Ron Paul's Ill Ex-Campaign Manager Died Uninsured

To the Tea Party, freedom may be just another word for dying without health insurance. But for Ron Paul, Wolf Blitzer's debate question about whether a man without insurance should be allowed to die (to which audience members shouted "Yeah!) hit pretty close to home. Paul's former campaign chairman, Kent Snyder, died of pneumonia in 2008 at the age of 49 without health insurance. His $400,000 health care bill was passed on after Snyder's death to his mom, who couldn't afford to pay it, so pals raised money on the web, reports Political Carnival.

Snyder's sister said he had a pre-existing medical condition, which made his health insurance premiums unaffordable. Snyder died two weeks after Paul dropped his bid for the presidency in 2008. Paul hailed Snyder for convincing him to run, and praised his "sacrifices" for the "cause of liberty." (More Ron Paul 2012 stories.)