Since his surprise kind-of-exit from the race and then even more surprising “still in the race” announcement, people have been wondering how Rick Perry will breath a second wave of life into his primary hopes. New Hampshire looks pretty much out of reach for him, and Rick Santorum is sucking all the oxygen out of the room in terms of polling in the south right now. As predicted, it seems that Governor Perry will go the route many of us anticipated on the night of the Iowa caucuses and make his last stand in South Carolina.
Perry will make his presence known in the Palmetto State before he even sets foot there.
An aide to Perry told ABC News that the campaign would begin running statewide TV ads on broadcast and cable in South Carolina on Friday. Make Us Great Again, a pro-Perry super PAC, has blanketed the state with television ads since November.
Perry will bring the one-on-one retail politicking he displayed during his Iowa bus tour to South Carolina over the course of the next two weeks. The campaign will likely downsize from the Faith, Jobs and Freedom bus it drove through Iowa for three weeks and opt instead for a suburban caravan as it travels through a smaller state, focusing most of its time in the northern area.
Assisting in this effort is the fact that Perry probably still has significantly more money than Santorum and somewhat of a better established campaign infrastructure. They were able to get their first ad up on the air very quickly and had the money to do a pretty substantial media buy. In it, he’s not talking policy, jobs, taxes, etc. so much as he’s swinging back to his original line of attack: focusing on his strong family values, which should play well in South Carolina. Here’s the first ad for your consideration.
“As the son of tenant farmers from the West Texas town of Paint Creek, I learned the values of hard work, faith, and family.
I took those values with me when I served our country as a pilot in the Air Force.
I returned home to farm and ranch with my father and married my high school sweetheart.
The values I learned served me well as governor of Texas and will continue to guide me as president.
I’m Rick Perry, and I approve this message.”
If Perry can pull this off it will be one of the greatest comeback stories in GOP primary history. (Of course, given the strange, roller coaster nature of this race, everything is history making to some extent.) Since the voting ended in Iowa, there have been some tremors of doubt over whether or not Santorum could go the distance and defeat Obama. Perry would no doubt like to capitalize on those concerns and try to overturn the tables and replace the Pennsylvanian as the Romney alternative. In fact, he’s already put out a video to that effect.
Since his surprise kind-of-exit from the race and then even more surprising “still in the race” announcement, people have been wondering how Rick Perry will breath a second wave of life into his primary hopes. New Hampshire looks pretty much out of reach for him, and Rick Santorum is sucking all the oxygen out of the room in terms of polling in the south right now. As predicted, it seems that Governor Perry will go the route many of us anticipated on the night of the Iowa caucuses and make his last stand in South Carolina.
Perry will make his presence known in the Palmetto State before he even sets foot there.
An aide to Perry told ABC News that the campaign would begin running statewide TV ads on broadcast and cable in South Carolina on Friday. Make Us Great Again, a pro-Perry super PAC, has blanketed the state with television ads since November.
Perry will bring the one-on-one retail politicking he displayed during his Iowa bus tour to South Carolina over the course of the next two weeks. The campaign will likely downsize from the Faith, Jobs and Freedom bus it drove through Iowa for three weeks and opt instead for a suburban caravan as it travels through a smaller state, focusing most of its time in the northern area.
Assisting in this effort is the fact that Perry probably still has significantly more money than Santorum and somewhat of a better established campaign infrastructure. They were able to get their first ad up on the air very quickly and had the money to do a pretty substantial media buy. In it, he’s not talking policy, jobs, taxes, etc. so much as he’s swinging back to his original line of attack: focusing on his strong family values, which should play well in South Carolina. Here’s the first ad for your consideration.
“As the son of tenant farmers from the West Texas town of Paint Creek, I learned the values of hard work, faith, and family.
I took those values with me when I served our country as a pilot in the Air Force.
I returned home to farm and ranch with my father and married my high school sweetheart.
The values I learned served me well as governor of Texas and will continue to guide me as president.
I’m Rick Perry, and I approve this message.”
If Perry can pull this off it will be one of the greatest comeback stories in GOP primary history. (Of course, given the strange, roller coaster nature of this race, everything is history making to some extent.) Since the voting ended in Iowa, there have been some tremors of doubt over whether or not Santorum could go the distance and defeat Obama. Perry would no doubt like to capitalize on those concerns and try to overturn the tables and replace the Pennsylvanian as the Romney alternative. In fact, he’s already put out a video to that effect.
Rick Perry is clearly pulling out all the stops as a candidate who needs to engineer a “re-surge” in the primary process. In a recent editorial at Redstate, Perry is calling for an immediate and significant halt to any insider trading by members of Congress.. including throwing them in jail.
