Ron Paul Wins Straw Poll at Republican Leadership Conference, Glenn Beck Endorses Him, and Gold Soon to Be Illegal to Trade Over the Counter?

Ron Paul, much to the dismay of the Republican establishment, has won the straw poll at the Republican Leadership Conference.  Via WSJ:

NEW ORLEANS — Rep. Ron Paul of Texas has won the presidential straw poll at the Republican Leadership Conference.

The perennial libertarian candidate won 612 votes from the gathering that brings presidential candidates, party elders, grassroots activists and donors. Coming in second place was former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, who served three Republican administrations and then worked as President Barack Obama's ambassador to China.

Here is the video of his speech, apparently its a real crowd pleaser:

Now this could either good or bad, but Glenn Beck is now endorsing Ron Paul for president:

This will probably bring more criticism to Paul from the left, but hopefully Beck's fan base will bring some much needed support.  Maybe this disturbing report will bring Paul more support.  This is a letter to customers from the precious metals dealer Forex, via EPJ:

From: FOREX.com
Date: Fri, Jun 17, 2011 at 6:11 PM
Subject: Important Account Notice Re: Metals Trading
To: xxx

Important Account Notice Re: Metals Trading

We wanted to make you aware of some upcoming changes to FOREX.com’s product offering. As a result of the Dodd-Frank Act enacted by US Congress, a new regulation prohibiting US residents from trading over the counter precious metals, including gold and silver, will go into effect on Friday, July 15, 2011.

In conjunction with this new regulation, FOREX.com must discontinue metals trading for US residents on Friday, July 15, 2011 at the close of trading at 5pm ET. As a result, all open metals positions must be closed by July 15, 2011 at 5pm ET.
We encourage you to wind down your trading activity in these products over the next month in anticipation of the new rule, as any open XAU or XAG positions that remain open prior to July 15, 2011 at approximately 5:00 pm ET will be automatically liquidated.

We sincerely regret any inconvenience complying with the new U.S. regulation may cause you. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact our customer service team.

Sincerely,
The Team at FOREX.com

Unbelievable.  This is going to lead to a black market for precious metals if fully enacted.