Perry: I’m feeling a call
posted at 2:45 pm on July 17, 2011 by Ed Morrissey
“I’m not ready to tell you that I’m ready to announce that I’m in,” Gov. Rick Perry told The Des Moines Register. “But I’m getting more and more comfortable every day that this is what I’ve been called to do. This is what America needs.”
But, er, not on fire?
Another big-name potential Republican presidential candidate who is still on the sidelines, Sarah Palin, told Fox News in May that she has “that fire in the belly” to run. It remains a question whether Perry does.
“I’ll be real honest with you, I don’t wake up in the morning – never did and still don’t today – and say, ‘Gee, I want to be president of the United States,’ ” Perry, 61, said by phone last week.
Actually, the “fire in the belly” remark tends to make me think Perry is actually closer to announcing than people might assume. Distrust of those who actively seek power is an enduring theme in American politics, one that goes back to the founding of our nation, when presidential candidates tried very hard not to look like they were campaigning for office. Politicians would much rather be “called” into action, which in this age we also call getting “drafted” into the race. Rather than appearing power-hungry, most candidates like to frame their entry into the race as a duty to which they have reluctantly responded because of the times and issues at play.
Perry has busied himself with briefings on foreign policy of late, another strong indicator that a new Stetson will shortly fly into the ring:
Word in Austin is that Rick Perry is doing everything necessary to prepare for a presidential run, including brushing up on foreign policy.
We hear that he recently met with top national-security experts Doug Feith and William Luti.
Feith, who served in the George W. Bush administration as under secretary of defense, confirmed to National Review Online that he had met with Perry in Austin Wednesday. He would not divulge the details of the conversation, but said it centered on “national security” matters.
Katrina Trinko has a quick update this morning:
“Yes, I was invited by and met with Governor Perry last week,” Luti e-mails. “I was happy to discuss my views on national security with him as I would if asked by any other presidential candidate.”
Also meeting Perry last week was NR’s own Andy McCarthy — a fact which I learned about after reporting on the initial meeting.
Perry told the Des Moines Register that he would make his decision within two to three weeks. Not too coincidentally, the Ames debate will take place in about three and a half weeks, on August 11th, which will be nationally televised by Fox News. That would provide an impressive springboard into the race, plus the late entry would tamp down expectations in the straw poll itself without unnecessarily alienating Iowa Republicans by skipping it altogether.
Expect to hear about an exploratory committee by the week before the debate, and a need for Fox to add one more podium to the stage.
Blowback
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Run Rick Run
Southernblogger on July 17, 2011 at 11:15 PM
http://www.redstate.com/aglanon/2011/07/14/palin/ I think it would be a great idea for all of you Palin doubters to listen to this interview. After listening to this, I am convinced now more than ever that Sarah Palin can WIN! She is going to run!
Winebabe on July 17, 2011 at 11:31 PM
Perry is a flip-flopper. He worked for Al Gore’s campaign before he was against it.
scotash on July 18, 2011 at 12:05 AM
Really???..What was Reagan??..:)
Dire Straits on July 18, 2011 at 12:07 AM
To scotash — there are a few names I am thinking of but I will not use them. He was a Democrat at the time as West Texas was filled with conservative Dems. Republicans were not even close to winning in West Texas especially the area Perry was from.
FYI, the Gore in 1988 was no where near the Gore of today — not even close.
Gov Perry became a Republican and ran for Ag Commissioner as a Republican in 1990 the same year we were transferred to Kelly AFB. He was more conservative than a lot of Republicans.
You guys must be running out of ammo to pull that out which has been put to rest over and over again. You must be for Paul to bring that up or a Dem — toss a coin.
PhiKapMom on July 18, 2011 at 12:10 AM
Perry would be the only candidate running who’s served in the military, wouldn’t he. And no one could match his record of tort reform. Oh yeah, the Al Gore thing bothers me, Mittbot.