It’s not enough members of Congress make $174,000 a year, some are trading on inside information to use their public service to enrich themselves.
The Tribune is right, the Securities and Exchange Commission and Justice Department should be using every available tool to put a stop to this. But they are not. So, Congress needs to pass the STOCK Act as a matter of urgency, to do even more to ensure that this kind of thing is stopped dead in its tracks.
In addition to calling for tough measures to outlaw insider trading by Members of Congress, I’ve called for making Congress part-time, like the Texas legislature, cutting congressional pay in half, and amending FOIA to apply to Congress and the White House.
Perry is exercising a lot more courage in endorsing the STOCK Act than might even appear at first glance. In his editorial, he calls out Nancy Pelosi, and with good reason. But he’s not going to make any friends on his own side of the aisle with this position. (Paging John Boehner… John Boehner to the White Courtesy Phone.)
CBS said Boehner bought health insurance stocks during the health care debate, which increased in value after Republicans succeeded in killing a proposal to allow the government to offer a health insurance plan to compete with private companies.
In a statement, Bachus’ office said the representative never trades financial services stocks or trades on private information. Boehner said at a news conference that he has not made decisions on his stock portfolio for years.
Further, the STOCK Act is a product of Scott Brown. Yes… I know. He was a Tea Party favorite during his initial election effort, but he’s not exactly a model for the base these days and this particular web would be drawing in members from both sides of the partisan divide. All in all, a good move by Perry, though. If you want to be viewed as a real Washington outsider, take on issues which tip the apple cart over. But he shouldn’t look for any quick endorsements from members of Congress who have been cashing in on Wall Street.
Rick Perry is clearly pulling out all the stops as a candidate who needs to engineer a “re-surge” in the primary process. In a recent editorial at Redstate, Perry is calling for an immediate and significant halt to any insider trading by members of Congress.. including throwing them in jail.
It’s not enough members of Congress make $174,000 a year, some are trading on inside information to use their public service to enrich themselves.
The Tribune is right, the Securities and Exchange Commission and Justice Department should be using every available tool to put a stop to this. But they are not. So, Congress needs to pass the STOCK Act as a matter of urgency, to do even more to ensure that this kind of thing is stopped dead in its tracks.
In addition to calling for tough measures to outlaw insider trading by Members of Congress, I’ve called for making Congress part-time, like the Texas legislature, cutting congressional pay in half, and amending FOIA to apply to Congress and the White House.
Perry is exercising a lot more courage in endorsing the STOCK Act than might even appear at first glance. In his editorial, he calls out Nancy Pelosi, and with good reason. But he’s not going to make any friends on his own side of the aisle with this position. (Paging John Boehner… John Boehner to the White Courtesy Phone.)
CBS said Boehner bought health insurance stocks during the health care debate, which increased in value after Republicans succeeded in killing a proposal to allow the government to offer a health insurance plan to compete with private companies.
In a statement, Bachus’ office said the representative never trades financial services stocks or trades on private information. Boehner said at a news conference that he has not made decisions on his stock portfolio for years.
Further, the STOCK Act is a product of Scott Brown. Yes… I know. He was a Tea Party favorite during his initial election effort, but he’s not exactly a model for the base these days and this particular web would be drawing in members from both sides of the partisan divide. All in all, a good move by Perry, though. If you want to be viewed as a real Washington outsider, take on issues which tip the apple cart over. But he shouldn’t look for any quick endorsements from members of Congress who have been cashing in on Wall Street.
Newt may have started the trend of going after Mitt Romney for his work at Bain Capital, but it looks like Rick Perry is sensing an opportunity and hopping on the bandwagon. At a recent appearance he unleashed some quotes of his own, going after Mitt for being heartless enough to lay off workers.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry picked up the attacks on Mitt Romney this morning, trying to capitalize off the former Bain Capital executive’s comment that he once feared getting a pink slip.
“Now I have no doubt that Mitt Romney was worried about pink slips — whether he was going to have enough of them to hand out because his company Bain Capital with all the jobs that they killed, I’m sure he was worried that he’d run out of pink slips,” Perry told the crowd at Mama Penn’s restaurant.
Perry laid into Romney for heading a company which Perry alleged eliminated hundreds of South Carolina jobs.
“There is something inherently wrong when getting rich off failure and sticking it to someone else is how you do your business and I happen to think that’s indefensible,” said Perry. “If you’re a victim of Bain Capital’s downsizing, it’s the ultimate insult for Mitt Romney to come to South Carolina and tell you he feels your pain, because he caused it.”
