As I've noted, the 2012 Republican presidential primary will be vastly different from the 2008 race.

Back then Ron paul was roundly derided for endorsing the traditional conservative approach toward foreign policy.

This time around, a lot of the others are going to have to make a choice between conservatism and the liberal internationalism of the so-called "neo" conservatives. This piece on Haley Barbour from The Hill shows that the debate has begun:

And note the squeals from Bill "My Mommy Was a Commie" Kristol:

The writer goes on to note that it's impossible to balance the budget without reconsidering the role of policeman of the world that the neocons assigned to America.

Once the GOP primary races start heating up, of course, all of the candidates will be talking about balancing the budget.

If Paul runs, he will be the conscience of the party on that issue. I saw this dynamic in action at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Most of the candidates got up and won applause by denouncing President Obama as a big spender. But Paul and his son Rand, the Kentucky senator, pointed out that cuts of a few billion here and there are meaningless. The big-bucks spending is in the military and in Medicare and Social Security. Cut there or admit you're a big spender who will have deficits to the horizon.

So this time around we are going to get a real debate, at least when it comes to foreign policy. It should be great fun, and we can all thank Ron Paul for initiating it.