Overview for rick-perry

Is Perry Dumb?

Politico asks the question out loud. The answer from Perry's friends and supporters is not reassuring. “If he should know about John Locke, he’ll know about John Locke,” said [Tex lobbyist and Perry supporter] Bill Miller. “If it’s not on his schedule, it’s irrelevant to him.” In …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 29, 2011

Kinky Friedman Flip-Flops On Perry

I wrote a piece on August 19th about how Texas Governor Rick Perry may have changed his mind about certain issues over the years. I now want to write about another Texan who appears to have changed his mind - Kinky Friedman. For those readers who are unfamiliar with him, Kinky Friedman is …

Written by Mark R. Yzaguirre on Friday August 26, 2011

What Sort of Democrat Was Rick Perry?

Texas Governor Rick Perry has been under criticism for comments he made in his book em> Fed Up!

Written by Mark R. Yzaguirre on Thursday August 25, 2011

Perry's Fragile Lead

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has surged ahead in the Republican polls, occupying territory previously held by Michele Bachmann and Donald Trump: the "won't somebody save us from Mitt Romney" slot. Because Perry is a more plausible candidate than either Bachmann or Trump (he is a state governor after …

Written by David Frum on Thursday August 25, 2011

The Fair Tax: It's Back

Rick Perry is getting a lot of scrutiny for comments in his book Fed Up! where he argues that making income tax constitutional through the Sixteenth Amendment has lead America on a " road to serfdom ". He writes that the income tax could be replaced by a Fair Tax: Another option would be to …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Tuesday August 23, 2011

Cheerleading Ryan

What's more fun to try and figure out: why Paul Ryan is not running for president or why the Weekly Standard and Bill Kristol are very sad that Ryan is not running for President? For the past week, the Weekly Standard has had Stephen Hayes wearing his reporting hat and his reporting-advoc…

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Monday August 22, 2011

Nice Central Bank You Have Here

One of the highest forms of political jiu-jitsu is to accuse your opponents of exactly the same offense that you yourself then proceed to commit. If executed properly, the audacious maneuver will stun critics into silence - and overwhelm spectators so impressed by the Parson's sermon against …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 22, 2011

Call These Scientists Crazy

On August 18, a few days after Rick Perry went off on climate scientists as money-grubbing carbon cultists, Jon Huntsman had some craziness of his own to share. "To be clear, I believe in evolution and trust scientists on global warming. Call me crazy," the presidential candidate and former Utah …

Written by Jim DiPeso on Friday August 19, 2011

Ask About Evolution at the GOP Debate

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Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Thursday August 18, 2011

What Has Perry Done for Hispanics Lately?

As Governor Rick Perry begins his presidential campaign, Hispanic voters open to the idea of voting Republican are wondering which Rick Perry will show up. In Texas, Hispanic voters concerned about immigration issues and undocumented immigrants have witnessed two Perrys: the good Perry who …

Written by Tim Mak on Wednesday August 17, 2011

Rick Perry's Shrewd Move

Texas Governor Rick Perry may have just made a very shrewd move. No, I'm not talking about declaring himself to be a candidate for president on the same day of the Iowa Straw Poll. I'm talking about this : John Sharp, the former Texas comptroller who was student body president at Texas …

Written by Mark R. Yzaguirre on Tuesday August 16, 2011

Perry's Anti-Bernanke Posse

Rick Perry hasn't been running for president for a full week and he has already made a significant gaffe. ThinkProgress has caught video of Perry saying that Ben Bernanke's efforts at monetary stimulus are "almost treasonous" and that he would treat Bernanke "pretty ugly down in Texas." The …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Tuesday August 16, 2011

More Jobs, Better Pay: What the GOP Can Do

In my column for CNN, I explain why Rick Perry's record on job is both his greatest strength and weakness: Gov. Rick Perry enters the presidential race with one big advantage and one big impediment. The advantage: his record of job creation in Texas. His impediment? His record of job creation …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 15, 2011

Don't Underestimate Rick Perry

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Written by Les Francis on Monday August 15, 2011

Who Do I Support with Pawlenty Gone?

I have been supporting Tim Pawlenty for president this go round. Now it appears I have to find a new candidate . My reasons for supporting him were that he was from a Democrat leading Midwestern state and had run a generally conservative administration. He seemed like a serious man with a nice …

Written by John Vecchione on Monday August 15, 2011

The Straw Poll Scam

Why doesn't the national Republican Party discourage the presidential hopefuls from participating in the Ames Straw Poll? While the benefits of this event to the Iowa GOP are perfectly clear, I don't see any benefits to the party as a whole, and there may even be some harm. The straw poll has …

Written by Andrew Pavelyev on Sunday August 14, 2011

Romney Gets His Challenger

For two years, disaffected conservative Republicans have shopped for an alternative to Mitt Romney. They have worked their way through Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty, and Donald Trump among others. The Ames straw poll turned a spotlight on Michele Bachmann. Until now, anti-Romney Republicans have …

Written by David Frum on Saturday August 13, 2011

Bright Spots in Perry's Road Building Record

For all of his Tea Party bombast, Rick Perry has actually been a pretty good Texas governor. While Perry’s Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) plan flopped (as Tim Mak reports) the Texas governor can still point to his road building record with some pride. A drive in just about any big Texas city …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Tuesday August 9, 2011

Perry's Highway to Nowhere

On Saturday, Texas Governor Rick Perry will announce that he intends to run for president. Perry will bring a lot of conservative rhetoric to the GOP field, but what about his actual record? The truth is, not all of Perry's policies have been successful and some of them may not fit the Tea …

Written by Tim Mak on Tuesday August 9, 2011

Why No Questions for Rick Perry?

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has taken some heat for his low profile during the debt-ceiling debate and then his having-it-both-ways comments afterward. Fair enough. But why no heat at all for Romney's current leading rival, Texas Gov. Rick Perry? The Austin American-Statesman …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday August 3, 2011