SUBSCRIBE NOW WELCOME BACK. Do you want to continue reading where you left off? New Republic subscribers can pick up where they left off no matter which device they were previously using. SUBSCRIBE NOW

Go Home Rick Perry: The God-Fearing, Know-Nothing, Pistol-Packing...

POLITICS AUGUST 24, 2011

Rick Perry: The God-Fearing, Know-Nothing, Pistol-Packing Embodiment of Liberals’ Worst Nightmares

BY WALTER SHAPIRO

 

What Rick Perry has achieved in his inaugural strut on the political stage is unprecedented in the annals of modern conservative history from Barry Goldwater to Sarah Palin. It is not just that the Texas governor has dominated the news cycle, overshadowed the Iowa Straw Poll, vaulted over every GOP contender except Mitt Romney in the national polls, and reduced Karl Rove to sputtering frustration. All that is admittedly impressive for a first-time candidate whose name was familiar to only half of Republican voters just a few weeks ago.

But what sets Perry apart and earns him his niche in the far right corner of Mount Rushmore has nothing to do with the gyrations of the 2012 campaign. Indeed, Perry is not only a presidential candidate, but also a cowboy-booted sociological experiment. It is almost as if Perry’s political persona was constructed by bundling together all the fears and phantoms in the left-wing anxiety closet. Since the hysteria of the 1950s Red Scare, no Republican figure has matched Perry in his God-given ability to give liberals the heebie-jeebies. Others can rival the governor’s disdain for academic achievement (Palin), his cross-on-the-sleeve religiosity (Michele Bachmann and Mike Huckabee), and his antipathy to Social Security and Medicare (Paul Ryan and Barry Goldwater). But never before has a top-tier presidential candidate embodied the whole lethal package—and more:

1. Anti-Intellectualism. Liberals revere high SAT scores. That is why it is no accident that, over the past century, the Democrats have nominated for president five former college or law school professors (Woodrow Wilson, John W. Davis, George McGovern, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama) plus Hubert Humphrey, who was a graduate teaching fellow while working on a Ph.D.

Democrats snootily ridiculed George W. Bush’s scholarly performance, but compared to Perry, the 43rd president—who earned a B.A. from Yale and a Harvard M.B.A.—seems as well educated as John Stuart Mill. And Perry revels in this kind of comparison. Asked last week about how he differs from Bush, he tellingly replied, “He’s a Yale graduate. I’m a Texas A&M graduate.”

Perry plays this educational populism to the hilt. The official bio of the Texas governor boasts that at university he was a “senior yell leader and an animal science major.” A bootlegged copy of Perry’s college transcript is the antithesis of grade inflation, with the architect of the purported Texas jobs miracle receiving a “D” in “Principles of Economics.”

More ominous to progressive values is that Perry, as governor, has tried to run the state university system like a business, seemingly unaware that the European history program should be held to different standards than, say, the animal science department. Texas A&M, now headed by a former Perry chief of staff, actually rated professors based on whether they brought in more outside funding than they cost. 

2. The God Card. Liberals should be nostalgic for the days when Ronald Reagan frequently invoked a non-denominational deity but rarely attended church. Even George W. Bush’s public religiosity was connected to a compelling biographical narrative—embracing Christ gave him the power to stop drinking.

But Perry, far more than Huckabee during his 2008 campaign, seems willfully oblivious to the reality that his personal theological beliefs are not universally held, even within the modern Republican Party. In April, as Texas suffered from a deadly combination of wildfires and drought, Perry issued a proclamation calling for three days of prayer for rain. And at his 30,000-person prayer meeting a week before he declared his candidacy, Perry embraced “the living Christ” and the “salvation agenda.” This evangelical rally was held in Houston, the same city where John Kennedy gave his famous full-throated defense of the separation of church and state during the 1960 campaign.

3. The Living Constitution. The GOP presidential field has more self-appointed constitutional scholars per capita than any group since the Founding Fathers assembled in Philadelphia. Not too long ago, Bachmann refused to fill out the entire 2010 Census form because she contended that it went beyond constitutional requirements.

