Here comes Perry

By

Filed Under Races 2012 on Aug 8 

Is it time to update the 2012 Power Rankings to include Texas Governor George W. Bush Rick Perry?

Comments

  • http://deleted JoeW

    GAry Come back. Over. Gary you still here? Over. Hey Gary, big hugs your way man.

  • Gary Russell

    Jason,
    I know you’re a Romney guy, but what is your take on Perry?

    • http://www.politicalderby.com/ Jason Wright, Editor

      Gary, find me a post where I said I was a Romney guy and I’ll answer your question :)

      • Gary Russell

        My bad…thought you were.
        I miss my memory sometimes…

  • http://www.politicalderby.com/ Jason Wright, Editor

    Holy.

    Cow.

    How did I miss all this excitement?

    You guys know half the fun for people like Rob and Joe is baiting you into going nuts, right? Trust me on this one :)

    • Gary Russell

      I know, Jason. But going nuts is such a fun trip (and a short one for me – I’m already halfway there).
      What’s even funner (I know…not a word) to me is the realization that they really seem to think that I’m some angry, uptight Bible-thumper. I’m a Christian and a social conservative, but I’m not even remotely the stereotype that they thrive on hating.

      • http://www.politicalderby.com/ Jason Wright, Editor

        Gary, drop me an email sometime.

  • Gary Russell

    In my researching to see WHY I shouldn’t, as a conservative, be supporting Perry, I’ve come across many conservatives who support (or at least are speaking favorably about) Perry:

    Bill Bennett: (this just hit the news tonight…read the article)
    “…we share a lot of political views…I sure am encouraging him to run for president…”
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/post/rick-perry-finds-the-best-help-possible-bill-bennett/2011/03/29/gIQA5TOW4I_blog.html

    Sarah Palin:
    “He walks the walk of a true conservative,”

    Rick Scott
    Laura Ingraham
    Rush Limbaugh

    • Alaina

      At the surface, he looks great. That’s the only way I can explain why they would support him. However, many of the policies that are in place today that make our economy so much stronger were implemented before him. Once people start digging, they’ll never find the end. We’re all entitled to make mistakes… This is theirs.

      • Promise Kept

        Perry’s appeal is sooo superficial. Everyone I’ve heard from who has lived under his governance, like Whodat and yourself; and the rest of us who recognize him as a person of interest in other illicit circles of power; Tricky Ricky causes me much concern, simply because he has studied Southwestern Bible-belt Christian-ese well enough to deceive himself into thinking himself wise enough to fool God and everybody into believing him sincere.

        Whether before, or after Perry’s candidacy is announced; I believe that the God he addressed at his prayer and fasting event last weekend, will somehow get involved with some kind of seriously humbling intervention for his willful actions to the contrary of the favor he sought there.

    • Rob

      Yeah, because basing your opinion off of the opinion of talking heads who are wrong more than they are right is the way to figure out a candidate.

      You do realize you can look up what these guys have done in the past without formulating an opinion based off of what someone else has to say?

      Wonder what this bunch thought of GWB when he ran for president.

      • Gary Russell

        Said I wasn’t gonna, but “there you go again”…

        The first three that I mentioned:
        Rick Scott: Governor of Florida
        Sarah Palin: Former Gov of Alaska; VP Nominee
        Bill Bennett: Cabinet Member under Reagan;

        Rob: Misguided
        Are you always this wrong in political discussions, or are you just making it easy today?

        Legit question here, Rob:
        How do you match up your hatred of and prejudice against all things religous and faith-based with your total dedication to Ron Paul who, by your own words, “[his] political and personal life reflect his religious and moral values more than any other candidate”?

        • Rob

          I don’t have any hatred or prejudice against religion but there you go again, making things up.

          Ron Paul shows his morality and beliefs through his actions every day without needing to invoke his faith in every other sentence. Most so called Christian politicians are scum both politically and as human beings. Hope that helps.

      • Gary Russell

        Crap! Now I’ve gotta write that sentence after class another 100 times:
        “I will refrain from responding to Rob”
        “I will refrain from responding to Rob”
        …

        • Alaina

          LOL!!!

