The Texas newspapers’ poll
The results are hardly surprising. In a recent post, I raised the question of whether Perry could be reelected. I didn’t think so then, and I don’t think so now. And the talk from Ray Sullivan and the Perry team that he could run for president in 2016 is a fantasy. The problem for Perry is that the American people have made up their minds about him–and so have most Texans. His brand is ruined.
Here are the key numbers from the newspapers’ poll:
Job approval (adults): 40% approve, 40% disapprove
Job approval (registered) 42% approve, 43% disapprove
Should he run again for governor (registered): 56% no
More/less favorable view of him as a result of his presidential candidacy: 41% say less favorable
Adversely affected Texas’s image: 25% “a little”, 23% “a lot”
Support among Republicans: down from 73% to 60%
Support among independents: down from 46% to 29%
These are disastrous numbers across the board. Perry is leaking support everywhere: Republicans, independents, and registered voters. The problem for Perry is that there is nowhere to hide. His “oopses” were so numerous, and so indelibly stamped onto the minds of those who saw them, that they will not be forgotten. Indeed, Perry can expect to see them again and again, every election year, into his old age, as pundits ruminate on the influence of debates and use the “oops” moment as their teaching lesson. This is the point of my article in the February issue, “Is There Life After Rick Perry?” The governor’s mistakes are going to reverberate into the 2013 legislative session. Yes, Perry is still the governor, but a leader’s power depends upon one thing–followers–and it is not clear whether Perry still has them, or at least enough of them to enable him to govern, much less win reelection. Whether he has done so much damage to himself that he has lost the moral authority to lead will be determined in the 83rd Legislature.
The newspapers’ poll comes on top of a recent Public Policy Polling survey, whose numbers I wrote about last week.
There has been brave talk from the Perry camp that he might run for relection in 2014, or that he might even run for president in 2016. This translates into, “Repeat after me: Rick Perry is not a lame duck, not a lame duck, not a …..” [quack, quack]
Tagged: polling, rick perry
Daffy says:
Quack quack. Limp. Quack quack. Limp. Quack quack. Limp.
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paulburka Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 6:35 pm
Daffy’s comment is too good not to steal.
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Anonymous says:
So what? Our next governor made his money off of suing businesses and has used almost every immigration bill filed since 2003 as toilet paper. Abbott’s definition of “unconstitutional” depends on whether or not Bob Perry and Dick Weekley will be suffer should such immigration bills become law.
We need a leader, not a hypocritical conservative lapdog.
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Vernon says:
I don’t see Perry’s re-election as being that big of a hurdle if he chooses to run. While I agree that a leader needs followers to be effective, the question is ‘just how many followers will it take?’
Perry only carried 39% of the vote in 2006. Back then he only needed a little more than a third to be effective.
Perry has never given the impression that he wants everyone to love him. He focuses on his base. He makes sure he gets just enough votes to win. (And that’s a pretty low bar in Texas when you’re a republican incumbent.)
I don’t see that strategy changing if he still enjoys 60% approval from Republicans.
Of course, oceans of variables and events come into play between now and 2014. So, we’ll see.
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paulburka Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 6:22 pm
He was able to be reelected with 39% of the vote because there were four candidates, including two independents. He won a plurality, not a majority.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 9:51 pm
Paul says: “He was able to be reelected with 39% of the vote because there were four candidates, including two independents. He won a plurality, not a majority.”
Yet another excellent reason to impose TERM LIMITS upon elected officials–including the Governor of Texas! There are just too many lucky breaks for incumbents. The system is rigged to favor incumbents. Twelve years is long enough for anyone to hold one specific elected office. We need TERM LIMITS.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:35 am
Distinguished, SHUT THE HELL UP about term limits.
Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:18 pm
Hell, no, Blue Dogs.
Term limits now!
Vernon Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 10:17 am
Indeed. And that was my point. He needed very few followers to win and to govern the next four years.
Since general elections have become a perfunctory exercise for statewide elections; Perry as a Republican incumbent has a low threshold to cross to win another primary…and essentially another term as governor.
If 60% of Republican voters still support him, that’s more than a plurality.
Again, I concede that much has passed since 2006. Much more will come to pass that could dramatically change the landscape.
But nothing short of a miracle will change the fact that whoever wins the Republican primary wins governor’s seat.