Maybe it’s just me, but I really haven’t been able to get behind this line of attack since it first came up. I could see if this argument was taking place among Democrats trying to garner favor with the unions, but it seems like Mitt has a fairly simply response to this. We live in a free market system where there are winners and losers, and the government doesn’t get to pick which is which. In some cases, companies where Romney brought the ax down wound up turning around and flourishing. Others simply turned out not to be viable.
The Wall Street Journal has an analysis of all the companies Bain got involved with. It indicates a record which is admittedly hit and miss over a very long period of time, but did wind up producing an overall positive return on investment.
Newt and Perry might get some traction from pointing out that Bain charged these companies very large management fees for their services, which in some cases still resulted in the companies going under, but nobody forced them to hire Bain in the first place. All in all, it just sounds like something that could backfire on candidates looking to claim the mantle of fiscal responsibility.
Newt may have started the trend of going after Mitt Romney for his work at Bain Capital, but it looks like Rick Perry is sensing an opportunity and hopping on the bandwagon. At a recent appearance he unleashed some quotes of his own, going after Mitt for being heartless enough to lay off workers.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry picked up the attacks on Mitt Romney this morning, trying to capitalize off the former Bain Capital executive’s comment that he once feared getting a pink slip.
“Now I have no doubt that Mitt Romney was worried about pink slips — whether he was going to have enough of them to hand out because his company Bain Capital with all the jobs that they killed, I’m sure he was worried that he’d run out of pink slips,” Perry told the crowd at Mama Penn’s restaurant.
Perry laid into Romney for heading a company which Perry alleged eliminated hundreds of South Carolina jobs.
“There is something inherently wrong when getting rich off failure and sticking it to someone else is how you do your business and I happen to think that’s indefensible,” said Perry. “If you’re a victim of Bain Capital’s downsizing, it’s the ultimate insult for Mitt Romney to come to South Carolina and tell you he feels your pain, because he caused it.”
Maybe it’s just me, but I really haven’t been able to get behind this line of attack since it first came up. I could see if this argument was taking place among Democrats trying to garner favor with the unions, but it seems like Mitt has a fairly simply response to this. We live in a free market system where there are winners and losers, and the government doesn’t get to pick which is which. In some cases, companies where Romney brought the ax down wound up turning around and flourishing. Others simply turned out not to be viable.
The Wall Street Journal has an analysis of all the companies Bain got involved with. It indicates a record which is admittedly hit and miss over a very long period of time, but did wind up producing an overall positive return on investment.
Newt and Perry might get some traction from pointing out that Bain charged these companies very large management fees for their services, which in some cases still resulted in the companies going under, but nobody forced them to hire Bain in the first place. All in all, it just sounds like something that could backfire on candidates looking to claim the mantle of fiscal responsibility.
The Virginia primary isn’t until March 6; who knows what will happen between now and then? Perhaps one or more candidates among Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum will have gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure their names will appear on the Virginia ballot only to be out of the race by the beginning of March anyway.
Nevertheless, those left out in the cold in Old Dominion haven’t given up without a fight — and it looks like they might win it after all. Recall that Perry has filed a ballot access lawsuit — in which he was joined by Gingrich, Huntsman and Santorum. Today, Judge John Gibney filed a five-page order in which he suggests “there is a strong likelihood that the Court will find the residency requirement for petition circulators to be unconstitutional.”
More from The Heritage Foundation’s Hans von Spakovsky:
Yesterday, Judge Gibney ordered the Virginia State Board of Elections to notify all local county electoral boards that they are barred “from ordering any ballots” or “from mailing out any absentee ballots” until after the judge holds a hearing on the case on January 13. The judge says in the order that he will make a decision on the merits of the temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction being sought by the candidates on the 13th.
Additionally, the ACLU of Virginia filed an amicus brief today on the side of the Republican presidential candidates, arguing that Virginia’s 10,000-signature requirement for a presidential candidate to appear on the ballot “reduces the quantity of [political] speech available in Virginia, and directly infringes on the First Amendment rights of candidates, voters, petition circulators, and political parties.”
The ACLU also argues that Virginia’s residency requirement for petition circulators is not narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest. In fact, the ACLU says that Virginia has “fail[ed] even to articulate a compelling interest.” It asks the court to grant the plaintiffs’ request for a TRO and a preliminary injunction. Looks like the judge agrees with the ACLU.
This has been a debacle from the beginning, and I’m still of the mindset that the failure of the candidates to meet the requirements says more about their campaign organization than the absurdity of the Virginia requirements — but, in the end, if Mitt Romney and a non-Mitt Romney are in a very, very tight race as of March 6, voters will likely be very grateful for this judge’s probable decision.
The Virginia primary isn’t until March 6; who knows what will happen between now and then? Perhaps one or more candidates among Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum will have gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure their names will appear on the Virginia ballot only to be out of the race by the beginning of March anyway.
