Why the new Ron Paul Institute is terrible news for Rand Paul

The nascent libertarian think tank has brought on some colorful characters that could complicate Rand Paul's attempts to mainstream Paulism

Sen. Rand Paul talks to his father then-Rep. Ron Paul during a news conference in 2011 in Washington.
(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Last week, while most of the U.S. was focusing on the bombings in Boston and fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, recently retired Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) launched his own think tank, the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. The stated goal of the the institute is to continue and expand "Paul's lifetime of public advocacy for a peaceful foreign policy and the protection of civil liberties at home."

On Thursday, columnist James Kirchick trashed the new institute at The Daily Beast. (The institute first came to national attention thanks to a Daily Caller article earlier this week.) "There is nothing inherently wrong with noninterventionism," the cornerstone of Paul's foreign policy, says Kirchick. But when you look at who's on the institute's advisory board and academic board, he points out, it becomes clear that Paul has "decisively thrown in his lot with a bevy of conspiracy theorists, cranks, and apologists for some of the worst regimes on the planet."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.