Marcus on July 18, 2011 at 12:16 AM
Perry is a flip-flopper. He worked for Al Gore’s campaign before he was against it.
scotash on July 18, 2011 at 12:05 AM
And Reagan supported FDR. Ancient history.
annoyinglittletwerp on July 18, 2011 at 12:27 AM
Al Gore is much more recent and still alive than FDR. I know Hot Air doesn’t have double standards on calling people flip floppers, do they? No sir. Wouldn’t happen in a million years… unless they wanted to use it to their benefit.
Also, I tend to think with Reagan signing a pro abortion law in California, and his semi liberal Supreme Court Justices, and his hospital health care mandate that forces hospitals to treat non payers for free and lose money, Hot Air wouldn’t support him either.
scotash on July 18, 2011 at 12:37 AM
scotash on July 18, 2011 at 12:37 AM
I came of age during the Reagan era. I think he was a phenomenal president.
As for Perry-as new Texans me and mine are downright impressed with what we’ve seen of him so far.
annoyinglittletwerp on July 18, 2011 at 12:40 AM
I guess you haven’t heard that Perry and Palin are very good friends.
Voter from WA State on July 18, 2011 at 12:42 AM
I think that many of the HAers wouldn’t have supported Abraham Lincoln. He was not a big supporter of states’ rights when it came to slavery. My hope, however, is that they will get behind the GOP candidate in 2012 so we can rid ourselves of Obama.
Voter from WA State on July 18, 2011 at 12:47 AM
Oh, and by the way, there is only one possible candidates right now that would force me not to vote. There is no way I could ever vote for Ron Paul. Ne’s nuts.
Voter from WA State on July 18, 2011 at 12:48 AM
I live in Texas and we have been doing very well with Perry as governor.
I think that he will announce on the day of prayer that we are having August 5th at the event. Or, if he thinks that to be uncouth, right about that time. However, I think announcing at the event would be a great move and I think that he is headed in that direction. :) :) :)
Theophile on July 18, 2011 at 1:43 AM
Well, he only has just a very few days to go then. At least according to Obama, who a few days ago said his birthday was in a week.
Lon Chaney on July 18, 2011 at 1:50 AM
Theophile on July 18, 2011 at 1:43 AM
The day before, the 4th, is O’s birthday. As someone mentioned earlier, how sweet that would be, lol ;)
-Aslan’s Girl
Aslans Girl on July 18, 2011 at 1:51 AM
If Rubio won’t consider a VP slot, imagine the USA’s first Latina Governor in the second slot. A career prosecutor and now Governor, Susana Martinez of New Mexico, who could excite like Palin did when she was chosen. Perry/Martinez: that just might make Obama and Joe shake in their boots.
Marcus on July 18, 2011 at 2:03 AM
Hey PhiKapMom,
You talk about running out of ammo on an issue that has been put to rest over and over again on this thread to defend Perry and then you bring up TROOPER GATE and other TRIPE to bash Palin on the other thread?
FYI, TROOPER-GATE has been put to rest over and over again. Nice Try.
Geochelone on July 18, 2011 at 2:24 AM
It’s exhausting to refute your verbal diarhhea in multimple threads. My response.
alwaysfiredup on July 18, 2011 at 3:48 AM
I was going to compliment Allahpundit on his uncharacteristically clear and logical analysis of the situation with Perry, particularly the brilliance of the timing. Then I noticed it was an Ed Thread. Well, when it sounds too good to be true . . .
If Perry is in, it clarifies several things. First of all, Palin is out. She won’t run with Perry in the race, they are friendly and very close ideologically on the most important stuff. Second, the Bachmann Boomlet ends now. She may still take Iowa, but her time as the candidate with momentum will be done now.
Finally, it is the last call for Pawlenty. He either must find a following, and fast, or fade to black and disappear. Perry will become the default anti-Romney.
Truth be told, either one of them would be 1000 times better than the buffoon in chief now.
Adjoran on July 18, 2011 at 5:13 AM
99% agree…
Gohawgs on July 18, 2011 at 5:17 AM
Perhaps there’s a men’s room near by?
Don L on July 18, 2011 at 6:05 AM
Well they won’t attend religious movies anymore. Does that mean she’s in the same category as God-or does it mean that “most people wont“is a silly criterion?
