Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul said Saturday his presidency would restore to Americans liberties that have evaporated as the federal government has grown larger in the past 40 years.

Liberty is the one word the Texas congressman would use to describe the main theme of his campaign, Paul told an estimated crowd of about 1,300 on the south plaza of the state Capitol.

“That's what made the country great, and that's what we're losing, and that's why we're not so great anymore, and that's why there's revolution going on,” he told a cheering crowd. “I'm sure glad the revolution has arrived in Oklahoma because it is spreading. It is an intellectual revolution. ... It cannot be stopped by armies or any government.

“The government keeps growing, but where we're making inroads is with you,” he said. “The people are waking up, but Washington still is sound asleep. They don't hear from us yet, but that is our job ... to let them get the message what we need in this country and that's more liberty.”