The video featured various Republicans heaping praise on the outgoing congressman for his consistency, his fiscal responsibility, and his dedication to never backing down on his principles.

Let me be a downer here and say: The GOP isn’t fooling anyone.

It’s clear the party is at least somewhat afraid of losing the Paulites to Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson (or Obama, or non-voting), and this “tribute” video — much like the party’s newfound “respect” for Paul — came off as an overproduced attempt to save face with a group the stodgy, fickle GOP has mistreated, ignored, and wished away over the last five years.

The video made frequent mention of Paul’s efforts to reduce the federal deficit and added boilerplate praise for his “fiscal responsibility” and “never back down”-ness, but it conveniently glossed over the many important issues that have made Paul so attractive to his followers — issues that the Republican Party seems entirely unwilling to incorporate into their platform.