He has done some great things. However he lost my vote for supporting the Trans-Texas corridor. That highway project that would snatch up family owned land to build a super highway that would come directly out of/connect with Mexico. He has also done little to stem the flow of illegals.

but given the alternative in the main election I’ll certainly support him if he’s the candidate. But as for the primary, I may have to reluctantly support Kay Bailey Hutchison, as if she wins the primary, that would get her out of the Senate, and into a much less powerful position where she could do less damage as Governor.

I’m no Texan, but from out here the biggest complaint I heard about Perry was that he pushed that intrusive, pro-high school sex, nanny-state HPV thing, right?

Well can anyone tell me a squish like KBH wouldn’t do the same?

Some years ago The Economist praised Rick Perry’s plans for tort law reform. Does anyone know how that worked out?

Yes, Perry hasn’t been the iconic conservative that you would expect from Texas.

He has come up short on the border, illegal immigration, some social issues and even some taxes on business.

Unfortunately, even in Texas; this is what you are going to get until all of the fervor over the tea parties translates to primary and general election votes. We’ll see soon enough if it has.

And Hutch, please don’t support her. I know personally one of her campaign managers and told her I would not not be helping Hutch. She has done virtually nothing in the Senate except make speeches, we don’t need that in Texas. Perry doesn’t always get it right the first time, but eventually he gets it right. We have no proof that Hutch can or will do that.

I’ve been blogging at WILLisms.com for years now about how ideas matter, and how states are laboratories for ideas. Free markets, limited government– they work. Conservative ideas are outperforming RINO ideas and liberal ideas. Rick Perry just plain gets it, and Texas is a good example of conservative ideas working.

That’s the #1 reason I signed on with Rick Perry’s campaign. He is one of the few people in the entire Republican field who gets it. I had met both Perry and his opponent on many occasions over the years, and it is obvious that his opponent has been in Washington far too long. She is part of the big-spending problem that led to the GOP losing its brand and losing power to Pelosi and Reid, and Perry’s opponent is the #1 earmarking member of Congress from Texas: http://www.willisms.com/archives/2009/04/trivia_tidbit_o_573.html

That’s why I endorsed Governor Perry and signed up to work for him:
http://www.willisms.com/archives/2009/01/a_willismscom_c.html

Perry gets it. Texas has a balanced budget with a projected 9 billion dollar Rainy Day Fund surplus. Texas just cut taxes for small businesses this year. Texas ranks at or near the top on just about every ranking of best cities for jobs, places that are seeing the shallowest recession, best places to relocate your businesss, etc. etc.

As far as some of the criticisms of Perry go, I LIKE private sector transportation solutions, and he is probably the strongest border security governor in the country– ever– from any state, so complaining about that (which is really a federal issue, anyway) is just plain silly.

I attribute much of the economic success Texas has enjoyed over the last few years to Perry’s leadership. The dissenters seem to harp on idea’s like the trans-Texas corridor to sully the Gov’s good name, but the reality is that Perry has done so much to insulate our state over his tenure that the nationwide recession hasn’t been able to fully hamper Texans. From real estate to jobs creation, during the worst times for other states Texas has remained one of the best places to find jobs and was rocognized for this ability by Forbes magazine. That says a lot about what we’ve been able to accomplish and makes our future look very bright.
So then the question becomes, why is Kay Bailey running for office? I’ve heard her reasoning is nothing more than because she promised some select individual campaign backers that she would do it for them. We already know how innafective she’s been on the national level, and for her to come back to Texas after having helped sink the nation and want to run the state is lunacy. Who in their right mind would want to elect this woman that failed us on the national level to run our state when we’re already on the right “conservative” path?

is horrible when it comes to parental rights vs the state, children in foster care and juvenille justice. I don’t live in TX but I could never vote for him because of the way he allows these vulnerable children and teens in the state’s care to be treated.

He’s a great Governor, even better than my Governor Sonny Perdue. He is the champion for States Rights, an issue I ardently support, and I’d like to see him, Newt Gingrich, or Rick Santorum go for the Presidency in 2012. He’s a True Conservative that we don’t see too often these days.

I am probably more interested in and informed about politics than your average voter (retired and read a lot) but there is a limit to what anyone can know. National politics has been so overwhelming for about a year now that on state races I just have very basic arguments. Sadly, most people decide how to vote based on less.

1. Perry has not seriously screwed up anything, Texas is in good shape comparatively speaking.

2. Don’t have a particular issue with KBH but a.) I am disgusted in general with Washington politics (particularly annoyed with Cornyn), b.) running for gov seems to be motivated solely by her personal aspirations, and c.) I think Obama has reinforced the idea that Senators do not make good executives.

So far, those I have found who might be inclined to vote for KBH or against Perry, have not been able to offer a good reason to support either position and my general impressions are effective.

It doesn’t hurt that Perry’s biggest, most vocal critics, who I assume are Dems, delight in calling him “Gov Good Hair” and just come off as silly.

…but Perry’s been a good substitute, especially the last couple years.

Under his leadership we’ve managed to have the top 5 large city economies in the country. A month or two ago, Bloomberg, I think it was, has Houston, Austin/Round Rock, Dallas/Plano, Fort Worth/Arlington, and San Antonio (not necessarily in that order) as their healthiest local economies in the country. It also said we had the number 1 local economy overall in our state in Odessa.

We’re constantly ranked number 1 as the best state in which to do business. If worst came to worst and we went independent, we’d make Hong Kong look like a Saturday flea market within a decade.

We’re doing fine while the rest of the country is going to hell in a handbasket. If that’s the way it has to be, then I’m totally cool with that, and don’t much care to fix what isn’t broke.

Does anyone honestly believe that Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents won’t cross over in drives to elect Kay Barely Republican?

Add that to the fact that, as our state house shows, Republican primary voters in the state put popularity above all else (although conservatives who even think to run for office are few and far between). Most Republicans in the house are liberal and constantly bend over backwards to cater to their every whim. You’ll recall the speaker we got and those who put him there.

While Perry would be a better choice, it’s safe to assume that it will make little difference in policy since popular legislative Republicans (together with an impractical and unworkable legislative process) pretty much mirror the views of Hutchison.

Does anyone honestly believe that Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents won’t cross over in drives to elect Kay Barely Republican?

Add that to the fact that, as our state house shows, Republican primary voters in the state put popularity above all else (although conservatives who even think to run for office are few and far between). Most Republicans in the house are liberal and constantly bend over backwards to cater to their every whim. You’ll recall the speaker we got and those who put him there.

While Perry would be a better choice, it’s safe to assume that it will make little difference in policy since popular legislative Republicans (together with an impractical and unworkable legislative process) pretty much mirror the views of Hutchison.

I will never vote for Rick Perry again, ever !!

“…going so far as to reject stimulus money from President Obama.”

‘Rick Perry accepts Texas’ share of stimulus, with reservations’

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-perrystim_19tex.ART.State.Edition1.4c4218f.html

A more current article:

nolink://sensico.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/gov-perry-now-asking-for-stimulus-funds-after-rejecting-it/ [De-linked by NS]