Nevertheless, those left out in the cold in Old Dominion haven’t given up without a fight — and it looks like they might win it after all. Recall that Perry has filed a ballot access lawsuit — in which he was joined by Gingrich, Huntsman and Santorum. Today, Judge John Gibney filed a five-page order in which he suggests “there is a strong likelihood that the Court will find the residency requirement for petition circulators to be unconstitutional.”
More from The Heritage Foundation’s Hans von Spakovsky:
Yesterday, Judge Gibney ordered the Virginia State Board of Elections to notify all local county electoral boards that they are barred “from ordering any ballots” or “from mailing out any absentee ballots” until after the judge holds a hearing on the case on January 13. The judge says in the order that he will make a decision on the merits of the temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction being sought by the candidates on the 13th.
Additionally, the ACLU of Virginia filed an amicus brief today on the side of the Republican presidential candidates, arguing that Virginia’s 10,000-signature requirement for a presidential candidate to appear on the ballot “reduces the quantity of [political] speech available in Virginia, and directly infringes on the First Amendment rights of candidates, voters, petition circulators, and political parties.”
The ACLU also argues that Virginia’s residency requirement for petition circulators is not narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest. In fact, the ACLU says that Virginia has “fail[ed] even to articulate a compelling interest.” It asks the court to grant the plaintiffs’ request for a TRO and a preliminary injunction. Looks like the judge agrees with the ACLU.
This has been a debacle from the beginning, and I’m still of the mindset that the failure of the candidates to meet the requirements says more about their campaign organization than the absurdity of the Virginia requirements — but, in the end, if Mitt Romney and a non-Mitt Romney are in a very, very tight race as of March 6, voters will likely be very grateful for this judge’s probable decision.
I don’t want America to be a nation that’s primarily known for financial speculation,’ the president said during the event in the East Room. ‘I want us to be known for making and selling products all over the world stamped with three proud words: ‘Made in America.’
“To be sure, the president made no mention of Romney directly, but he has been critical of Wall Street before and the tenor of his remarks neatly complimented Vice President Biden’s assail on the former Massachusetts governor Tuesday, when he told New Hampshire Democrats via teleconference that Romney cares more about stockholders than employees.”
***
“Rick Santorum took a nameless swipe at Republicans who have been criticizing Mitt Romney’s time at Bain Capital.
“‘It’s this hostile rhetoric, which unfortunately – I don’t want to stand here and be a defender of Mitt Romney,’ Santorum said to a friendly crowd here tonight, ‘but unfortunately some in our party now, even some running for president will engage in with respect to capitalism. It is bad enough for Barack Obama to blame folks in business for causing problems in this country. Its one other thing for Republicans to join him.’”
***
“Jon Huntsman on Wednesday joined the chorus of Republicans urging Mitt Romney’s opponents to tone down their attacks on the former Massachusetts governor over his time at the investment firm Bain Capital.
“‘If you have creative destruction in capitalism, which has always been a part of capitalism, it becomes a little disingenuous to take on Bain Capital,’ Huntsman told reporters Wednesday after a campaign appearance at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. ‘I think it’s more instructive to look at governor Romney’s record as governor.’”
***
“We have heard a lot over the last couple months about the anti-Romney sentiment in the Republican party. However, this statistic suggests that, in New Hampshire at any rate, Romney is the only candidate with whom a majority of the party is satisfied. The rest of the candidates seem to have alienated more than half of the GOP.
“That is Romney’s biggest advantage, far and away.”
***
“‘He’s going to have to defend this,’ Perry said in an interview on ‘Fox and Friends’ on Wednesday morning. ‘And better in January than September if he’s going to be our nominee and have to explain.’”
“‘I think their argument fell flat here in New Hampshire. They tried it very hard, ran ads here, were up and down the state campaigning, and people in the state here said, ‘look, we want a guy who spent some time in the private sector, not someone who spent their entire life in Washington.’ So I think it’s working for my benefit,’ the former Massachusetts governor said.”
I don’t want America to be a nation that’s primarily known for financial speculation,’ the president said during the event in the East Room. ‘I want us to be known for making and selling products all over the world stamped with three proud words: ‘Made in America.’
“To be sure, the president made no mention of Romney directly, but he has been critical of Wall Street before and the tenor of his remarks neatly complimented Vice President Biden’s assail on the former Massachusetts governor Tuesday, when he told New Hampshire Democrats via teleconference that Romney cares more about stockholders than employees.”
***
“Rick Santorum took a nameless swipe at Republicans who have been criticizing Mitt Romney’s time at Bain Capital.