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Whoa Nellie! Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 7:41 pm
I believe that things could change by 2014. Of course, the state Democrats, or Dummycrats I could say, are going to have to get their act together by then, and find a brain, a heart, and some courage. (I’d say a trip to the Wonderful Wizard of Oz was in order, pronto.)
Jacobin Hobbes Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 12:00 pm
And he still won by double digits.
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ghostofann says:
What Vernon said. He’ll run, and be reelected, again.
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Sweeney Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 1:36 pm
True. And it says more about the Texas voter than it does about Rick Perry. This is the only state that would do this.
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ghostofann Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:56 pm
I disagree. Didn’t Louisiana reelect Edwin Edwards more than once?
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WUSRPH Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 4:48 pm
Yes, but he let the good times roll…Rick has produced nothing similar.
Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:35 am
Edwards was elected LA governor in 1971 and re-elected in 1975, 1983 and again in 1991.
Anonymous says:
For the remainder of his term, I would watch for even more cronyism and reckless handouts from his slush fund. Texas doesn’t seem interested in prosecuting pay to play politics. Does anyone know where he’s going to put Dierdre now?
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Whoa Nellie! Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 7:44 pm
The way Perry has stacked all the oversight boards and agencies with his own appointments and collaborator cronies is another good reason for term limits. That’s why we got them for the presidency, after all, after FDR’s multiple terms. I admire and like FDR, but I can see why his opponents were upset over how his long administration allowed him to stack the deck in his own favor. (Supreme Court, for example.)
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:23 pm
How correct you are, Whoa Nellie.
Nobody should be allowed to “occupy” or monopolize one particular elected office for greater than 12 years. Thus far, nobody has been able to come up with a convincing argument that 12 years is just too brief. On the contrary, 12 years is more than generous.
Term Limits–12 years maximum in one particular office!
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jd says:
Who would Perry run against? i.e. has is down but who is going to beat him in a primary or general election?
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Reply Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 1:56 pm
Kay Bailey Hutchison. I think she should try again. Anybody else?
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Willie James Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 2:42 pm
That would be interesting….the bumper sticker:
ADMIT YOU SCREWED UP, KBH FOR GOVERNOR
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:30 pm
To “Reply” at 1:56 p.m., I had very high hopes for Kay Bailey Hutchison back in 2010. She had access to all of the strong ammunition to use against Perry. Why she chose not to use it is beyond me. It appeared to me that she walked out into the middle of the street, saw a bus approaching, laid herself down, and waited for the bus to run over herself. I was stunned by her horrible milk-toast campaign style in 2010. She simply handed Rick Perry another term on a silver platter. So, Perry got yet another lucky break and the people of Texas have suffered severely because of it. TERM LIMITS.
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Bodhisattva Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 4:06 pm
I doubt Greg Abbott will want to wait around another four years. He’s not getting younger or healthier.
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Anonymous Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 10:40 pm
Or richer. His tort money is running out.
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AreYouKiddingMe says:
Like I have said before, you can put makeup and cologne on a turd, but it is still a turd. Perry is a turd, and any person who could STILL go into a ballot box and vote for him is an idiot!!
I keep telling myself that Texans MUST be smarter than this, but I really don’t know…
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Col. Mike Kirby says:
Imagine that most republican primary voters are like jbb and see if you come up with a different answer.
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Anonymous Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 1:31 pm
Congratulations, JBB. You are in Col. Wannabe’s head and he can’t seem to shake you. Wonder if he gets any sleep. That alone can cause the anger.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 2:03 pm
Aren’t sock puppets supposed to have a name? Anonymous just doesn’t cut it. Grow a pair please.
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Sweeney Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 2:43 pm
JBB isn’t his real name either…:)
Anonymous Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:33 pm
…and our Col. Mike Kirby, borrowed his name from a John Wayne movie, gets his camo outfit at the Army/Navy store, and his wife had him charged with assault with a dead weapon. Everything about him is phoney, but don’t antagonize him. He’s angry and a ticking time bomb. Can’t you tell from his posts?
Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:46 pm
He has a poster of John Bernard Books hanging over his bed and after kissing it he whispers do me JBB.
