If you ever wanted to know what Ron Paul is going to be doing in a couple of years, just flip on MSNBC. His model is on that network right now ... Pat Buchanan.

For some reason, Buchanan is getting attentuion these days. But I really don't know why. He was one of Richard Nixon's top henchmen -- one of the few who managed to escape unscathed and didn't have to go to prison.

After a few years on TV punditry, he decided to make a run for the presidency. Like Paul, he was good at getting headlines. Like Paul, he had his avid, diehard followers. Like Paul, there weren't enough of them to make him a serious contender.

In the end, Buchanan is one of those guys who can be interesting to listen to. But nobody in his party seems to be take him very seriously. John McCain isn't going to him for advice (as opposed to folks like Karl Rove and probably Newt Gingrich) and Barack Obama will simply ignore him as a rightwing gadfly.

It doesn't make him a bad guy. But there is no reason to think he represents anything more than a small, loud segment of his party. Just like Ron Paul.