AUGUSTA – Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul said Monday he is hoping for “a grand showing” in this weekend’s Maine Republican caucuses.

Stopping at the State House on a brief visit to the state, Paul was cheered enthusiastically by supporters throughout a rally that drew more than 150 people.

Sounding his themes of less government and more freedom, the Texas congressman said he is optimistic about many things happening in the country, but pessimistic about its leadership.

Paul is viewed as a long-shot candidate nationally, but state Republican Party Executive Director Julie O’Brien says his supporters may have been the most active in Maine.

Maine’s three-day Republican caucuses are coming up Friday through Sunday.

“The enthusiasm for this message is much greater than it is in Washington, D.C.,” Paul told his audience in a low-key tone that nonetheless prompted frequent whoops and shouts.

Paul, who was a Libertarian Party candidate for president two decades ago, is an obstetrician-gynecologist and former Air Force flight surgeon who opposes the Iraq war and calls for a return to the gold standard.

Enjoying repeated bursts of applause during his remarks in the State House Hall of Flags, Paul decried “the declining clout of the middle class” and prescribed self-reliance – “We have to live within our means” – as the best way to reverse it.

“Our good jobs are overseas. Our debt is worse than ever. … Our national defense is weaker, not stronger. … We have lost confidence as a nation that freedom really works.”

Sunday’s Republican caucus schedule is scant and organizers plan to announce all-but-final results on Saturday as the bulk of votes are reported.

Maine Democrats hold their caucuses on Feb. 10, five days after Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses are held in nearly two dozen states.

Beginning his campaign day at the University of Southern Maine’s Portland campus, Paul drew applause from the audience of 200 when he spelled out his belief in economic freedom.

“They always talk about how you’re going to run the economy when you’re president. And I tell them flat out that I don’t want to run the economy. I don’t know how to run the economy. The president’s not supposed to run the economy,” he said.

“The government is supposed to provide freedom of choice so that you have an incentive to earn your own money. But you keep your own money, that’s the important thing,” he said.