published in partnership with NewWest.Net/Politics [1], is intended to give a glimpse into the hearts and minds of several independent-minded voters and thinkers in the Rocky Mountain West in the 2008 election year.