Oddly, he found a lot of political support for his unfashionably libertarian plain-speaking. People apparently found it more appealing than the usual favors-for-votes propositions upon which most politicians base their careers. In the end, he basically had to fire himself, declining another run for office at age 77.

Much of his extraordinary term in office revolved around the topic of money, which itself is remarkable. As Paul recounts in his 2009 book End the Fed:

"I have for years sensed a total disinterest in monetary policy by members of Congress as well as members of the Financial Services Committee. … What the Fed and paper money have done for Congress is lead legislators to believe that there are no limits on what they can spend, on what they can propose, and what they can accomplish.