But even by these standards, Perry stands out for his creative cut-and-paste approach to the Constitution. With the exception of the states-rights claims of the Tenth Amendment and the right-to-carry provisions of the Second Amendment, it seems like the rest of the document is more or less fair game to the governor. In an interview last year, Perry raised doubts about whether the Social Security system was constitutional. And in his book, Fed Up!, Perry ominously claims, “With the passage of the Sixteen and Seventeenth Amendments, states handed over a significant chunk of their sovereignty and wealth to the federal government.” Not since the days of William McKinley or even earlier has a serious presidential contender warned about the threat of a federal income tax and the direct election of senators.

4. Pistol-Packing President. For Eastern liberals (myself included), nothing is more baffling than the desire to carry around a metal cylinder with a trigger attached that could easily kill someone. This may explain why debates over gun control often seem far more cultural and theological than discussions of, say, tax policy.

What distinguishes Perry from his GOP rivals is the enthusiasm with which he embraces the lock-and-load ethos of the West. The Texas governor’s definition of academic freedom extends to his support of legislation that would allow college students to carry concealed weapons on campus. And Perry doesn’t just talk the talk; he also shoots the shot. While jogging last year in a heavily wooded area of Austin, Perry nailed a menacing coyote with a pistol that he carries during his workout routine to ward off snakes.

5. Daring to Call It Treason. Right-wing firebrand Ann Coulter violated one of the few remaining standards of acceptable political discourse when she titled her 2003 book, Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism. Coulter undoubtedly knew that shouting “Treason” in a crowded bookstore would conjure up the specter of a new McCarthyism.

This explains what was so scary about Perry’s claim that Ben Bernanke would be “almost treasonous” if he persisted in loosening monetary policy to ward off a double-dip recession. The combination—tarring the ultimate middle-of-the-road authority figure (Bernanke) with one of the most diabolical words in the political lexicon—proved poisonous. In contrast, Bachmann has been a far more disciplined campaigner, never resorting to this kind corrosive rhetoric against anyone not named Obama.

Based on his ten days as a candidate, the Texas governor lacks an internal governor to modulate what he says in off-the-cuff settings. Even on his best behavior in New Hampshire last week, Perry could not stop at the right-wing talking point that the scientific case for global warming is unproven. Instead, Perry had to go the extra conspiratorial step and claim, “There are a substantial number of scientists who have manipulated data so they will have dollars rolling into their projects.” Next time around, Perry might well call these supposedly corrupt climate scientists, who only exist in right-wing mythology, “almost treasonous” as well.

 

TO BE SURE, there’s more to Perry than his cowboy boots—footwear rarely worn on the Upper West Side or in Brookline—and his standard-issue “unproven theory” claptrap about evolution. And the problem with extrapolating a presidency from all these Perry-isms is that it is hard to tell at this stage in the campaign how much is conviction and how much is clever pandering to the Tea Party zealots. Personally, I am intrigued by the theory of Dave Mann, editor of the Texas Observer, that Perry’s only governing ideology is “crony capitalism.”

But whatever his underlying beliefs, Perry could give both Bachmann and Palin lessons in liberal baiting. The swagger and the bristling self-confidence suggest a political leader who is often wrong, but never in doubt. It is all so reminiscent of another wrong-way-Corrigan president. Intellectually, it is easy to remember the Texas-sized enmities that divide the Bushies and Perry. But emotionally, every time liberals hear that Perry twang and those dropped “g’s,” the instinct is to quake at stumbling into a horror-movie remake entitled, Mission Accomplished 2: Return to the White House.

Walter Shapiro is a special correspondent for The New Republic. Follow him on Twitter (lucky you).

 

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

Show all 42 comments

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

42 comments

"Based on his ten days as a candidate, the Texas governor lacks an internal governor to modulate what he says in off-the-cuff settings." And that's one reason why, I think and hope, he'll fall short of either getting the nomination or winning the presidency. For all of his malaproprisms, misstatements and other inadequacies, Bush was a disciplined candidate guided by one of the best (if malicious) political minds of our time. Let's hope Perry and his team don't rise to that level. Conversely, for all of his shortcomings as president, Obama has been a far more effective candidate than Gore and Kerry. Let's hope this translates into his picking Perry apart of the two go head to head. Having said all that, the best way to let someone win is to underestimate him (particularly when he has over a year on the job of learning to run for president). I doubt that Obama will do that, and neither should we.

