Ron Paul Set to Give Some Big News

This is a rush transcript from "Your World With Neil Cavuto," September 9, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: Now to a major announcement that could be coming tomorrow. If true, it could turn this whole presidential campaign upside down: reports today that some fringe candidates, including Bob Barr, may step down, so that a major third-party candidate can step in, something we have not seen since that fellow Ross Perot.

And the guy's name that is being bandied about most of is the guy who had a huge following at the convention in Minnesota.

I'm talking about former Republican presidential candidate, and, who knows, maybe a third-party presidential candidate, Ron Paul.

Congressman, any truth to this?

REP. RON PAUL (R), TEXAS: Well, not a whole lot. I mean, if I did have a really, really great surprise like that — and that would be one — I wouldn't want to reveal it now. Then I wouldn't have a surprise tomorrow.

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CAVUTO: Why not? Why couldn't you? This is such a huge audience.

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: It would be your show.

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CAVUTO: Well, it would be a boom.

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: I have to save a little bit.

But it's not going to be quite that dramatic. I'm going to stick to my guns. I have no intention, no plans to run in the fall, so — but I do want to make a statement, obviously, or I wouldn't beholding the press conference. And it is dealing with other candidates and what I think is the problem in this country and where — which direction we want to go.

So, if people are interested and listening, hopefully they tune in, but I have to save a little bit of suspense for tomorrow.

CAVUTO: You are very clever, Congressman. And here's what I think you're going to do. And you can pooh-pooh me, because — as you have so many times on my show. You're going to throw your weight behind a candidate. And that's all this is about.

What do you think?

PAUL: Well, not exactly. But I can't confess what I'm going to do.

But you don't have the whole...

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: No. But you, yourself, are not running? You, yourself are not running, unequivocally, as a third-party candidate this fall?

PAUL: No, I'm sticking to my guns on what I have said for the past year. You did ask me that question a few times during the year.

CAVUTO: Yes, I did.

PAUL: So, no, I am going to stick to that.

But I will have a candidate or two there. And we will make an announcement. And, quite frankly, whether it has an effect on the election, I wouldn't be the one to predict that, because I don't think what I say necessarily would.

But it's something I have worked on. I have strong beliefs there's one or two people out there that care. So I thought I would make an announcement and that will come tomorrow.

CAVUTO: All right. Does it involve Bob Barr?

PAUL: He may attend.

CAVUTO: Oh, he may attend.

PAUL: Yes, I heard he might show up.

CAVUTO: What about — this guy got almost as much applause at your convention away from the convention as you, Jesse Ventura, the former independent governor of Minnesota. Does it involve him?

PAUL: I haven't heard any confirmation. Come on, Neil. Come on, Neil.

CAVUTO: Any confirmation of, what, that it involves him, or that it will involve...

PAUL: That he — no confirmation that he will be there, no.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: Oh, OK.

So this is a big deal. Everyone's excited about it. You're not even going to tip your hand. I mean, now you've got everyone thinking that you were going to make a third-party bid. That's out. You're giving me your word that's out. So why would they want to go to this thing?

PAUL: Well, one thing about the third-party bid, the system — and I argued this early on — it is so biased against us, getting on the ballots, and right now it would be too late, and you got to be Ross Perot with a billion dollars in order to do that. And that's part of the complaint that I'm going to be expressing tomorrow.

CAVUTO: I got you.

You know, I was thinking of you, Congressman, when we had this Fannie- Freddie bailout, rescue, whatever you want to call it. You are not a fan of these things, right? You think they only precipitate more things.

By the way, you might be right on that, because now the rumors about Lehman is that it could be next to get some sort of a rescue, just the scenario you feared, I think dating back to the Bear Stearns thing, when I had you on.

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: Right.

CAVUTO: How do you feel now?

PAUL: Well, unfortunately, vindicated. But, at times, I sort of wished I would be wrong, because I think it's a disaster waiting.

But you know, if you would have asked me in the 1930s — but I don't think you were doing news in the 1930s. If you would have asked me then, I would say, you're planting the seeds of a major problem down the road.

Well, it took a long time, but ultimately this last decade, it just went wild. And now we have this disaster, $5 trillion of obligations that's going to be turned on the taxpayers, given to the taxpayers? It was all a natural consequence. It just takes long term to build big bubbles. And the bigger the bubbles, and this is a big one, it's going to take that much longer.

And the more we do to try to keep the bubble going, and patch it in together, the longer the pain and the suffering. And that's why I argued for allowing the market to work. I'm a strong believer in the marketplace, which is tough medicine. And nobody wants the tough medicine.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: But what if the market — I hear your point, sir. And the argument for the government getting involved is, if the market fails you, why allow the market to continue failing you? Why not have the government come in and subscribe to the belief that you can be too big to fail, and there can be hell to pay if you do?

PAUL: But I don't think that's the case. Some people benefit. Others don't. China benefits. The dollar got propped up, which helps the banks and temporarily helps the system.

At the same time, if you're a small individual with a mortgage you're struggling with, you don't get any subsidies. It's the big guys and the guys that are retiring from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, they still get their millions and millions of dollars of severance pay. So, it's very unfair. Governments can't be fair. They always serve the special interests.

CAVUTO: Would you run as a fourth-party candidate?

PAUL: I haven't thought about that.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: See, I'm always thinking of the linguistics. If I don't word it exactly right, you have wiggle room.

PAUL: Well, the other night, I was on another show, and they were saying that, well, maybe I would do better in the election of 2009, in the presidential election of 2009.

I said, I probably will do better in 2009.

CAVUTO: OK.

PAUL: So, I don't have any — any plans like that.

CAVUTO: Well, Congressman, we'll be watching closely. We always admire your frankness. Thank you for joining us.

PAUL: Thank you.

CAVUTO: All right. Ron Paul.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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