DES MOINES, Iowa — Republican Ron Paul announced Tuesday that he’s forming a campaign exploratory committee as he moves closer to again seeking the Republican nomination for president.
The Texas congressman told about 60 supporters at a Des Moines airport hotel that he would decide whether to run for president by next month.
“I would be very surprised if I don’t make that decision in the month of May,” he said.
The announcement came in Iowa because the state’s caucuses lead off the presidential nominating process. Next year’s are scheduled for Feb. 6. Paul finished fifth in the 2008 caucuses.
Paul is popular among tea party supporters, but if he seeks the GOP nomination he likely will have to compete for those voters with other candidates.
Paul, who has visited Iowa seven times since the 2008 election, called his candidacy “a reflection of a grass-roots movement.”
He called for strict fiscal policy, and warned that the nation’s monetary policy risked a financial crisis worse than in 2008.
“They still don’t have enough money in Washington. They get into trouble and they massively print up money,” he said. “They are perpetuating the same habits that gave us our last crisis.”
By forming an exploratory committee, which allows a candidate to raise and spend money that can be used toward a presidential campaign, Paul joins former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Atlanta businessman Herman Cain and former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson.