- Thunderroad

August 24, 2011 at 1:14am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Perry seems like a very good fit for today's Republican Party and a fun candidate for the 2012 election show. Perry versus Obama- a contest guaranteed to entertain.

- paskunac

August 24, 2011 at 6:31am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

I'm a rare breed in today's GOP: a moderate, secular conservative (I'm supporting Huntsman). Moreover, I'm from Texas and went to A&M. That's why it pains me to see, once again, a Texas governor bringing ridicule to my state. In my opinion, there's always going to be disdain among some NE liberal elites for Southerners or Texans, but Perry seems to relish in exacerbating these cultural prejudices. He would be a disaster for this country. If he's nominated, I'll likely be voting for Obama. One point of contention with Shapiro. Texas A&M isn't a mediocre school, which seems to be implied in this article. Is it an Ivy League school? No, but it's consistently rated a Tier I university. And animal science is a legitimate degree, especially considering Perry's rural background. I've known quite a few AS majors and they were no yokels -- but boy could they drink beer! Being a Yell Leader at A&M is also quite prestigious, considering it's elected by the student body. Gig 'Em!

- djselzner

August 24, 2011 at 6:55am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

One of the trends I find "exceptional" about the USA today is the number of religious sects and cults participating directly in the electoral process. The leading contender for the Republican nomination for President, Gov. Mitt Romney, is a Mormon, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a religion considered heretical by most mainstream Christians like nearly all mainstream Protestant Churches and the Catholic Church. Gov. Rick Perry of Texas began his Presidential campaign by organizing a “Christian only” evangelical, and "Dominionist" prayer meeting, “The Response: a call to prayer for a nation in crisis.” “Dominionism” is the belief that holds the Holy Bible as dominant over laws made by man. The relationship between Gov. Perry and the “New Apostolic Reformation” movement, see: http://www.texasobserver.org/cover-story/rick-perrys-army-of-god. “The Response” was a gathering of the different tribes of American fundamentalism – Christian Zionists, prayer warriors, apostolic and prophetic types, etc. – under the umbrella of political and spiritual revival, see: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908//vp/44098787#44098787 Like Governor Perry, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann espouses a "Dominionist" religious perspective and spent her student years in law school studying the "Dominionist" approach to society, law and government, see http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/90014/michelle-bachmanns-worldview. Gov. Sarah Palin is a member of a "The Wasilla Assembly of God." The “Wasilla Assembly” is a member of the "Assemblies of God," a Pentecostal Christian denomination founded in 1914 in the United States. The ‘Four Core Beliefs’ of the Assemblies of God are Salvation, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, Divine Healing and the Second Coming of Christ. A dramatic insight into Pentacosaltlism is found in the 1997 film, The Apostle, written, directed and starring Robert Duvall, as a charismatic “Pentecostal” preacher. Pentecostals are known to “speak in tongues:” see a clip from Duvall’s movie, The Apostle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FwMu9WW_bg. The Apostle’s main character” Sonny” is what social scientists once politely referred to as “Other Protestants.” Sonny was actually a preacher in the traditional holiness movement, distinct from the Pentecostal movement, which believes that the baptism in the Holy Spirit involves speaking in tongues. Many of the early Pentecostals were from the holiness movement, and to this day many "classical Pentecostals" maintain much of holiness doctrine and many of its devotional practices, according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holiness_movement. Modern “Demoninatism” is largely unknown to most Americans. The list of largely unknown individuals, schismatic sects, cults, groups, exotic beliefs and churches, which the contenders for the Republican nomination belong to or are in agreement with, are "exceptional." The religious fringe, it seems, has become the Protestant mainstream. Today’s Republicans could be re-branded the “Christian Republican Party.” The center core of Protestant faith has migrated from “Liberal Protestantism” to an entrepreneurial-style, evangelist and fundamentalist faith, which votes heavily on the Republican Row. It was once believed that such sects originated mainly among the religiously neglected poor. Clearly, this is now no longer the case. It has been argued by social scientists that insecurity, differential status and anxiety characterize these religious movements. The effects of the Great Recession and the affects of geographic relocation and workplace displacement have contributed to a sense of anxiety and anomie among the American middle-class. Ernst Troeltsch, the major historian of sectarian religion, has characterized the psychological appeal of fundamentalist religious sects in a way that might as appropriately be applied to extremist politics. A direct connection between the social roots of political and religious extremism has been observed in a number of countries. It was observed by the American sociologist S. M. Lipset, as early as the 1960s that “the point here is that rigid fundamentalism and dogmatism are linked to the same underlying characteristics, attitudes, and predispositions which find another outlet in allegiance to extremist political movements.” Many western democracies have “Christian Democratic Parties,” the US, because it is “exceptional,” has a “Christian Republican Party.” The candidates for the Republican nomination have made their religious views of scripture known, by degrees. To discover what these candidates deeply and sincerely believe requires the investigative work of a "large metropolitan newspaper." The ascendancy of the “nouveau fundamentalist Protestant elite” to high leadership positions in the Republican Party needs to be understood as a serious step toward a profound redefinition of church and state in America. The ascendancy of hard-core chronic “know-nothing-ism” and “anti-intellectualism,” so eloquently written about by Columbia historian Richard Hofstadter, and sectarian belief systems, is undoubtedly "exceptional" for a modern mass political party with governmental responsibilities. While it is argued that Europe is experiencing a “crisis of faith,” the United States is experiencing a revivalism parallel with the Second Great Awakening of the 1800s. The decline of mainstream Methodists, Presbyterians, Congregationalists and Episcopalians as forces affecting the direction of the Republican Party, has been statistically significant, and the rise of “Other Protestants,” and sects, has marked a realignment of voting patterns and political commitment. Is it possible to image Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy organizing a 30,000 person “Catholics only” prayer service as a campaign launch? One of the famous quotes from Kennedy’s address to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, during the 1960 national election, was, “I am not the Catholic candidate for President. I am the Democratic Party’s candidate for President who also happens to be a Catholic. I do not speak for my Church on public matters — and the Church does not speak for me.”