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 8:55 am
Oh come now jbb, surely you can come up with a better name for your sock puppet than anonymous.
there must be one molecule of imagination in that block of cement that sits between your ears. Here, let me help you. How about cheesyp, or cultboi, or dimwit or perhaps dumbass. Any of those would be better than anonymous.
Willie James Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 1:40 pm
Only the conservative texas voter would reelect Rick Perry. To our collective shame, yes.
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Sweeney Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 4:34 pm
JBB’s personal fantasies are as silly as his political ones.
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angelo says:
I wouldn’t bet on Abbott to beat Perry in a primary. I’ve met Abbott and been around him three times in social settings over the last 15 years and he seemed like a pretty decent guy with a good sense of humor. However, I saw him speak in a public setting awhile back and I thought he came across as very wooden. I’ve never met Perry but have seen him speak at a couple of events in the past and Abbott’s performance really paled in comparison to Perry’s. Perry is folksy and engaging and Abbott was stiff and lawyerly. Perry vs. Abbott may turn out just like Perry vs. KBH. A lot of people may think Perry is full of bull but the Republican primary voters seem to like his bull. And, if he wins the primary, he wins the general election because a Democrat is not going to win a statewide election in Texas until 2020 or so.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 1:43 pm
I’m already calling Greg Abbott as Texas’ 48th Governor come January 20, 2015: the day he succeeds Perry and I’m being honest from someone who supported Perry’s gubernatorial campaigns such as myself.
Perry’s political career is OVER for good and I don’t expect him to run again in 2014 and just look at what happened to North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue (D) today: who saw the handwriting on the wall and didn’t seek re-election to her post.
Perry needs to look at Bev Perdue’s example and take it because he ain’t winning statewide ever again.
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ghostofann Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
2020? That soon?
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paulburka Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 6:33 pm
It’s hard to see through the fog, but 2018 has always been the target date in my mind. It’s the next election cycle after 2014, and six more years of Latino population growth.
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Aldo Ray Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 12:57 pm
Might be right. Obama is having some pretty serious success, economy is getting better and we are growing with more latinos and folks from the north. The national Democratic party is going to realize they have a huge opportunity here and may begin working with the state party. That, and terribly bad GOP candidates of late.
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Hamburglar says:
My favorite moment is going to happen next session when the first private CDA toll road bill hits the floor, backed by Perry and his gang… who will be the first at the back microphone to howl that private toll roads preying on taxpayers is exactly the kind of VULTURE CAPITALISM that the governor railed against on this presidential campaign.
Who will be the first to oppose a Perry immigration bill with the accusation that those who don’t want open borders or sanctuary cities HAVE NO HEART?
Sweet irony awaits.
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WUSRPH Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 4:51 pm
Personally I am looking forward to the day they have a joint session to hear an address by the Ambassador from Turkey.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 9:41 pm
The Ambassador from Turkey will be the one giving the Texas state of the state address.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:36 am
Obama is going to WIN re-election in November very easily.
Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:15 am
Why? Just ask the dems who have been taking the free trips to Turkey, why they are trying to help the “private” Gulen Schools tap into “public edu funds”?
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Robert Morrow Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 10:10 pm
If there is anything I hate it is those toll roads and CDAs which epitomize Vulture capitalism. Public private partnerships in general are vulture capitalism. Usually what it means is some private entity that somehow cons the PUBLIC into taking on gargantuan amounts of debt, and they feast on it.
Or the private entity takes on gartantuan amounts of debt with a real or implied public bailout option if the deal goes sour.
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Texian Politico Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 8:09 am
Hamburglar,
What do the polls show for Mayor McCheese’s reelection chances? I’ve heard that Grimace is launching an explatory committee after the mayor was caught stealing government cheese.
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jpt51 says:
One things for sure, debates matter. Voters should ignore any future candidate that refuse to participate or engage in a SERIES of them. We need more than what’s shared when candidates only proivde sound bites.
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Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:49 pm
So when the democrat candidate in the presidential race in 2008 called the other democrat candidate a racist that made you see them as presidential?
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ghostofann Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 3:59 pm
Who called whom a racist? And this has WHAT to do with this thread? Oh, that’s right…NOTHING!
Tool.
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Aldo Ray Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 12:59 pm
This JJB guy is awesome! Had to go to A&M, flunk out and inherit his daddy’s truck.
Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:56 pm
no one flunks out anymore, after 6yrs you’re told how smart you are and get a teaching certificate.
Dave says:
What if he filed for Senate in 2012? I think he steals Cruz’ thunder, and ends up winning a runoff with the Dew. Texas Dems have no chance in 2012, so he gets a new lifeline while still cashing his state retirement checks.
If he waits, the knives will be out and he’ll lose a lot of political blood before 2014. Now or never.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:37 am
Dave, Perry is an EXECUTIVE. Dewhurst is likely to win KBH’s Senate seat this year, so get over yourself.
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Dave Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 10:07 am
Plenty of governors have run for senate. Do you think Dewhurst would win a GOP primary runoff with Perry? I don’t think he’s all that well known.
And get down with your bad self.
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Hamburglar says:
I don’t watch the debates, preferring instead to be informed by shadowy groups, running Super Pac television ads.
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Tom says:
It’s unfortunate that a narrow ideological base controls the Republican primary. A moderate stands little chance of winning the Republican primary, even though they’d be the best choice for the state.
On the other hand, the way the Republican establishment is going after Newt, maybe the party will self-destruct.
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paulburka Reply:
February 1st, 2012 at 1:02 am
Bush ran as a moderate and he won without any real competition. He was a good governor and he worked across party lines. The ideological base was a lot broader then than it is now.
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longleaf says:
What does the GOPer establishment going after Newt have to do with anything? If the “establishment” self-destructs, it is a non-event to the Texas GOP. Their only candidate left in Texas already self-destructed two years ago – would-be Guv’nuh “NotQuiteAsGoodhair” KBH.
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Palmolive's Madge says:
Rick Perry’s just like a big ol’ nasty wad of used bathroom tissue: Time to flush it and put a new roll in the dispenser.
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Mr Golf says:
Don’t underestimate Perry…Abbott can’t wait forever, but doesn’t relish a battle with Perry. Perry has no job skills except politics and will not give up the Gov’s office without a fight or something better on the horizon. I kinda feel sorry for Abbott and, in my opinion, the citizens of Texas if Perry wants to remain as Governor. It makes me wonder if the money Republicans will continue to back Perry? Forget the polls and what citizens think, its the money guys that determine who will be the Governor of the great State of Texas.
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Vernon Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 4:45 pm
Agreed. It always comes back to money, doesn’t it?
But also, will Perry want it bad enough to fight Abbott for it? Abbott has carried a lot of water for him. I really can’t think of anyone else who’s backed Perry’s plays to a greater degree.
Doesn’t Perry sort of “owe” Abbott?
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Nachtewahrheit says:
Perry will run again… and probably win. 3 years is a lifetime in politics. Also, the guys with money back him because he takes care of them. The man has no skills that would allow him to earn much of a living outside of politics. Think about it. over 95% of the paychecks he has earned in his adult live are courtesy of the tax payers. All the rest of his earned income is from sweetheart deals from the money guys. He doesn’t have any place to go, and the money guys know he is a dependable partner. He’s not worth anything to the money guys on the outside.
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Aldo Ray says:
This is interesting. Perry has never had a private sector job, yet is a multi-millionaire…he never had a payroll to meet, yet he is in the pockets of oil companies and builders. He has never created a job, yet claims to be an expert. Typical conservative? A know all with no expertise? All hat and no cattle.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 8:41 pm
I figured Perry haters had enough to go on recently than patently false statements in attacking Perry.
Never had a private sector job? What do you call 13 years of farming and ranching?
Never made a payroll? What about the labor he and his dad hired on the farm?
Want to denigrate 4 1/2 yers in the Air Force because taxpayers sign the paycheck? Fine, why don’t you attack everyone who volunteered while America was at war, whether during Vietnam, PGI, PGII or Afghanistan?
Seriously, enough has gone wrong for Perry lately you really don’t have to fabricate bullshit.
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ghostofann Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 8:59 pm
Bitter much, CD?
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Anonymous Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 10:21 am
Cow Droppings knows Perry very well; therefore, he knows Perry released his taxes back to 1987. He also knows from those tax returns that Perry didn’t become wealthy until he was put on the state payroll. He didn’t become wealthy from farming and ranching. But since Cow Droppings brought it up to justify Perry’s private sector experience, maybe he could shed some light on: how many laborers Perry and his dad hired; how much were their wages; and were all of them legally in the U.S? Just curious.