        • JOE W

          Gary,

          Its no wonder Rob gets pissed @ you. You make bad choices, choices that will effect him. Rob knows Rick Perry is a wolf in sheeps clothing. What frustrates Rob is your lack of research and understanding. You say “In my researching to see WHY I shouldn’t, as a conservative, be supporting Perry, I’ve come across many conservatives who support (or at least are speaking favorably about) Perry:” Rob is right who cares what others think. Lets look at the facts Perry entered his political carreer as a Dem. He also served as Al Gores Chairman. Now I am a conservative and i can tell you I have nothing in common with Al Gore. THus the name Rino is born. Rick Perry is a Rino. And that my friend is why Rob has already written 1000 times on the blackboard, “I will refrain from responding to Gary” But does anyway because he cares about your well being and bad decision making.

          • Gary Russell

            Joe, Joe, Joe…
            a) “You make bad choices”
            Wow, really? Dude, I teach low-income kids. I KNOW first hand all about bad choices. I dare say that on the grand scale of American life, neither you, myself, or even Rob could be accused of making “bad choices”, when compared to the sickening reality of the bad choices that so many of these kids parents are making for them.
            Bad choices politically, maybe? Let’s see…I’ve voted against Obama, Kerry, Gore, Dukakis, Mondale…stop me when you feel that one of my voting choices was “bad”, and affected (not “effected”) poor Rob in a negative way.

            b) My “lack of research and understanding”. HA! Whether you agree with my opinions or not, it is laughable that you went there. I am embarrassed to say that I “waste” an hour or two each day reading political articles. Where does that put me in the percentile of Americans who are educating themselves as voters? “Lack of research” – pshaw!

            c) “Who cares what others think?” Hey Joe, have you noticed that you seem to care what I think? About what Rob thinks? That you are visiting a website devoted to sharing what we all think? Can you say “hypocrite”? Sheeesh…

            d)If starting your career as a Democrat makes you a RINO, then I screwed up in 1984 when I cast my first vote for Ronald Reagan. What was I thinking, voting for that sorry RINO???!
            No, Joe, how you VOTE and LEGISLATE currently is what makes you a RINO or not.

            Now, having said ALL of that…I am only convinced of two things at this point:
            1. I’m not sold on Rick Perry. I have concerns. But, they are no greater than my concerns for any other viable candidate.
            2. Based on the lack of tact/class of his followers, I could probably NEVER vote for Ron Paul. The apples surely don’t fall far from the tree.

            P.S. Rob cares about my well-being? I can’t believe that you actually typed that with a straight face!

          • Gary Russell

            As an aside…
            I was in college during the ’84 election cycle. Though my conservative buddies and I all knew that we would be supporting Ronaldus Maximus, I remember us having discussions about how Al Gore (the 80′s Al Gore) was by far the most conservative of the Dems running, and that we hoped he would get the Dem nod.
            People change…the 80′s Gore wasn’t a conservative, no, but he was the most conservative thing that the Dems had going.

            If supporting your party’s most conservative nominee in an election that occured over a quarter century ago is the worst that Perry has done…

  • JOE W

    Like Tammy Faye and Jim or Maybe Jimmy Swaggert “I Have Sinned”

    • Whodat

      Joe, you will not believe it, but Jimmy Bakker has returned to Bible-thumpin’ TV. Yes, he has his own show on one of the sacred channels. Saw it other night whilst surfin around. I cannot believe that that little scum bag would make it back and that anyone would send him anything. Poor Tammye Faye is long dead, but Jim has returned. So has Swaggert. How many suckers are there?

      • JOE W

        Are you kidding me. Wow. Well Perry will need a VP on the ticket.

  • Alaina

    I don’t think anyone that hasn’t announced at this point should be in… That also includes, Palin, Christie, Ryan, et al.

    If we’re basing the Power Rankings on what would happen if the election today, they wouldn’t be on the ballot.

  • Troy La Mana

    Meh, not even a consideration. Unless West or Rubio jumps in I’ll still be leaning towards Cain.

  • JOE W

    Gallop has him 2nd @ 17 % Romney 1st @ 24% and Ron Paul 3Rd @ 14%.

    What that means is the Good guys are only 10% points down to the bad guys.

  • Whodat

    I really do not like Perry at all.
    His prayerful ploy was most phoney.
    And his continued claim of “conservative”
    Is a shameless heap of his “baloney”!

    You Christian social conservatives, just
    Ask L’il Ricky to show you some proof
    Of any Pro-Life legislation he authored.
    Promoted, or passed; Its all a big spoof!

    You fiscal conservatives, ask him to
    Show any proof of his fiscal restraint.
    His budgets were all rockets, up and up;
    When it comes to spending, a saint he ain’t!

    Then, you property rights fans should ask
    Perry about his Trans-Texas Corridor plan:
    He had foreign buddies getting toll roads
    While his pals grabbed our private land.

