Ronald Ernest “Ron” Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American politician who has been the U.S. Representative for Texas’s 14th congressional district, which includes Galveston, since 1997, and a three-time candidate for President of the United States, as a Libertarian in 1988, and as a Republican in 2008 and 2012. He is an outspoken critic of American foreign and monetary policies, including the Military-industrial complex and the Federal Reserve, and is known for advocating certain libertarian positions and opposing his own party on certain issues.