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Sweeney Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:04 pm
13 years of farming and ranching hardly qualifiys one as a business expert….so what on the Air Force? Buzzing around taught him what, exactly? How to grow jobs? Educate kids? How is it he made his bucks after getting into office? Or did he just save well from his farm and USAF days? Bull. Rick Perry is an on-the-govt-teat expert.
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Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:59 pm
Perry needs some real credentials like community organizer, or community activist. Something to be really proud to have on your resume.
Whoa Nellie! Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 7:51 pm
Every time I hear someone boasting about how military experience grants some sort of special wisdom or competence, I want to quote Shakespeare, (“Julius Caesar”, I believe), where when someone puts up the general Lepidus as a worthy ruler because he has been on a whole bunch of campaigns, the other guy counters with, “So has my horse.”
We could all stand to hear this repeated in this country more often.
John Johnson Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 3:18 pm
I respect CD. He is sharp and he is loyal to his friends. I just disagree with him on Rick Perry. He knows Perry personally; I don’t.
I don’t think that a degree in dairy science with a 2.2 gpa, 4 years in the Air Force, and 13 years of farming makes one qualifed to do anyhing except farm, run a dairy, fly airplanes, or run for poltical office.
He has no business background. per se…not in the real sense of the term. He is a career politician and he is nothing more than the supreme mouthpiece and manipulator for Big Money and Big Business.
He is Big Tex at the State Fair…big and impressive, but someone else is deciding the subject matter, putting thoughts into words and making his mouth move. Perry performed in debates just like Big Tex would if cut off from the puppet master. On second thought, maybe not. Big Tex might have scored more points. After all, he would never have opened his mouth in this scenario.
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patriotone says:
I wish this were true, but I have little doubt that if Perry were running for reelection in 2012 that he would be reelected. What people tend to forget is, that in Texas he doesn’t need to get 50% of the people to vote for him. He needs 50% of the GOP Primary electorate plus 1 to be Governor for life. Perry is remarkably adept at blowing the dog whistle for that 50% as the GOP tends to have such a small and right wing primary. Perry was not ready for prime time but don’t kid yourself about how potent he is in Texas. He is going to have to compound his gaffes and lose interest to be beatable here. He has a bit of the J. Edgar Hoover problem. He can never leave. Perry, like Hoover, had a lot of people who feared him but no one who liked him. That makes for a lonely and low paid retirement. The only rational response to that is never leave.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:43 pm
patriotone, in addition to term limits, Texas should have (like Georgia and Louisiana have) December run-offs. That way, 39% is not enough to get re-elected. The ultimate winner would have to have garnered higher than 50 percent in order to be elected.
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linda says:
maybe he can start working for James Dobson.
Or do pr for Bob Perry.
Somebody- please buy this guy. Oh, wait. A lot of somebodies already did.
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Dig Bifference says:
There is a big difference between KBH and Abbott. First, Abbott is decisive. Second, Abbott has virtually the same set of core supporters that Perry does. Perry’s supporters are fatigued. We will see on January 31st just how much additional money they paid to stay in his good graces when Toomey Superpac numbers are released. Those folks aren’t ATM machines. (Well, yeah they are but go with this for a second.) They have rewarded Perry for his actions but even they are tired of his BS.
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Anonymous says:
Here’s a thought…Drayton McLane for governor in 2014 as an independent. He’s too rich to be bought off like Perry, and now that he’s sold the Astros, he has a lot more time on his hands.
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Anonymous Reply:
January 26th, 2012 at 11:09 pm
Good man….but how old is he?
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Texian Politico Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 8:11 am
He made a mess of the Astros before he sold them. I doubt many Astros fans would vote for him.
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Anonymous says:
Perry Perry go away…
Please don’t come back another day
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Anonymous at 8:40 p.m., the only way to guarantee that he will not “come back another day” is through TERM LIMITS.
Only with TERM LIMITS limits could we rest assured that James R. “Rick” Perry is truly done and ready to have a fork duly stuck in him.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:39 am
Distinguished, you need to GO AWAY from this blog and don’t come back.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:44 pm
No, Blue Dogs, it is YOU who needs to GO AWAY from this blog and never come back. Term limits on Blue Dogs.