- LawrenceGulotta

August 24, 2011 at 6:59am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

do liberals drop "n's"? Mr. Shapiro should know that it is Ben Bernanke, not "Bernacke", who is chairman of the Fed. I lived on the UWS (zip code 10025) from 1978-91, by which time I felt like a republican living amongst former Communists, although I am still a registered Dem and I still believe that housing should NOT be for-profit. So, be careful how you demagogue Rick Perry, whose Social Intelligence is off the charts. His self-confidence is not faux-swagger. Now that I live in the Berkshire Hills, where we have coyotes, black bears, and foxes that eat our chickens and cats, I think Perry shooting a coyote that was threatening Perry's dog is totally rational. As to Perry's college transcipt? I got a scholarship to an elite "little ivy" college (we disdained Harvard and Yale because undergraduate classes were mostly taught by grad students while we had the real professors) after straight A's at the biggest HS in the South, where football was a religion. I got a D---- on my first paper, because I did not have the writing skills, and my professor did not want to give me the "F" she thought I deserved. I imagine the rural school in Paint Creek, Texas was not such good prep, even for Texas A&M. Smear away - but my criteria for president is NO lawyers and NO MBAs, and I like the idea of someone who appreciates the existence of indoor plumbing because his family did not have it until 1960.

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 7:15am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

djselzner: I also would prefer Huntsman, who apparently came out as an Episcopalian on Piers Morgan last night. But, I will vote for Perry, especially if he has someone like Mitch Daniels (Princeton - smoked marijuana) as VP. Our economy can not survive another four years of Obama's absence of leadership.

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 7:21am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110823/OPINION01/308230010/-1/SPORTS09/Steffen-Schmidt-Some-Dems-think-unthinkable-Not-Obama "...respected senior Democrats in New Hampshire. They were Barack Obama supporters in 2008 and now have serious buyer’s remorse. They were alarmed at the lack of leadership, which they feel Obama showed while he still had a substantial majority in the House and Senate. “Steffen, that health care monstrosity used up all his goodwill and has scared the crap out of voters. They just don’t understand what’s in there and he has done nothing to explain it.’ They were unanimous in blaming him for the avalanche of Republicans and the tea party movement ascendance that has paralyzed Washington. “Obama never stepped up to the plate and gave the Democrats a vision of how to retain power,” one said. “In 2010 he just walked away. He’s worse than Bill Clinton. It’s all about the Big O.” ..." written by "STEFFEN SCHMIDT is a professor of political science at Iowa State University. He writes blogs for The Des Moines Register and WNYC radio"

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 7:31am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Time for the Democrats to look for new leadership. That would be our chance to scare the Republicans for a change. And maybe galvanize the country.