“‘It’s this hostile rhetoric, which unfortunately – I don’t want to stand here and be a defender of Mitt Romney,’ Santorum said to a friendly crowd here tonight, ‘but unfortunately some in our party now, even some running for president will engage in with respect to capitalism. It is bad enough for Barack Obama to blame folks in business for causing problems in this country. Its one other thing for Republicans to join him.’”
***
“Jon Huntsman on Wednesday joined the chorus of Republicans urging Mitt Romney’s opponents to tone down their attacks on the former Massachusetts governor over his time at the investment firm Bain Capital.
“‘If you have creative destruction in capitalism, which has always been a part of capitalism, it becomes a little disingenuous to take on Bain Capital,’ Huntsman told reporters Wednesday after a campaign appearance at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. ‘I think it’s more instructive to look at governor Romney’s record as governor.’”
***
“We have heard a lot over the last couple months about the anti-Romney sentiment in the Republican party. However, this statistic suggests that, in New Hampshire at any rate, Romney is the only candidate with whom a majority of the party is satisfied. The rest of the candidates seem to have alienated more than half of the GOP.
“That is Romney’s biggest advantage, far and away.”
***
“‘He’s going to have to defend this,’ Perry said in an interview on ‘Fox and Friends’ on Wednesday morning. ‘And better in January than September if he’s going to be our nominee and have to explain.’”
“‘I think their argument fell flat here in New Hampshire. They tried it very hard, ran ads here, were up and down the state campaigning, and people in the state here said, ‘look, we want a guy who spent some time in the private sector, not someone who spent their entire life in Washington.’ So I think it’s working for my benefit,’ the former Massachusetts governor said.”
As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
Exit question: Is that a little Tebowing I see happening at seven seconds in? As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
Exit question: Is that a little Tebowing I see happening at seven seconds in? As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
Exit question: Is that a little Tebowing I see happening at seven seconds in? As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
Exit question: Is that a little Tebowing I see happening at seven seconds in? As The Daily Caller’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “Who is this guy and why doesn’t HE run for president???” South Carolina is Rick Perry’s last-ditch effort and he’s not even polling in the top three there. The outlook is bleak for Texas’ jobs governor, and we’re very nearly left with the thought of what might have been had he only been able to remember the Department of Energy. Then again, the gist of this ad is that Perry isn’t prepared to give up yet — and he’s never lost an election in his life. Do you believe in miracles?
Update (Allahpundit): Just to elaborate on the point that he’s not polling in the top three in SC, he’s actually not polling in the top five either. Right now he’s in sixth place at five percent, two points behind Jon Huntsman(!) in a southern state that was supposed to be one of his strongholds. Really. And for all the talk of him underperforming like Fred Thompson did, when you look at the numbers you realize that so far that comparison’s actually unfair to Fred.
There are a lot — a lot — of what-ifs to come after Perry finally throws in the towel, but here’s a good one from BuzzFeed. What if he hadn’t stumbled at the debates and Romney had continued pounding him on entitlements? Would he still be in contention?
But at a meet-and-greet with voters here today, Perry was reminded Thursday that he still hasn’t overcome the very first issue his opponents seized on this cycle: his early proposals to radically alter Social Security. The South Carolina exchange was a reminder that Perry’s challenges weren’t just stylistic, but would also have meant a fight to drag the Republican Party to the right on sensitive political issues.
After a fire-and-brimstone sermon on the waste and fraud that plagues federal entitlement programs, Perry invited a question from local resident Sheryl Cox, sitting right in front of him. A small business owner, Cox voiced concern over the candidate’s social security stance, and asked whether he grouped the retirement program with the entitlements he had just railed against.
“That’s my money,” she reminded him forcefully. “That’s my money.”
That would have been a debate worth having, but like I said earlier, you might not like the answers you get from Republican voters when you start asking certain difficult questions.
If nothing else, Rick Perry — in all his imperfection — remains likable. In fact, he’s arguably even more likable now than when he entered the presidential race with all the apparent arrogance of a man who had famously never lost an election. Chastened by his own mistakes, he’s learned to take himself lightly but his principles seriously.
That was the message he delivered today at the South Carolina Faith and Freedom Coalition breakfast. He light-heartedly referred to his debate stumbles, but reminded listeners that he’ll stand up for conservative principles. National Journal relates a particularly memorable moment:
Rick Perry’s no stranger to gaffes, but he has tried to turn it into an asset, making self-deprecating jokes about it on the campaign trail.
On Sunday, he found an ally in a fellow speech-challenged leader that drew laughs from the audience of the South Carolina Faith and Freedom Coalition prayer breakfast: Moses.
“Moses, he tried to talk [G]od out of making him go lead the people,” Perry told the crowd of about 300. “He wasn’t a good speaker. Now, from time to time I can relate to that.”
