Ron Paul: 'I Think I Can Connect With Both' Tea Partiers and Occupiers

(CNSNews.com) - Appearing on Jan Mickelson's radio show on WHO in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday morning, Rep. Ron Paul, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, said he believes he is the candidate that "can connect with both" the Tea Party movement and the Occupy movement.

Paul's observation came after Mickelson asked him about a group of Occupiers who were protesting at Paul's Iowa campaign office on Thursday morning.

The Iowa Republican presidential caucuses will take place this Tuesday.

Here is a transcript of Mickelson's and Paul's exchange:

Jan Mickelson: "It’s interesting, even as we speak, you’ve got some of these protesters that are over at your office banging on your windows."

Rep. Ron Paul: "I didn’t even hear that yet. It must not have been a big enough deal yet for them to tell me about it."

Michelson: "Well, they’re just getting started. They wanted to do this to Romney’s office yesterday. They hauled off a bunch of these things. The alleged Occupy people are vowing to make a ruckus here in this election cycle and disrupt the caucuses. It would really be sad if they did. But there are only like 25 of these people. And they have a disordinate amount of media attention. And now they go over to your office and start beating up on your windows and trying to occupy your office. Kind of silly--sinceyou’re here."

Paul: "Last week, I believe, we had a rally and people on the staff were worried. You know: Occupiers are there, occupiers are there. They’re in the front row. What are you going to do? What are you going to do? Should we call the police? I said no: Just relax a little bit. And there was no ruckus, and afterwards I shook a lot of hands. They come up to me and they say: We are from the Occupy movement but we support you. So, I figure that, you know, an open viewpoint about the Constitution and freedom and attacking some of the things that they don’t like—they don’t like the bailouts, and I don’t like the bailouts. So, there are some things that we can agree on. I think the Tea Party movement and the Occupy movement are motivated for different reasons, but they come together because they don’t trust government anymore and that’s why I think I can connect with both groups."

To listen to Mickelson's interview with Ron Paul on WHO click here.