- amidut

August 24, 2011 at 8:08am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K, I'm glad you're voting for someone whose "Social Intelligence" is off the charts. What does that even mean? If it's another word for "charisma", I would think that you may want to remember the last time(s) we picked a charismatic politician over a more-qualified but less charismatic one. And that should reminder work both for those who regret Bush's wins over Gore and Kerry and Obama's win over McCain (or any combination of the foregoing).

- wildboy

August 24, 2011 at 9:49am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Social intelligence - you insult the intelligence once again K2K. Just admit you're a one issue voter and stop with the hilariously strained justifications for it. Threatening the Fed Chairman and threatening to secede from the United States (which Obama does every day, right?), holding a Christian only rally (how is that even legal?) are the acts of bone stupid, immature bullies who want nothing more than to divide Americans, not to uplift or add anything of value to our debased political culture in any way. Perry is alot of things, but to apply the phrase "socially intelligent" to him just makes the person claiming that look dishonest.

- WandreyCer

August 24, 2011 at 10:58am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Also, I"ve said this before but it's worth repeating because of Shapiro's headline. Perry is not my "worst nightmare." I am in no way afraid of any of this know-nothing, hypocritical bully. I have deep disdain for him and look forward to fighting his ilk with great gusto. But fear plays zero part in any of it.

- WandreyCer

August 24, 2011 at 11:00am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

"High social intelligence" isn't unusual among malignant narcissists.

- krlong014

August 24, 2011 at 11:47am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

[wildboy: definition of Social Intelligence at end of this comment] "Rick Perry: Is the press being fair and accurate in its coverage of him? If Obama was too much loved by mainstream press, is Perry too much reviled?" August 21, 2011|By David Zurawik | The Baltimore Sun [previously "...worked as columnist for four years at the late, great Dallas Times Herald, a paper considered way to the left by the conservative Texans...] I doubt this modest request will be heard over the fevered roar for the scalp of Texas Gov. Rick Perry that the media has been sounding since he announced his candidacy for president. There is almost a palpable bloodlust to bring this guy down -- and it is being sounded by parts of the mainstream press that should know better. My modest proposal: Let's just try and be fair. Let's do a little self-ethnography from time to time and ask why we feel like it is open season on this guy and his campaign -- and it is OK to drop some of the usual standards of fairness in trying to bring him down. Let's also think back to 2008 and reflect on the way we covered candidate Obama, and ask ourselves if we are treating Perry the same way we treated the senator from Illinois. Really, think about it -- and let's look in the mirror as we are doing so to see if we can hold our own gaze. I am not defending Perry or some of the statements he made. But I have seen commentary after commentary on cable TV, network TV, in print, social media and on blogs talking about how he accused Fed chairman Ben Bernanke of treason. What Perry actually said is this, "Printing more money to play politics at this particular time in American history is almost treacherous -- or treasonous in my opinion.” I think he's pushing the envelope of acceptable discourse, but he didn't accuse Bernanke of treason, and I have seen instance after instance in which commentators for mainstream media outlets have ignored the "almost" in Perry's statement. The ones at CNN have troubled me the most, because I have long believed CNN is our last, best hope for journalism on cable TV. For example, here's Carol Costello, from CNN, on Facebook Aug. 16: Texas Gov. Rick Perry isn't backing down from comments he made in Iowa on Monday night when he said it would be "treasonous" for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to try to stimulate the economy by printing more money. I also saw an over-the-top Costello piece on CNN last week in which she offered the definition of "treason" and then sarcastically critiqued Perry -- again ignoring the word "almost" in his statement. I'll spare her the dictionary definition of "almost" and the sarcasm -- I'm trying to be fair in making my point. But maybe she and her editors are familiar with this expression: "Without precision of language there can be no morality." Ditto for all the analysts and pundits who stated categorically that Perry "questioned President Obama's patriotism." This is a two-fer. It encourages outrage against Perry and sympathy for Obama. But, again, that is not what Perry said or did. ..." http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-08-21/entertainment/bal-rick-perry-barack-obama-be-fair-and-accurate-20110820_1_treason-printing-more-money-social-media http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_intelligence "Social intelligence describes the exclusively human capacity to use very large brains to effectively navigate and negotiate complex social relationships and environments.[1] Psychologist and professor at the London School of Economics Nicholas Humphrey believes it is social intelligence or the richness of our qualitative life, rather than our quantitative intelligence, that truly makes humans what they are – for example what it's like to be a human being living at the centre of the conscious present, surrounded by smells and tastes and feels and the sense of being an extraordinary metaphysical entity with properties which hardly seem to belong to the physical world.[2] Social scientist Ross Honeywill believes social intelligence is an aggregated measure of self and social awareness, evolved social beliefs and attitudes, and a capacity and appetite to manage complex social change. A person with a high social intelligence quotient (SQ) is no better or worse than someone with a low SQ, they just have different attitudes, hopes, interests and desires.[3] Social intelligence according to the original definition of Edward Thorndike, is "the ability to understand and manage men and women, boys and girls, to act wisely in human relations".[citation needed] It is equivalent to interpersonal intelligence, one of the types of intelligences identified in Howard Gardner's Theory of multiple intelligences, and closely related to theory of mind.[citation needed] Some authors have restricted the definition to deal only with knowledge of social situations, perhaps more properly called social cognition or social marketing intelligence, as it pertains to trending socio-psychological advertising and marketing strategies and tactics. According to Sean Foleno, Social intelligence is a person’s competence to comprehend his or her environment optimally and react appropriately for socially successful conduct. ..."