Talk about knowing your audience! Perry was very on point to deliver that quip to this particular crowd. Maybe he’s like Moses in another way, too. While it’s true Moses didn’t think of himself as a particularly effective spokesperson (Exodus 4:10), he was known to others as “powerful in speech” (Acts 7:22). Perhaps Perry is on his way to that (if not the nomination), as well: His speech today earned him a standing ovation.
If nothing else, Rick Perry — in all his imperfection — remains likable. In fact, he’s arguably even more likable now than when he entered the presidential race with all the apparent arrogance of a man who had famously never lost an election. Chastened by his own mistakes, he’s learned to take himself lightly but his principles seriously.
That was the message he delivered today at the South Carolina Faith and Freedom Coalition breakfast. He light-heartedly referred to his debate stumbles, but reminded listeners that he’ll stand up for conservative principles. National Journal relates a particularly memorable moment:
Rick Perry’s no stranger to gaffes, but he has tried to turn it into an asset, making self-deprecating jokes about it on the campaign trail.
On Sunday, he found an ally in a fellow speech-challenged leader that drew laughs from the audience of the South Carolina Faith and Freedom Coalition prayer breakfast: Moses.
“Moses, he tried to talk [G]od out of making him go lead the people,” Perry told the crowd of about 300. “He wasn’t a good speaker. Now, from time to time I can relate to that.”
Talk about knowing your audience! Perry was very on point to deliver that quip to this particular crowd. Maybe he’s like Moses in another way, too. While it’s true Moses didn’t think of himself as a particularly effective spokesperson (Exodus 4:10), he was known to others as “powerful in speech” (Acts 7:22). Perhaps Perry is on his way to that (if not the nomination), as well: His speech today earned him a standing ovation.
At least four of the five GOP candidates will be present at a pro-life forum in South Carolina Wednesday, LifeNews.com reports:
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, Congressman Ron Paul, and Texas Governor Rick Perry are scheduled to participate in the Presidential Prolife Forum at the Hilton Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina on Wednesday. Former Governor Mitt Romney has not responded to invitations to attend the event. … “In the past, abortion has been relegated as a side-issue, but no longer,” Keith Mason, the head of the group, said in a statement to LifeNews. “Voters are dissatisfied with liberal Republican candidates who are prolife in word, but not in deed. We have already seen a tremendous outspokenness on the Sanctity of Life from these four candidates,” he added. “Now voters are eager to ask serious questions about each candidate’s prolife position. Over 50 million innocent children have been killed by abortion since 1973, and we want a President who will not sit by and watch the death toll climb.”
While the eventual GOP nominee’s record on the abortion issue will likely make little difference in the general election, which promises to be a contest of alternate visions for economic growth and job development, it is nevertheless true that several of the GOP candidates have elevated the issue of abortion in the primaries. Ron Paul has made an unusual point to tout his pro-life credentials, for example, and Newt Gingrich’s Super PAC has attacked Mitt Romney’s record on the topic. Rick Santorum can’t go anywhere without receiving questions on social issues like abortion and gay marriage, and Rick Perry, too, has hyped his social conservative credentials. It also remains true that many single-issue voters still vote on the basis of a candidate’s position on this issue. Given the confusion about Mitt Romney’s record on life issues, it might be smart of him to actually put in an appearance at the event, but, with the primary so close, it’s plausible he hasn’t yet confirmed because he has a genuine conflict.
At least four of the five GOP candidates will be present at a pro-life forum in South Carolina Wednesday, LifeNews.com reports:
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, Congressman Ron Paul, and Texas Governor Rick Perry are scheduled to participate in the Presidential Prolife Forum at the Hilton Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina on Wednesday. Former Governor Mitt Romney has not responded to invitations to attend the event. … “In the past, abortion has been relegated as a side-issue, but no longer,” Keith Mason, the head of the group, said in a statement to LifeNews. “Voters are dissatisfied with liberal Republican candidates who are prolife in word, but not in deed. We have already seen a tremendous outspokenness on the Sanctity of Life from these four candidates,” he added. “Now voters are eager to ask serious questions about each candidate’s prolife position. Over 50 million innocent children have been killed by abortion since 1973, and we want a President who will not sit by and watch the death toll climb.”