I would bet that most people wont see a movie to see any of today’s politicians -so your point is…?
Go Sarah!
Don L on July 18, 2011 at 6:12 AM
I hope Perry runs for Preident and gets exposed, then maybe the sheep in Texas would wake up.
wheelgun on July 18, 2011 at 8:19 AM
If Perry runs, then all the palinistas will be eating crow. Sarah Palin had no intention of ever running for elected office again and that decision was made when she quit the governorship. But for the past two years, they were too blinded by wishful thinking to accept that.
However, this means all the palinistas will now instantly become perryphiles.
keep the change on July 18, 2011 at 8:30 AM
Not the most rabid ones – they’ll write her in. And I have two Palin bumper stickers on my SUV, have since Inauguration Day. But I’m supporting Perry and don’t think she’s running. Have to wait and see before I start peeling and replacing.
Marcus on July 18, 2011 at 8:41 AM
This guy sounds like an arrogant putz. We already have one of those in the White House!
Richdellavalle on July 18, 2011 at 9:04 AM
Ah – Obama just doesn’t have a head for dates, or math, or…. facts!
itsacookbook on July 18, 2011 at 9:10 AM
I read thru the whole thread, since I got to this party very late. Just about every conceivable Perry complaint was aired and there’s nothing to them. That article at American Thinker was a piece that could have been written about any of the candidates. Just throw everything out there whether or not it’s true, or in context. Anybody know the author?
Then, as usual, the Palinistas come out of the woodwork and turn the Perry thread into a Palin thread. I like Sarah Palin––a lot, but her ‘bots on HA are really obnoxious.
cartooner on July 18, 2011 at 9:56 AM
Not to worry. Even they will have to choose someone else when the Arctic One lets them down with the oh-so-sad news that she isn’t running. At that point they will choose between Romney, Pawlenty and Perry. Needless to say, not many of those types will go for Mitt, so a good number will be waving the Perry banner soon enough.
MJBrutus on July 18, 2011 at 10:36 AM
Agree with all your points except the first. Gore laid out where he was going with “Earth in the Balance” way back in ’94/95.
I lost a best friend who read that and totally wigged out to the point of believing there needed to be a law outlawing tobacco (never mind the hypocrisy of him being a pothead). He was all onboard with the idea that evil-big-oil doing everything to sabotage battery technology, just so they could sell oil and a slew of other eco-psychobabble. He also thot there ‘oughta’ be a law to force smokers to eat their butts if caught flicking them on the ground.
And all this came from reading this book that set him off into his journey with the Green Party. He would constantly quote from his new bible and time after time, I’d refute him on one point after another; we eventually went separate ways. Last I heard, he was some NY Green Party honcho and even tho he voted for Nader, his head exploded when Gore lost.
AH_C on July 18, 2011 at 10:38 AM
Or as AG. She could be very effective in cleaning up the DOJ and use that as her springboard into a presidential race in 2020.
AH_C on July 18, 2011 at 10:44 AM
Went back and read other comments and need to caveat that I only agree with the part regarding Perry being formerly a democrat and that back in the day, conservative democrats could be more conservative than a liberal GOP.
I’ll add that it was probably with Ann Richards & Molly Ivins that the democratic pendulum swung from right to left in TX.
AH_C on July 18, 2011 at 10:55 AM
What I am thinking is that if one runs, the other doesn’t and backs the one who does.
Game over for the Regime either way.
pdigaudio on July 18, 2011 at 11:10 AM
hearing a calling huh? Which calling would that be? Run for President? Succeed from the Union? Come out of the closet?
Monkei on July 18, 2011 at 11:55 AM
LMAO!
So after establishing yourself as a clown you proceed to climb in to your teeny tiny car. Beep. Beep. Happy motoring :-)
MJBrutus on July 18, 2011 at 12:03 PM
I think Mark White was the one who started that ball rolling. Ann Richards won campaigning as an “old time” Texas democrat. Once she had a record of leading, well…the rest of that is history.
John Tower did much to make it okay to be a republican in Texas.
