Former Texas Governor Rick Perry can’t seem to escape the question, these days. Will he or won’t he pursue a third party presidential run, should Donald Trump capture the GOP nomination?

Governor Perry was the first man to step aside, on September 11, 2016. He found his second bid for the presidency crippled by an indictment charge for abuse of power still lingering in Travis County, Texas. The charges were roundly panned as baseless and political revenge for the governor doing his job and withholding funds from the Texas Public Integrity Unit, which was headed up by a DA with no integrity. Rosemary Lehmberg was convicted of drunk driving and caught on video being abusive to police officers while in custody. Governor Perry acted within his authority as governor, by asking that Lehmberg resign before he released the Texas taxpayers’ hard earned tax dollars into her control.

Perry has since endorsed Senator Ted Cruz and has traveled the country with him, lending his support and acting as a very vocal surrogate.

However, with Trump gaining state after state, many are quietly searching for a lifeboat, in order to escape the sinking ship known as the GOP. They, along with many others, have no desire to be connected to a party that would present such a morally bereft and intellectually vacuous man as their nominee. He is a sure loser to whoever the Democrats present in November, and the solidly conservative element of the party are looking for a more suitable alternative.

The entire Trump Traveling Freak Show has become tiresome. The constant feuding and infighting among candidates is a stress that’s counterproductive, when faced with a strained economy, a porous border, unrest in the streets, and threats abroad, as well as home. We have serious issues at hand that require a serious candidate.

That may be why Rick Perry seems to be the name that keeps entering the conversation, whenever there is talk of an alternative to the Trump problem. Perry is the polar opposite of everything Trump represents. He is the anti-Trump.

Where Trump is rambling and disconnected, Perry has a grasp of policy, foreign and domestic, with the ability to speak with authority about both.

Where Trump is rude and abusive, Perry has always conducted himself as a statesman, and is one of the best retail politicians in the business.

Trump has a long series of failed business ventures. Perry is the longest serving governor in Texas history and has an impressive record of successful executive leadership, unmatched by anyone who has ran for the presidency in many years. Texas thrived under his leadership, and nearly a third of all new job creation in America, between 2007 and 2014, rested on the shoulders of Rick Perry’s Texas.

On March 21, 2016 Governor Perry appeared on MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts. Roberts pushed him on the issue of a third party run. Perry countered with praise for Senator Cruz, avoiding the actual question of if he would answer the call to run third party, should the need present itself.

Roberts sought to pull an answer from Perry four separate times. The governor refused to take the bait.

One exchange went thusly:

Roberts: “…You can say you would not be interested in being drafted at the convention in Cleveland?”

Perry: “I can say, definitively, that I’m going to serve my country the best way that I can, and at this particular point in time, that happens to be helping Ted Cruz, a consistent conservative…”

Roberts made four attempts during the course of the interview and was met with the same elusive answers.

Governor Perry is a man of his word. He signed on to endorse and support Senator Cruz’s run, so the idea that he would promote his own ambitions at this stage of the process would be vastly out of character for who he is. That being said, should Cruz fail in his bid to oust Trump and the need for a third party or a draft candidate at a brokered convention become a reality, Perry appears ready to at least consider the prospect, and he will serve his country the best way he can.