Ron Paul Campaign Press Release - Ron Paul to Be Endorsed By Pennsylvania State Senator Mike Folmer at Philadelphia Rally

LAKE JACKSON, Texas — 2012 Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul was endorsed today by Pennsylvania State Senator Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon). Representing the 48^th District, Sen. Folmer serves an area encompassing all of Lebanon County and parts of Berks, Chester, Dauphin and Lancaster Counties.

Sen. Folmer issued the following statement ahead of the official announcement he will reiterate at a Ron Paul campaign event on the Independence Mall in Philadelphia. Details of the Sunday, April 22^nd event follow the statement and bio below.

"Ron Paul is as consistent today as he was four years ago and as I know he will be four years from now. No matter who Ron Paul is meeting with, no matter where, and no matter what the issue, Ron Paul stays true to his beliefs — the same ones that led me to run for office. These are an unwavering respect for the Constitution, respect for the sanctity of life, a commitment to less government, and a furtherance of personal responsibility."

"My 'Promise to Pennsylvania' and Ron Paul's platform are very similar: legislative and political reform, tax and spending reform, and legal and labor law reform. These are issues I have been fighting for at the state level and I wholeheartedly endorse Ron Paul in his quest to return this country to the principles of our Founding Fathers. Ron Paul has not only read the Constitution, he believes in it and — most importantly — he will abide by it to ensure we are once again dedicated to its opening words, 'We the People.'"

Sen. Folmer's official bio follows.

Mike is a founding member of the Constitutional Organization of Liberty, a community-wide educational project designed to promote awareness of America's founding principles.

In 1986, Mike pulled an upset victory to Lebanon City Council campaigning as a conservative Democrat (he would later follow Ronald Reagan's example by re-registering as a Republican).  As the Council's Director of Public Safety, Mike fought local labor unions on excessive contract demands and introduced a plan to trim hundreds of thousands of dollars from the cash strapped community's annual budget.  Mike honored a term-limits pledge, retiring after just one term in office.

Two decades later, running on a "Promise to Pennsylvania," a pledge to advance government reform, tort reform, the elimination of wasteful state spending, and lower taxes, Mike pulled another upset victory to win a seat in the Pennsylvania State Senate. He was reelected to a second term in 2010.

In his first term, Senator Folmer had five bills signed into law.  He currently serves as Chairman of the Communications and Technology Committee and Vice Chair of the Education Committee. Other committee assignments include Inter-Governmental Operations; Labor and Industry; State Government; and Urban Affairs and Housing.

Mike and his wife, Shelia, reside in Lebanon City and are members of the Church of the Servant Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Palmyra where he teaches a children's Sunday school. The Folmers have two grown children and seven grandchildren.

Details of the Philadelphia rally at which Sen. Folmer will introduce Ron Paul and affirm his Paul endorsement are as follows. Time is Eastern.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

2:30 p.m.*

Ron Paul Major Campaign Rally

Lawn at the Independence Mall Visitors Center

1 N Independence Mall West (b/t Market and Arch Streets)

Philadelphia, PA 19106

[*The rally start time is 1:00 p.m. and Dr. Paul will speak at 2:30 p.m.]

For a map of the location, click here. To RSVP for the event, click here.

Providing a strong boost to Ron Paul's Pennsylvania State organization, such endorsements present Ron Paul as the last remaining conservative alternative to Mitt Romney.  They also demonstrate that the 12-term Congressman from Texas has a campaign organization capable of maintaining a 50-state competition with the moderate-establishment Romney.