And Molly Ivins, there isn’t much you can say about her, except RIP.
cozmo on July 18, 2011 at 12:06 PM
Did not want to comment on this thread, but HA needs to get rid of that picture and tell Perry to always shave his mustache closely. It looks really alot like Adolph in that angle.
txmomof6 on July 18, 2011 at 12:44 PM
I quite enjoyed your comments and agree with them all.
I’ll welcome a Rick Perry Presidency, and will be pleased if and when he announces his candidacy. My goal as I’ve written here many a time earlier is to elect a GOP President and to get the current mess out of the White House.
Lourdes on July 18, 2011 at 12:51 PM
While I welcome Perry into the race, I suspect that he is only “feeling a calling” because the odds are swinging to his favor with a conservative base crying out for a standard bearer. If the conservative race subset inside the GOP primary were even a bit more contested, Perry would be out.
If he runs, he wouldn’t be running because he thinks he would benefit the country, or because he feels a calling: He will be running because he thinks he has an easy path to the nomination.
It comes off as lazy. Others are willing to scrap and fight to get the nomination now. Perry wants to wait until the weak field is even weaker.
juanito on July 18, 2011 at 1:25 PM
FTFH, and no details, hm? Lemme take a wild guess: Lots more of the same endless wars to “build” lots more Islamic States with Constitutions based on Sharia Law.
The Welfare-Warfare-Police State is supported by a majority of all the 2012 candidates, left and right. Well isn’t that just great.
“Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.”
–H. L. Mencken
Rae on July 18, 2011 at 2:10 PM
Yeah, you’re right about Mark White – I was relatively new to TX politics during his reign.
I just remember my IAM union being in the bag for Ann Richards and arguing with the head steward as to why IAM was supporting a politician with my dues – the counter was that we could individually check off to support either party. Yes, but why even do it in the 1st place to any party. Even then tort reform was a big issue — just glad to see after 25 years+ coming to fruition.
Bottomline, I agree that being a democrat back in the 80s/90s is no big deal. See Gramm and other dem politicos that switched in the years after Reagan, altho late 90s is relatively late in the big scheme of things. Nonetheless, there were plenty of blue dogs and even center-right dems, until the progs pretty much captured control of the donks in the run-up to 2004 election.
AH_C on July 18, 2011 at 3:05 PM
Is it just me or does Perry kind of look like Erik Estrada?
Monkeytoe on July 18, 2011 at 3:50 PM
Agree or disagree, there are other opinions and facts out there:
Answer: It has increased Texas’ debt by 30 Billion just to subsidize Perry’s crony Toll Road scheme,
to wit, “Open Letter to Rick Perry:
…Note, that the Gas Tax is continually being diverted for other purposes, year after year, with a Republican majority in control and with Perry at the helm, to try and plug the budget holes – this year: 2011, was just another prime example.
- continuing on…
• Business Margins Tax – backdoor state income tax (2006) National Federation of Independent Business agrees it is a disaster.
Note: NFIB calls Texas’ Business margin tax a ‘lose-lose’ situation:
……..(Google: NFIB Texas Business margin tax )
• HPV vaccine mandate – Attack on parental rights (2007)
• FLDS El Dorado raid – Religious Oppression, traumatizes 438 children and their parents; out of control Child Protective Services raid based on crank phone call (2008)
• Defeats Justice Steven Wayne Smith (a “Justice Bork” of Texas) – makes robo phone calls against most conservative Supreme Court judge in modern Texas history (2004)
• Vetoes Texas Eminent Domain Bill – taking your land for a toll road more important than signing property rights protection overwhelmingly passed by Legislature. (2007)
Then, to answer the outrage, he signs another eminent domain bill(s) to appease the grassroots that still have major loopholes in it – wouldn’t protect against a Kelo case abuse. (2009 & 2011)
• Signs Hate Crimes bill — Attack on free speech and creates thought crimes, includes sexual orientation as a class! (2001)
• Globalist – Perry hasn’t seen a one-way street “free trade” agreement he doesn’t like – is for the United Nations, NAFTA, CAFTA, Trans Texas Corridor, etc.,
Note that even Mitt Romney spoke about the unfairness of the “Free Trade” acts during the 2008 primaries and he would eat Perry alive in the debates, because truly I have the witness of many businesses who confirm that these “free trade” agreements are a one-way street and are patently unfair!
