U.S. Republican presidential candidate Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) face is seen on a video monitor as a woman speaks during a rally at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, August 26, 2012. 
 
 Supporters of U.S. Republican presidential candidate, Congressman Ron Paul, hold signs during a rally at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida August 26, 2012. 
 
 TAMPA, Florida Thousands of die-hard Ron Paul supporters paid no heed to Tropical Storm Isaac on Sunday and held a marathon rally in Tampa to celebrate the 77-year-old congressman, who gave a farewell speech of more than an hour about his libertarian views. 
 
 As Republican National Committee officials scrambled to adjust the storm-shortened schedule for this week's convention to nominate Mitt Romney for president, Paul followers gathered across town at the University of Southern Florida's Sun Dome. 
 
 Paul, who is retiring from Congress this year after a colorful career and three failed White House runs, looked embarrassed as he got a prolonged standing ovation from an ear-splitting crowd as music thumped "Ron Paul, Ron Paul" in the background. 
 
 He praised his supporters for backing his vision of reduced government and increased personal liberties and urged them to continue the movement even now that his presidential bid had ended. 
 
 "The convention is very important this week ...(But) there's something even more important than all that and that is the cause that we're leading, the cause for liberty and the attention that we're getting right now," said the Texas congressman. 
 
 In his last speech of the long campaign season, Paul gave a rambling, 65-minute discourse that jumped from one topic to another and made reference to novels and history. But the crowd stayed engaged, chanting "President Paul, President Paul" and cheering his belief government should be cut. 
 
 Filling seats up to the basketball arena's rafters, the sign-waving crowd had already spent most of the five hours before Paul spoke listening to speakers bashing mainstream Republicans, the Federal Reserve and calling for an end to U.S. military involvement overseas. 
 
 A favored topic was getting rid of the Federal Reserve Bank. South Carolina state senator Tom Davis got the crowd revved up into a frenzy when he criticized the central bank chairman. "Ben Bernanke is a traitor and a dictator," Davis said to roars from the crowd as they stood and stomped on the floor. 
 
 Paul told The New York Times this weekend that he was not speaking at the convention because he did not want to give Romney a full-fledged endorsement. His son Rand, a U.S. senator from Kentucky who is seen as the future of the "Ron Paul Revolution," is speaking at the convention and has supported Romney. 
 
 REBELLIOUS SUPPORTERS 
 
 Republican officials and the Romney campaign were worried that Paul's often-rebellious supporters would stage an unlikely attempt to have him nominated at the convention, and distract attention from the party's message of defeating President Barack Obama on November 6. 
 
 But Paul backers, a unique combination of conservatives, the young, retired members of the military and independents, have been placated in part by the party putting ideas like an audit of the Federal Reserve -- something he has long supported -- onto the party platform. 
 
 Nevertheless, Paul and several of the rally's speakers Sunday afternoon blasted the national committee for changing rules to make it tougher for an outsider like him to get delegates to become a candidate with a realistic chance of advancing in the nominating process. 
 
 Paul failed to win any states in this year's Republican primary and caucuses votes but gathered up to 200 delegates, enough to cause disruption at the convention. 
 
 Paul's message of sharply reducing the role of government, scrapping the Federal Reserve and ending the U.S. military presence overseas resonated this election cycle more than in previous years. It was seen as attractive to conservatives and some disillusioned Democrats in times of a deep budget deficit and war weariness. 
 
 Paul joked about not being asked to speak at the convention. 
 
 "Today I was very excited. I got a call from the RNC," he said. "They said they changed their mind. They were going to give me a whole hour and I could say anything I want -- tomorrow night." 
 
 He paused to let the crowd realize convention events had been canceled for Monday night because of Tropical Storm Isaac. Then he said: "Just kidding, just kidding." 
 
 (Editing by Alistair Bell and Philip Barbara) ||||| Rep. Ron Paul, the plucky GOP presidential candidate yet to get fully behind Mitt Romney, lashed out Sunday at Republican efforts to marginalize his supporters at the upcoming party convention, telling a counter rally to stand firm because "we will become the tent eventually." 
 
 Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks at a rally at the University of South Florida Sun Dome on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Charles... (Associated Press) 
 
 Vreth Liberty Zatikyan from Santa Monica, Calif., shows his support for Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, during a rally at the University of South Florida Sun Dome on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention... (Associated Press) 
 
 Mary White of Rathdrum, Idaho, shows her support for Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, at a rally at the University of South Florida Sun Dome on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla.,... (Associated Press) 
 
 John Popper of Blues Traveler performs at a rally for Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, at the University of South Florida Sun Dome on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday,... (Associated Press) 
 
 Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks at a rally at the University of South Florida Sun Dome on the sidelines of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Charles... (Associated Press) 
 
 Appearing not far from where Romney will collect the Republican nomination, Paul used the rally to lecture a party he thinks is too willing to intervene abroad, too timid when it comes to combating a monetary policy he sees as misguided, and too lax about preserving civil liberties. His remarks were the perfect pitch to a friendly crowd of thousands, who stood the whole time he spoke. 
 
 "It made the paper in Washington that the revolution wasn't happening," the Texas Republican said. "Don't they only wish." 
 
 Paul ended active campaigning in June, but so far the libertarian-leaning politician hasn't endorsed Romney's candidacy. He told The New York Times for a story Sunday that he was denied a chance to speak because he refused to let the Romney campaign vet his remarks and give an unconditional endorsement. 
 
 In contrast to the stately scenery inside the Republican convention arena, the Paul rally had all the trappings of a rock concert: fog lamps, sweeping beams of colorful lights, music thumping with bass, free-flowing tap beer. Blues Traveler frontman John Popper performed ahead of Paul's remarks. 
 
 The University of South Florida college basketball arena was hardly full, but boisterous Paul fans erupted most times he was mentioned and wore shirts with his name and image; one shirt read "My President is Paul" and another said "Let Ron Paul Speak." 
 
 Paul joked that he was given a speaking slot on Monday night _ when Tropical Storm Isaac was causing the GOP to postpone activities. "Just kidding," he assured. 
 
 He didn't win a single state but still amassed more than 175 delegates to the convention, several of whom got a standing ovation when they were introduced as a group at the Paul rally. On stage and among the audience, Paul backers chafed at the idea that their presence in Florida was an unwanted distraction at a convention focused on saluting Romney. 
 
 Paul's coalition is made up of anti-war Republicans, people who want stricter government adherence to the Constitution and those who want to dismantle the Federal Reserve, which sets American monetary policy. 
 
 His devoted following has caused strains in the convention lead-up. Late last week, Republican convention rule-makers advanced measures designed to blunt the Paul presence, including votes to dull the strength of his contingent in the Maine delegation and another to make it tougher for similar candidates to follow his path in the future. 
 
 Ashley Ryan, the young new Republican committeewoman from Maine, said procedural moves viewed as minimizing Paul's supporters would backfire on the GOP. 
 
 "Our party will go from being a big tent with many ideas to a small group at the mercy of a few insiders," Ryan said. 
 
 Paul carried on with the theme. ""Believe me, we will get in the tent because we will become the tent eventually," he said, adding, "With the energy that we have. It seems to me they would be begging and pleading for us to come into the party." 
 
 Tropical Storm Isaac disrupted the GOP schedule, yet planners retained a video tribute to Paul and a speaking role for his son, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, moving both to Wednesday night between 7 and 8 p.m. 
 
 Doug Wead, an author and former adviser to both Bush presidents, drew loud applause when he described the congressman as "a clean boat in a sea of garbage." Throughout the day, Paul was held up as a beacon of ideological purity. 
 
 Paul, 77, is leaving Congress after his 12th term expires at year's end. But some hope he'll make a fourth run at the White House. He has run the past two election cycles as a Republican and ran once before as a candidate for the Libertarian Party. 
 
 Said Austrian School economist Walter Block: "It's true Ron will be 80 in 2016, but he's a young 80." 
 
 At one point during the five-hour rally, the audience broke into chants of "Paul `16" _ but they were referring to Rand Paul, not his father. ||||| TAMPA, Fla. — The future of what Ron Paul started rests with supporters like Ashley Ryan, who will attend Mr. Paul’s final presidential campaign rally here with decidedly mixed feelings. 
 
 Ms. Ryan, a 21-year-old college student, will take over as Maine’s national committeewoman after sitting as a Paul delegate at this week’s Republican National Convention. But in a credentials dispute, hard-bargaining party leaders left Paul forces with only half the Maine delegates they thought they had won this year — a blunt reminder of Mitt Romney’s grip on the proceedings. 
 
 “It was a huge slap in the face,” Ms. Ryan said. Though her unseated Maine colleagues can attend with guest passes furnished by the Iowa delegation, she said, “I was very disappointed.” 
 