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Anonymous Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:46 am
DG…..same ole redundant argument. Yawn. Listen closely. WE DO HAVE TERM LIMITS. The VOTE! We don’t need any more legislation. Just go vote.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 8:11 pm
Anonymous at 11:46 a.m., it’s not term limits if there is no opponent running against the incubment.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 30th, 2012 at 9:40 am
Anon, I have been trying to tell DG that, but he won’t listen because he’s an IDIOT.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 30th, 2012 at 10:19 am
The IDIOT is YOU, Blue Dogs.
Robert Morrow says:
Mr. quack quack lame duck Perry is going to VETO a vast amount of bills next session.
And that is a good things. Let’s just hope HIS legislation especially the vulture capitalism stuff like toll roads, CDAs, Texas Enterprise Fund, Texas Emerging Technology fund also get the ax.
It is what Jesus would want.
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Robert Morrow says:
Nate Silver tweet tonight:
“Could envision an outcome in Florida like Romney 45, Gingrich 25, Santorum 20, Paul 10″
Intrade at Romney 91% chance of winning FLA. Marco Rubio with a backdoor endorsement of Romney.
I guess the Florida GOP voters don’t want lunar colonies or a higher dosage of grandiose in the White House. Gingrich is going to get demolished on Tuesday.
Then it is down to a Romney-Paul race!
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Texian Politico Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 8:13 am
Nate Silver is one of the best going.
If its down to Romney and Paul then the race is over. Paul’s attempt to turn the Republicans into the Libertarians by subterfuge won’t happen that easily.
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Whoa Nellie! Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 7:54 pm
Romney is going to be able to teach Perry a few tricks about how to win elections with a plurality rather than a majority of the vote. Hooray for democracy in action (not).
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Anonymous says:
Can we please talk about the DEATH PUNCH George Christian just delivered to TLR regarding their recruiting Jones to run against Wentworth? We all know this is really about the Lt.Guv race..
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Anonymous at 10:47 p.m., do you have further details? A link, perhaps?
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anita says:
My hope is that Gingrich makes good on his desire to have Perry be part of his campaign effort, and to bolster his claims of it’s viability, the Perry’s offer to lead the initial colony on the moon. He and Anita can claim to be modern day empressarios in the fashion of Stephen F Austin and the old 300. This could coincide with the scheduled June move in to the renovated Mansion, which the citizens of Texas could sieze and utilize as a down payment on Perry’s misuse of tax funds — political travel, security entourage, rental mansion, retired-yet-employed special deals — etc.
Solves lots of problems for us . . .
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Johnbernardbooks says:
“Texas maintained its rank of ninth in the nation in the 2012 study from the Tax Foundation’s annual State Business Tax Climate Index.”
This is why Texas continues to be a job-creating machine under Guv Perry’s leadership.
Doncha just hate it dems?
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Tom says:
Meanwhile, the GOP infighting causes more collateral damage.
“Furious conservatives have taken to blogs and Twitter on Thursday to vent their ire against what they allege is a conspiratorial dumping of twisted and manipulated negative attacks on Newt Gingrich.
The target of their fury: The Drudge Report.”
A GOP house divided cannot stand.
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Texian Politico Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 8:15 am
Ha. This primary is going to help the eventually GOP nominee just as the Obama/Clinton fight did four years ago. It will sharpen the candidate and all of these races will help to build lists of voters, etc. Its wishful thinking by the Dems to think this primary process will hurt the Republicans.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:40 am
Texian, Obama is going to win re-election because he’s going to spend over $1.6 billion against whoever is the GOP nominee.
Romney will pick Christie as VP and Gingrich will go back to his adopted state of VA with his tail between his legs.
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longleaf Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:18 pm
Romney-Christie provides that all-important geographical balance between New England and the Atlantic seaboard.
What’s the distance between Massachusetts and New Jersey. Is it as far as it is from Dallas to Houston even?
I guess your theory is that Christie will eat into Obama’s support in certain areas. I have to agree there. Looking at him, I’d say he’s eating into practically everything everywhere.
Anonymous Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 5:00 pm
Texian,
Romney actually needs a shorter primary season because his unfavorables are higher than his favorables. The process is moving him further to the right. The further this thing goes along the worse it is for him.