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 11:57am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K, you are beginning to make me nervous.

- Sophia

August 24, 2011 at 12:39pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

i would rather have Rick Perry than Mitt Romney. Perry is the devil I know and he would fail miserably which due to changing Demographics will finish off the Republican party of teabagging nutjobs once and for all to be replaced by, hopefully, a sane party. Perry's crony capitalism can not be writ large because the vast majority of America is not going to stand to be treated like insignificant wage slaves. And K2K, might I remind you of the Roman Republic Consuls, many were brought up from the poor but when they got there left that life behind. Growing up poor does not mean you will be sympathetic to the poor, many such people despise the poor because they think that since they got out of it the rest of the poor deserve it. That is what Gov. Goodhair thinks.

- blackton

August 24, 2011 at 12:41pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K, you did exactly what you accused critics of doing, you chopped the quote yourself. "prints more money between now and the election I don't know what you'all would do to him in Iowa but we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas." What the fuck does treating someone pretty ugly down in Texas mean? Especially since we all know Texas ugly used to mean lynching. And what could Bernanke do in such a case? I promise you if Gov. Goodhair said that to me I would mess that pretty little head of hair up right quick, at the very least I would challenge that sissyman to a showdown. But Bernanke could not do that which made what Perry did especially cowardly. How about I use a Texasism and just call him Gov. Fairy Perry.

- blackton

August 24, 2011 at 12:49pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Ah yes, it's the fault of the press that Perry threatened the Fed Chair and bloviates on seceeding over the stimulus bill yet takes money to balance his budget, but it's OK see because Perry grew up poor (which only counts if you're Republican, but becomes irrelevant when applied to Clinton and Obama). As the kids I work with say: so totally super lame!

- WandreyCer

August 24, 2011 at 1:07pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

As far as the military service issue goes, it made no difference to Republicans that Tom Daschle had been in the USAF, and it should make no difference that Perry has been too. I've always said that people joining the military should be given an info sheet in basic training that says "if you decide on a political career after your service in [fill in branch], be aware that it will count in your favor if you're a Republican and be ignored or smeared if you're a Democrat."