 Yet Mr. Paul’s supporters can celebrate achievements that an earlier generation of libertarians never tasted. Despite Tropical Storm Isaac, Mr. Paul is still scheduled to stage a valedictory rally on Sunday before an estimated 10,000 supporters at the University of South Florida’s Sun Dome. Its speakers, including Ms. Ryan, were planning to send the Republican Party a message about their commitment to grow in influence as the 77-year-old Mr. Paul moves on. 
 
 The libertarian movement has always boasted intellectual champions. But it has gotten something new from Mr. Paul, the iconoclastic veteran House member from Texas, whose small-government, low-tax, noninterventionist views found new attention in the Tea Party era and served as the focus of a determined grass-roots effort to shake up the Republican establishment. 
 
 Over three separate presidential bids, Mr. Paul has given libertarians a leader from the world of electoral politics, a beachhead within the party and a passionate if disparate army of activists. The onetime obstetrician has even bequeathed the movement a successor: his son, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky. 
 
 “We used to say most people found libertarianism by reading Ayn Rand,” said David Boaz of the Cato Institute, a libertarian research organization in Washington. “In the last five years, most people have found libertarianism by listening to Ron Paul.” 
 
 Brian Doherty, an editor at Reason magazine and a historian of the libertarian tradition, goes so far as to call the Texas Republican “a miracle.” Before Mr. Paul, the movement found many admirable traits in political figures like Barry M. Goldwater and Ronald Reagan — but also big disappointments. 
 
 Even now, backers like Ms. Ryan see the Paul campaign ending in a fizzle rather than a bang at the convention. In addition to disappointments over delegates, Mr. Paul, who finished second to Mr. Romney in New Hampshire’s signature primary, will not get to address the party convention. 
 
 That reflects both sides of the movement’s new circumstances. To enhance its long-term viability among Republicans, Paul campaign leaders decided to cooperate with Romney forces for a smooth convention, while eschewing compromises that would have alienated core supporters even more. 
 
 Mr. Paul, in an interview, said convention planners had offered him an opportunity to speak under two conditions: that he deliver remarks vetted by the Romney campaign, and that he give a full-fledged endorsement of Mr. Romney. He declined. 
 
 “It wouldn’t be my speech,” Mr. Paul said. “That would undo everything I’ve done in the last 30 years. I don’t fully endorse him for president.” 
 
 Mr. Paul’s campaign chairman, Jesse Benton, acknowledged the frustrations that the Paul high command had been forced to manage. 
 
 Some true believers want to “dress in black, stand on a hill and say, ‘Smash the state,’ ” said Mr. Benton, who is married to one of Mr. Paul’s granddaughters. But “it’s not our desire to have floor demonstrations. That would cost us a lot more than it would get us.” 
 
 Just eight years ago, “it was fringy people in the John Birch Society” who were espousing Mr. Paul’s ideas for taking on the Federal Reserve system, Mr. Benton said. “Now it’s the Republican Party” that has drafted a platform plank calling for auditing the central bank. 
 
 The purity of the movement’s principles has long left it in self-imposed isolation. The minimalist role it envisions for government repels a vast majority of Democrats; its noninterventionist foreign policy and live-and-let-live social views repel most Republicans. 
 
 The Pew Research Center’s most recent study of groups within the electorate, conducted last year, categorized 10 percent of registered voters as libertarians. But even that relatively small group, said the center’s president, Andrew Kohut, held more moderate views on the role of government and foreign affairs than Mr. Paul.
– It's a good thing for Mitt Romney that Ron Paul isn't speaking at the Republican National Convention because ... he doesn't actually endorse the candidate. The GOP apparently tried to throw a bone to the popular loser by offering him an opportunity to speak. But the offer came with conditions Paul couldn't abide. For one thing, he told the New York Times, his speech had to be vetted by the Romney team—and he had to wholeheartedly endorse the candidate. "It wouldn't be my speech," the 77-year-old told the Times. “That would undo everything I’ve done in the last 30 years. I don’t fully endorse him for president.” But Paul had an opportunity yesterday to say exactly what he wanted at a rally of his supporters at the basketball arena of the University of South Florida in Tampa, not far from the GOP convention site. He ripped Republican leaders for marginalizing his supporters at the convention in his 65-minute speech, and vowed that "we will become the tent eventually," reports AP. (He also said the 9/11 victims would still be alive had he been at the country's reins, notes Buzzfeed.) Paul is leaving Congress this year when his 12th term ends, but some supporters hope he might make one more run for White House—which would be his fourth—next time around.