While the eventual GOP nominee’s record on the abortion issue will likely make little difference in the general election, which promises to be a contest of alternate visions for economic growth and job development, it is nevertheless true that several of the GOP candidates have elevated the issue of abortion in the primaries. Ron Paul has made an unusual point to tout his pro-life credentials, for example, and Newt Gingrich’s Super PAC has attacked Mitt Romney’s record on the topic. Rick Santorum can’t go anywhere without receiving questions on social issues like abortion and gay marriage, and Rick Perry, too, has hyped his social conservative credentials. It also remains true that many single-issue voters still vote on the basis of a candidate’s position on this issue. Given the confusion about Mitt Romney’s record on life issues, it might be smart of him to actually put in an appearance at the event, but, with the primary so close, it’s plausible he hasn’t yet confirmed because he has a genuine conflict.
Hard to argue. South Carolina’s the last stand of the Not Romneys. Join or die. Erickson:
For a generation, Rick Perry was undefeated. Now he will go back to Texas and everyone who ever lost to Rick Perry will seek to settle old scores. It will be a tough, bloody fight. He will have to be ready for it.
Perry, however, has a potential trump card up his sleeve as he rebuilds political capital. It’s simple: he can drop out today, and endorse someone else. Doing so today, before the CNN Debate tomorrow, gives the news time to sink in…
Huntsman has already done his part to help Romney. Perry’s endorsement today or tomorrow morning could offset that, shifting undecideds and Perry’s own voters to someone else and get them a leg up on Mitt Romney. With Newt Gingrich surging according to the latest Rasmussen poll and Sarah Palin saying she’d support him, Perry’s withdrawal and endorsement before Saturday could ensure a Gingrich win.
Rick Perry’s campaign has come to an end. But he could leave on an unexpected high note — helping conservatives unite around one not-Romney in a way no one else has been able to. Rick Perry could be the catalyst and kingmaker so many have been looking for, even as other conservatives have stood by, unwilling to endorse in the face of long odds.
Gingrich wrote the foreword to Perry’s book, Erickson reminds us, so jumping on the Newt bandwagon now would make sense not just politically but personally. Erick and the Red State guys know him much better than I ever will but my sense of him from his rhetoric on the trail is that he’d rather press on to the bitter end and let voters stop the fight on Saturday — notwithstanding the weakened position that would leave him in back home — than hit the mat for strategic advantage. Go read this piece, for instance, recounting a Perry appearance in Spartanburg 10 days ago. The idea of forging on honorably and never giving up obviously means a lot to him, or at least it did 10 days ago. Maybe the calculus has changed now that it’s clear there’ll be no eleventh-hour surge — or maybe he thinks Gingrich is bound to fall short against Romney even with Perry’s five percent. If he dropped out and endorsed Newt and Romney still won, he’d earn a little goodwill for falling on his sword to try to stop Mitt but he’d get no “kingmaker” stature and he’d antagonize the almost-certain nominee and possible next president.
His spokesman seems to be handling the idea … not so well:
Mark Miner, a spokesman for Perry, said the Texas governor is focused on the people of South Carolina, not the pundits declaring the end of his campaign. “Pundits aren’t going to decide this race. The people of South Carolina are going to decide this race,” Miner said. “The governor’s focused on the people of South Carolina and their votes, not a pundit sitting behind a computer somewhere.”
Asked if there is a chance Perry will drop out of the race before Saturday, Miner said, “We are in this race through the primary. … There is no intention of leaving this race.”
Note to Miner: That random pundit sitting behind his computer screen is the same guy who introduced Perry before his big announcement speech this summer. And it’s not just Erickson who thinks it’s time. Click here and skip ahead to 4:15 to hear Laura Ingraham ring the bell on Perry too. Exit question: If he’s going to do this, how much time does he have left to decide? The CNN debate is 27 hours away.
Hard to argue. South Carolina’s the last stand of the Not Romneys. Join or die. Erickson:
For a generation, Rick Perry was undefeated. Now he will go back to Texas and everyone who ever lost to Rick Perry will seek to settle old scores. It will be a tough, bloody fight. He will have to be ready for it.
Perry, however, has a potential trump card up his sleeve as he rebuilds political capital. It’s simple: he can drop out today, and endorse someone else. Doing so today, before the CNN Debate tomorrow, gives the news time to sink in…
Huntsman has already done his part to help Romney. Perry’s endorsement today or tomorrow morning could offset that, shifting undecideds and Perry’s own voters to someone else and get them a leg up on Mitt Romney. With Newt Gingrich surging according to the latest Rasmussen poll and Sarah Palin saying she’d support him, Perry’s withdrawal and endorsement before Saturday could ensure a Gingrich win.
Rick Perry’s campaign has come to an end. But he could leave on an unexpected high note — helping conservatives unite around one not-Romney in a way no one else has been able to. Rick Perry could be the catalyst and kingmaker so many have been looking for, even as other conservatives have stood by, unwilling to endorse in the face of long odds.