• Governor for NINE years, then reads about the 10th Amendment a few months ago. (2009)
• Supports No Child Left Behind Act and Dept. of Education (Hey, is the federal government running your local school in the Constitution? Fine with Rick Perry.)
• Endorsers RINO-liberal and gun grabber Rudy Guiliani for President – over Mike Huckabee (2008) – tells his good friend Mike Huckabee I love you like a brother, but you can’t win so I am going with gun grabber Rudy, he’s a sure thing!
• Token opposition to illegal immigration – probably because the illegals will be building all his toll roads! Opposes wall on Mexican border – supports tuition for undocumented workers’ kids.
• Does not stand up for elected State Board of Education every time it gets castrated by the liberals in the legislature (2000s). Throws crumbs to conservatives on SBOE, but when they really need him, hides under desk, sticks fingers in ears. (2009)
- Signed an anti-conservative (SBOE) State Board of Education gerrymandered redistricting plan that will destroy the conservative’s chance of getting re-elected – with a Republican super-majority, virtually guaranteeing that all the work that the conservative board did for restoring sanity to the school curriculum, will be reversed and destroyed!! (2011)
• Instituted state CHIP program!, a widely abused program and one more step to socialized medicine, more taxes and rationed health care. (Hey, is CHIP in the 10th Amendment?)
• Supports Sobriety Check Points! Unconstitutional trashing of YOUR 4th Amendment rights where everyone is pulled over with no probable cause and no reasonable suspicion. (Perry supported SB 298 bill) 2009
• Texas Enterprise Fund – basically, Rick Perry’s slush fund, thus government choosing winners and losers, a corporate welfare system for politically connected insiders such as the failed Country Wide scheme, another WASTE of your tax dollars. Big Government + Big Business = Fascism – just like Obama’s cronyism..
• Supports whopping $3 Billion Cancer BONDS, the Lance Armstrong cancer tax – more taxing, borrowing and spending. (2007). For Texas borrowing money to go into the cancer research business, instead of getting out of the way and letting private business taking on the risk (and reward).
• Tries to intimidate FEMALE state trooper who pulls him over for speeding while he was lieutenant governor, telling her “Why don’t you just let us get on down the road?” as she was writing him a ticket.
• Tells a Houston tv reporter Ted Oberg “Adios, mofo.” (2005)
• Wants to use Texas Teacher and State Employee Retirement Money on risky TOLL ROADS! www(dot)texasmonthly(dot)com/blogs/burkablog/?p=4969 ing
Mcguyver on July 18, 2011 at 4:45 PM
Toll roads? Why, that’s almost as bad as supporting the monorail!!
Tell him to sell that trifle to Shelbyville!
Monkeytoe on July 18, 2011 at 5:00 PM
As much as you might dislike Rudy, Huckabee is not conservative in any way, shape or form. So that point has almost no meaning. I would rather have the hawkish, fiscally conservative Rudy than the liberal, liberal, liberal huckabee.
Monkeytoe on July 18, 2011 at 5:02 PM
Thank God. I think he is in. I think we will win in 2012.
Elisa on July 18, 2011 at 9:13 PM
Wow- look at all the copy and paste jobs.
Guys, just a little advice – Obama is so bad that unless you got tape of Perry nodding in approval in Rev. Wrights church, save your little bullet points for the general election in late October when Barry is down by 10 points.
jjshaka on July 18, 2011 at 9:26 PM
“For the first time in Texas’ history, the state budget is projected to spend more on debt service for roads than it will on new road construction.[20]
Mcguyver on July 18, 2011 at 10:21 PM
This bible thumper will remind everyone of all the brevado as last election’s GOP savior Fred Thompson …
At least Fred was not thinking of Tennessee succeeding from the union and was not hiding in the closet.
Crash and burn Rick Perry.
Monkei on July 20, 2011 at 6:49 AM
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