    Somewhere there might be a top Republican;
    A conservative, proven, honest and open…
    But, if you want more than an empty suited
    Fake,t’aint Perry, so, keep lookin’, keep hopin’!

    • Gary Russell

      While I deeply respect your opinion, Whodat, [pauses to genuflect]
      I am more excited by Perry’s candidacy than any other in the mix.

      Pro-Life legislation?
      Who else has written/enacted any?

      Fiscal restraint? Is he really any worse than the other “front runners”? Each of them has votes or positions from their past that can haunt them.

      I was keenly interested in how the Prayer weekend event would turn out. I’m hyper-sensitive to politicians who simply use religion to their advantage. I gotta say … I really didn’t see that this played out that way. He strikes me as sincere…or as sincere as any politician can be.

      I will admit that I may be reaching a point where I’m willing to overlook a few things. But, I wonder if our Texas friends are maybe just harboring some deep-seated grudges (even if well-founded)against him that you might overlook if they hadn’t happened in your home state?

      • Rob

        Ron Paul doesn’t, and has written pro life legislation.

        And it’s pretty funny that you’d think Perry was sincere – he’s the definition of opportunistic politician.

        • Gary Russell

          So Rob, aka “God is pretty much a failure in every way”, thinks that Perry is insincere in his faith?

          Whoah… I guess I must’ve been GULLIBLE!
          Thanks for clearing that up, Rob.

          Now THAT’S pretty funny.

          • Gary Russell

            Here’s a great read on the subject of Perry’s prayer event “The Response”…
            hishttp://conhomeusa.typepad.com/therepublican/2011/08/in-defense-of-rick-perrys-the-response-event.html

            Several interesting points made. Among them:
            “Perry began planning the day more than a year ago, before his presidential prospects were front and center, and by all accounts, he was motivated by an abiding and sincere faith.”

            • Rob

              LOL from a commentator who is part of the Rove gang based on past affiliations… probably on the payroll to push Perry for president.

          • Rob

            You do realize that being non-religious makes it much easier to identify the phonies and the manipulators right? I can see it unbiased. Perry is an opportunistic joke.

            • Gary Russell

              Oh, yeah. That makes perfect sense. Rob.

              Also, since we’re in bizarro world, I’ve found that the non-musical people can always spot the best bands, and the non-athletes can always spot the best athletes.

              ???????

              • Rob

                Uh, those are horrible examples. Identifying someone’s sincerity is quite easy. Perry’s a politician which also means most likely he’s a sociopath. Based off of his political history I can say without a doubt he is opportunistic and phony… why should he be any different in his faith or his personal life? The guy is basically GWB. Good luck with that.

              • Rob

                BTW, I realize it’s worthless to debate with you. Your past history on PD clearly shows you eat up ANY candidate who flaunts their religion like a cheap prostitute. Not shocked at all that you’ve got a hardon for Perry. Meanwhile someone like Ron Paul whose political and personal life reflect his religious and moral values more than any other candidate goes ignored because he doesn’t trot it out in every speech he gives. Truly pathetic.

              • Gary Russell

                Jason and other esteemed editors,

                Rather than responding to this nonsense, I am instead walking to my dry erase board (I’m at my teaching gig), where I will write “I will refrain from responding to Rob” 100 times as my punishment for forgetting that he is incapable of having a civil discussion.

              • Rob

                Once again proving you have nothing of substance to say. Sorry that you have no principles and you’re a phony “Christian” like the majority of the people in this country.

              • Alaina

                Why is it that you can’t have a debate without name calling or personal insults?

              • Rob

                Why is it the truth hurts you people so much?

              • Alaina

                And your truth is the absolute truth?

              • Gary Russell

                He has to, Alaina. “Name calling is the last refuge of the desparate.”

      • Brian H

        Great post. Perry in no phony Christian, that is for sure. The man wrote an entire book about the Boy Scouts.

        • JOE W

          I know he liked boyscouts. Thanks Brian.

          • JOE W

            knew sorry

        • Whodat

          Dr. Spock who wrote most child-rearing books for 40s moms, had no children, as I remember. It is not uncommon for people who know nothing personally about a subject write about it. Most journalists fall into that category. Perry is a politician. It is most common for politicians to say and write things that they believe will endear them to the masses. It is a very old trick.

          • Gary Russell

            C’mon, already!

            The man was an Eagle Scout!
            His son was an Eagle Scout!
            The BSA honored him with the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award!

            “…know nothing personally about a subject”?
            Really?