Gingrich wrote the foreword to Perry’s book, Erickson reminds us, so jumping on the Newt bandwagon now would make sense not just politically but personally. Erick and the Red State guys know him much better than I ever will but my sense of him from his rhetoric on the trail is that he’d rather press on to the bitter end and let voters stop the fight on Saturday — notwithstanding the weakened position that would leave him in back home — than hit the mat for strategic advantage. Go read this piece, for instance, recounting a Perry appearance in Spartanburg 10 days ago. The idea of forging on honorably and never giving up obviously means a lot to him, or at least it did 10 days ago. Maybe the calculus has changed now that it’s clear there’ll be no eleventh-hour surge — or maybe he thinks Gingrich is bound to fall short against Romney even with Perry’s five percent. If he dropped out and endorsed Newt and Romney still won, he’d earn a little goodwill for falling on his sword to try to stop Mitt but he’d get no “kingmaker” stature and he’d antagonize the almost-certain nominee and possible next president.
His spokesman seems to be handling the idea … not so well:
Mark Miner, a spokesman for Perry, said the Texas governor is focused on the people of South Carolina, not the pundits declaring the end of his campaign. “Pundits aren’t going to decide this race. The people of South Carolina are going to decide this race,” Miner said. “The governor’s focused on the people of South Carolina and their votes, not a pundit sitting behind a computer somewhere.”
Asked if there is a chance Perry will drop out of the race before Saturday, Miner said, “We are in this race through the primary. … There is no intention of leaving this race.”
Note to Miner: That random pundit sitting behind his computer screen is the same guy who introduced Perry before his big announcement speech this summer. And it’s not just Erickson who thinks it’s time. Click here and skip ahead to 4:15 to hear Laura Ingraham ring the bell on Perry too. Exit question: If he’s going to do this, how much time does he have left to decide? The CNN debate is 27 hours away.
Don’t know what it is about the guy, but Rick Perry inspires me. Remember the day after his apex-of-awkward “oops” moment? He hit the morning shows to say, “This ain’t a day for quittin’.” Talk about a motivating moment. Yesterday, he repeated his demonstration of the power of positive thinking. In his first public appearance since he dropped his bid for president, Perry was upbeat, outgoing and focused on the future:
“I’m not slipping off into the sunset, I’m not riding off into the West,” said Perry at a fundraiser for the Republican Party of Williamson County, reported The Texas Tribune. “I’ve got plenty of fight left in this old 61-year-old body.” …
“I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything in the world. It was just extraordinary. I would not trade it for anything that I’ve ever done in my 60-plus years of living,” he said.
Perry, who vowed to continue his work in Texas, also said that the movement he campaigned on is “bigger than any one man or woman.”
“It goes forward at a ballot box near you in 2012,” he said.
Perry, who famously never lost an election before in his life, reminded his audience that he comes from a winning tradition as a Texas A&M grad. He made light of his recent failure, suggesting that he wasn’t outscored but that he did run out of time.
“I’m really not used to running out of time,” he said.
Fact is, he hasn’t. As he put it, he still has time to forward the conservative agenda. As long as we have hearts pumping and lungs breathing, we haven’t run out of time, either. As Mary Pickford put it, “You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call ‘failure’ is not the falling down, but the staying down.” Perry might have fallen, but he’s not staying down. Good for him.
Don’t know what it is about the guy, but Rick Perry inspires me. Remember the day after his apex-of-awkward “oops” moment? He hit the morning shows to say, “This ain’t a day for quittin’.” Talk about a motivating moment. Yesterday, he repeated his demonstration of the power of positive thinking. In his first public appearance since he dropped his bid for president, Perry was upbeat, outgoing and focused on the future:
“I’m not slipping off into the sunset, I’m not riding off into the West,” said Perry at a fundraiser for the Republican Party of Williamson County, reported The Texas Tribune. “I’ve got plenty of fight left in this old 61-year-old body.” …
“I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything in the world. It was just extraordinary. I would not trade it for anything that I’ve ever done in my 60-plus years of living,” he said.
Perry, who vowed to continue his work in Texas, also said that the movement he campaigned on is “bigger than any one man or woman.”
“It goes forward at a ballot box near you in 2012,” he said.
Perry, who famously never lost an election before in his life, reminded his audience that he comes from a winning tradition as a Texas A&M grad. He made light of his recent failure, suggesting that he wasn’t outscored but that he did run out of time.
“I’m really not used to running out of time,” he said.
Fact is, he hasn’t. As he put it, he still has time to forward the conservative agenda. As long as we have hearts pumping and lungs breathing, we haven’t run out of time, either. As Mary Pickford put it, “You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call ‘failure’ is not the falling down, but the staying down.” Perry might have fallen, but he’s not staying down. Good for him.
