Ron Paul Jumps into 2012 Race

In Exeter, N.H., on Friday, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul announced that he was making a second stab at winning the Republican presidential nomination.

Im so glad to see you involved in our revolution, said Paul. The revolution is spreading and our momentum is building. Our time has come.

Paul praised New Hampshire, home of the first presidential primary contest.

There is high respect for the spirit of liberty here, said Paul -- who, despite the libertarian strain in the Granite State, took fifth place in the 2008 primary, garnering less than 8 percent.

While Paul did not win a single primary or caucus in 2008, he came in second in 10 of them and placed third in 17 of them. Pauls calls for increased domestic liberty and his critiques of American foreign policy won him the passionate support of activists who helped raise more than $28 million for his 2008 bid. That support appears to remain in place. The Paul team raised more than $1 million through the Internet earlier in the month.

Paul, who was first elected to Congress in 1976 and was the Libertarian Party presidential nominee in 1988, insisted that recent events -- and the growth of the tea party movement -- would make things different in his third bid for the White House.

Threes a charm, laughed Paul in his speech, who said that things had changed dramatically since the 2008 elections. The people have awoken and sent a message.