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Anonymous says:
Do all the people bitching about Perry have state funded security on the campaign not realize Obama does the same thing?
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 10:30 am
excuse me for intruding with reality, but Obama is the sitting president of the united states. He has the right to security paid for by the taxpayers. Perry is an irrelevant governor from Texas who had no chance to win the repub primary the minute he opened his mouth. That it took him 2 months to finally give up the ghost and all the while charging the taxpayers of texas for his outlandish security/ego detail is an outrage.
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Anonymous Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 11:25 am
Yeah, who gives a shit? The same case that Obama is irrelevant, and that any cost the secret service incurs while he is “campaigning” should be paid by the Obama Campaign.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:40 pm
yep, just like the bush campaign did.
Whoa Nellie! Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 7:56 pm
What has surprised me (but I haven’t really investigated it) is that Secret Service protection isn’t routinely provided to ALL candidates. I thought this was put in place back in 1968, by LBJ, as an executive decree after Robert Kennedy was assassinated. Maybe it only applies now to actual party nominees.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
January 29th, 2012 at 3:26 pm
LBJ was not too good when it came to “presidential protection” … http://www.lbj-themastermind.com/index.htm
"Red Dirt & Sand," blog. says:
Wishful thinking? The Republicans are writing the commercials for the President’s campaign with their attacks on each other. Republicans will likely have the person who gave us “Romney care,” and has a Swiss bank account or an ethically challenged and thrice married Newt.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 9:41 am
Romney is likely the GOP nominee because of the following primaries coming up-assuming he wins Florida next week:
1. Nevada
2. Maine
3. Michigan
4. Arizona
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mac says:
Are there ANY Dems or moderate Repubs willing to be identified as such left in Texas?
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Kenneth D. Franks Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 10:35 am
Yes, there are and I’m proud to be a Democrat.
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Willie James Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 1:06 pm
Well, I was a moderate “R” until the second Bush term, now I’m not sure. I think I’m an “I” or moderate “D”. Now confused, I’ll stick with the “I” and vote Obama.
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Johnbernardbooks Reply:
January 27th, 2012 at 2:02 pm
You’re not alone a lot of dems are ashamed to admit they’re a democrat.
donuthin says:
I think probably so, but they have been in hiding hoping that we are going through a passing phase with the ultra-rightwingers. Hopefully they will begin to re-emerge and become bigger players as people begin to figure out that the wing nuts are just that.
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Johnbernardbooks says:
Perry is a Guv Emeritus or Guv for Life.
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Whoa Nellie! says:
And it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person.
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Johnbernardbooks says:
Perry has tenure a word the pedants love…
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Charlie Adaway says:
I really despise Aggies.
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Dr Ami Calvin says:
I love the aggies and JBB
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H. S. says:
Mr. Perry tried to follow W’s example of a scorched-earth state administration that would dupe the less-alert national voter into thinking he was the answer to our problems. It worked pretty well for Mr. B., and the world is still paying dearly for it, but Mr. P. showed up at the OK Corral with a water pistol and had to retreat. It’s still true, however, that in the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king, and our governor can still have a strong future, given the low level of his current competition. What he needs to do is to go to work on a track record of service, avoiding cheap gimmicks and stunts calculated for the pseudo-conservative nutjobs. He is in a position to move Texas education upward and onward, to build safe and comfortable roadways, to deal with genuine health issues, to meet the expectations of his fellow Texans, and to build a legacy of wise and careful government. But he can’t start by dumping on us the burden of the campaign expenses incurred on the state by his own vanity. That’s our money, Mr. Governor, and we want it spent on essential services. Liberal spending in this case will add insult to injury in this conservative state.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
January 30th, 2012 at 9:49 am
Indeed, H. S., “…in the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king…” but he should not be king-for-life. There are other one-eyed’s who could do better than Rick “The Uber Goober” Perry and we must have TERM LIMITS in order to get Perry out of our collective hair.
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Robert Morrow says:
Newt Gingrich wants to bring back the dinosaurs, to0 – in addition the moon colony
http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/jurassic-newt/
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Blue Dogs Reply:
January 30th, 2012 at 9:41 am
Romney is likely to win Florida at this point tomorrow night.
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