            It is over-the-top criticisms of a candidate that make it hard to distinguish the legitimate concerns.

      • Alaina

        Gary – he is much worse than the other front runners when it comes to fiscal restraint. He inherited a $600 MILLION deficit from Bush. Our deficit is projected to be $28 BILLION! We’re choking on debt. Do you really want to elect a guy who expanded a states deficit by almost 50 times what he inherited? If we’re looking for any single quality in a future president, shouldn’t it be the ability to balance a budget? There’s no way that this country can get back on track if we elect someone no better than Obama in contolling spending.

      • Alaina

        Grudge? It’s not like we know the guy personally. Shouldn’t we know his record better than anyone? When you want to know what someone is really like, don’t you ask the people that know him best?

        I can list dozens of reasons why Perry is no Conservative and why he wouldn’t be much better than Obama as president.

        • Gary Russell

          I hear what you’re saying Alaina.
          Maybe “grudge” wasn’t the word I was looking for.
          Just wondered if maybe “political fatique” might have set in with him? Maybe not. I know our ex-governor (Bob Riley) was pretty good, fairly conservative. He was occasionally mentioned as a potential VP last cycle and I thought, “What???”. Didn’t really see him as such, partly because he was too familiar.

          I have a really crappy memory, and can’t remember who you support, if you’ve even got a fav yet.
          Who out there is better, and has a legit shot?
          I like Cain and Bachmann both, and Santorum, but I really don’t think they would be electable nationwide due to rampant voter stupidity.

          • Alaina

            It’s not political fatigue… I decided that I didn’t like him many years ago due to some of the shady policies he’s tried to force through our Congress. I genuinely believe that he is a crook and has tried to set up a number of deals where he got money under the table, although I obviously have no proof. Plus, my number one issue is the economy, with our debt being a big component and he’s spent 10 years proving that he is no fiscal conservative and can’t manage a budget.

            At this point, Cain is my guy, although I’m with you in that I don’t think he’ll make it at a national level. My because I’m a very business-minded person, but I am so incredibly impressed with his background and I think he would run this country like a business, which is exactly what I think we need.

            I can’t stand Bachmann. Although I like what she says she stands for, she repeatedly breaks Reagan’s 11th Commandment and she has zero experience. From that standpoint, is she really any better than Obama?

            Santorum really irritated me at CPAC the year before last. He set up an open Q&A, but then got testy with a few people that asked tough questions. Plus, he lost re-election to the unibrow guy. How arrogant doyou have to be to think you could be President if you can’t get re-elected in your own district and lose in a landslide to Mr. Unibrow

            I can’t get past Newt’s personal life. Romney is about as fake as they come. Pawlenty, I like, but is incredibly boring… He literally put someone to sleep at CPAC the year before last. Is Huntsman even running? And Paul? People like Rob ?and his supporters at CPAC) really turn me off to him. I might overlook that if Paul ever said he wished they would be more respectful.

            Long story short, Cain is the only one I like, but I don’t think will get through Super Tuesday (if that far) so I have no idea what I’m going to do.

            • Gary Russell

              Good analysis, Alaina. I guess that’s why I’m trying so hard to overlook any negatives that come up with Perry.
              But, regardless, in the general election I will vote for ANYONE whose initials aren’t BHO.

              • Alaina

                I’m with you on the general election… Just can’t figure who I’m going to vote vote during the primaries… However, it’s usually pretty well decided by the time Texas votes in March.

    • Brian H

      Perry is no phony Christian. I saw him years ago give a sermon that had people in tears.

      About his pro-life legislation. Texas just passed a law requiring women seeking an abortion to get a sonogram and wait 24 hours.

      Texas is one of the few states without a state income tax.

      • Rob

        There are plenty of phony opportunistic evangelists who give sermon’s that make people cry every week. Does that mean they’re for real?

        • Gary Russell

          I’ll step out of character and agree with you, at least partly, on this point, Rob.
          There are many fakes/snakes.
          But, Brian is saying that, just like you, he also has the ability to recognize a “phony”, and that Perry definitely did not strike him as one as he listened to him in person.

          • Rob

            Agreed and of course he’s entitled to his opinion… just saying his justification for it doesn’t prove much of anything.

  • Gary Russell

    And, on the Demcrack side, this is the most encouraging article that I have read this year:

    http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/08/07/hillary-clinton-2012-calls-grow-with-anger-at-obama-debt-capitulation.html

  • Gary Russell

    Man, yeah.
    Do you have to ask?