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Rep. Ron Paul doesn鈥檛 pull his punches. The Texas Republican and presidential candidate with the near-cult-like following believes a letter from GOP leaders to the Federal Reserve urging no more stimulus is 鈥渢oo little too late鈥� 鈥� by about 40 years.

He says he won鈥檛 run for president as a third-party candidate, because he would be excluded from the debates and because it takes great personal wealth to mount a credible independent candidacy. But he wouldn鈥檛 be surprised if a wealthy person did jump in 鈥渂ecause of this chaos in the economic system.鈥�

And he insists he hasn鈥檛 had any cross words with the GOP front-runner and fellow Texan, Gov. Rick Perry, despite a photo from the Sept. 7 debate that showed Governor Perry jabbing his finger at Congressman Paul. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 just a characteristic,鈥� Paul said at a Monitor-hosted breakfast Wednesday. 鈥淚f he talked to you, he鈥檇 probably do the same thing. He鈥檇 probably grab you.鈥�

In this, his third run for the presidency, the libertarian-leaning Paul is like a kid in a candy shop. He has never had a bigger or more intense following, though polls show he鈥檚 a long-shot for the nomination. But no matter. He is raising money like never before, in day-long bursts called 鈥渕oney bombs,鈥� and among young voters he is a rock star.

鈥淭he success of this message and the freedom movement is way beyond my expectations,鈥� says Paul. 鈥淲ho would have ever dreamed that after 100 years we鈥檇 be talking about the Federal Reserve at debates.鈥�

Paul sees no reason why he can鈥檛 make it into the top tier of presidential candidates. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 exposure, and I think that鈥檚 where we鈥檙e making great progress, because we usually have the biggest rallies.鈥� Four years ago, he says, 6,000 or 7,000 people came to see him in Philadelphia. 鈥淶ero coverage!鈥�

True, the mainstream media often downplay Paul in their reporting, but now 鈥渢here鈥檚 a thing called the Internet, there鈥檚 alternative media,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd believe me, it鈥檚 helped tremendously.鈥�

鈥淎nother person that sort of made my case ... was [Daily Show host] Jon Stewart,鈥� Paul says. 鈥淚 mean, how could anything be so ... dramatic?"

So how does he explain the growth of his movement 鈥� and why does he have so many supporters who are young enough to be his grandchildren? Because, he says, he has a different kind of message 鈥� different from both the Republicans and the Democrats.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e not talking about free-market economics,鈥� says Paul. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not talking about how the middle class gets wiped out, they鈥檙e not talking about a foreign policy that would defend this country and not pretend that we can police the world forever.鈥�

鈥淪omething has to give there, and the American people are sick and tired of all that,鈥� he continues. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e sick and tired of the Fed and the spending and the debt and a 10-year war that we鈥檙e not going to win, and they know it and these young people know it. They know what they鈥檙e getting.鈥�

Paul says he gets a lot of his energy from young people 鈥渨ho have not had their minds clouded with a lot of other cliches into thinking of what government should do and shouldn鈥檛 do.鈥�

The congressman says some people don鈥檛 want to hear what he has to say, things like: 鈥淭here鈥檚 too many special interests who benefit by the current status quo, and they鈥檙e called Republicans and Democrats in the leadership position.鈥�

And others, Paul says, don鈥檛 have the vaguest idea what he鈥檚 talking about. No wonder, when he throws around names from the Austrian school of economic thought, which was big in the late 19th and early 20th century 鈥� names like Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek.

Paul blames himself for this lack of understanding. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what I work on the most, is trying to refine my message. But I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 a complicated message.鈥�

Which brings him back to young people. He says when he asks them, 鈥淚f you print a lot of money, do you think this will solve our problem?鈥� they say, 鈥淗ow can that solve our problem? It sounds like Monopoly. You know, Monopoly money.鈥�

Presidential victory or not, Paul is leaving Congress at the end of this term, his 12th. Like all good presidential candidates, he won鈥檛 discuss the 鈥渨hat ifs鈥� if he doesn鈥檛 win. But the wiry, energetic septuagenarian doesn鈥檛 sound as if he鈥檚 really ready to retire. 鈥淚 will be busy,鈥� he says.