- ironyroad

August 24, 2011 at 1:23pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K demonstrates perfectly why Americans elect the leaders they deserve: "Look, I was game to try the black guy too, but then he said that mean stuff about Israel. This Perry guy, he's a pistol-packin' Eagle Scout, a fighter pilot, a badass, like the President is supposed to be, you know, a real American, wink, wink. I mean, he shot a COYOTE people! That faggot Obama doesn't even know which way to point a gun!" As super awesome as it would be to have a character that Clint Eastwood played in a movie as our President, just maybe we should give the office a little bit deeper consideration than we do our American Idol contestants. Actually, I take that back - that level of seriousness would be refreshing.

- bunthorne

August 24, 2011 at 1:24pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K claims Perry has a high social intelligence? From his quoted definition- "Social scientist Ross Honeywill believes social intelligence is an aggregated measure of self and social awareness, evolved social beliefs and attitudes, and a capacity and appetite to manage complex social change. " Perry has nether exhibited or shown much, if any social awareness with regards to evolved social beliefs and attitudes. Nor has he exhibited any capacity to manage complex social change. In fact his social conservatism represents a de-volution with regards to either understanding other people of other faiths, understanding of climate science, etc. Perry has also shown no interest in understanding complex issues that are relevant to his job. Perry exhibits stunted social intelligence in many ways but that apparently hasn't stopped folks from voting for him. He reminds me of the pulp fiction psychopathic, narcissistic character Lou Ford from Jim Thompson's 'The Killer Inside Me'.

- singlspeed

August 24, 2011 at 1:34pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Rick Perry is a disaster; Texas A+M is a very strange school; Texas culture is an international embarrassment; Texas' 'justice system' is poorly regarded; Texan attitudes are confrontational; Dallas Texas is where our great President Kennedy was assassinated;Texas School Books condemn children to ignorance of science and their history; Perry attacks evolution in the morning, separation of church and state for lunch and social security for dinner. The whole Republican Party is nuts. I find their Primary Elections painful to endure. Let's change the subject and stop clowning around. Time to send the Republicans into permanent minority status. Get it?

- LawrenceGulotta

August 24, 2011 at 3:30pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

The Perry Primary Blitz is a good example of the extent to which the South now owns the Republican Party.

- Pnaut

August 24, 2011 at 4:46pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Pnaut, actually the Republican Party owns the South. They are leading white southerners, who still resent losing the Civil War to them gov'mint varmints from up north, around on dog leashes. The Politics of Resentment, the strong suit of the Republican Party, flourish south of the Mason-Dixon line. And the people who vote for Repulicans there are all too happy to endure, even enjoy, the choke chain, if it allows them to get even with somebody. Unfortunately for these poor souls, Republicans never change anything for the better. For instance, Governor Perry pushed for an annual allotment of almost $48 million in federal funds to pay for the health care of illegal immigrants--just to get Latino votes in Texas. Some revenge, southern voters!

- magboy47.

August 24, 2011 at 5:33pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

08/24/2011 - 1:24pm EDT | bunthorne attributes a quote to me that I have never seen. and, to the best of my knowledge, Clint Eastwood never played the President in a film or tv. My favorite is Martin Sheen as Jed Bartlet, the fictional Nobel-prize winning economist who actually understood how the economy works. as to growing up poor? I think that is why Bill Clinton connects with people so well. Obama grew up middle-class, especially during his childhood years in Indonesia. Private schools all the way. Just think Obama is better with a big crowd than one on one, based on various C-Span coverage during 2008 and since. You guys really are freaked by Rick Perry. well, enjoy the show. I got to get me a gun to cling to after I tattoo the American flag on my forehead :) p.s. blackton: I did not chop any quote - at 11:57 am, I copied directly from an article by a Baltimore Sun journalist named David Zurawik. p.s. Sophia: because I respect your commentary so much, my apologies if I make you nervous. It was pure agony for me to finally NOT vote D for president in 2008. I am no fan of today's GOP and believe both parties have screwed the economy since 1978. That is why I really do not want to live. Enough. My heart is broken at what America has become. I just come to TNR to kill some time.

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 7:15pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Yeah I agree to some extent magboy, but a lot of those white southerners used to be Democrats. Like Rick Perry! I think the GOP in the late 60's saw an opportunity to pick up the South after the Civil Rights Act (among other changes) and now the party is increasingly at the whim of the region. Keep hope K2K, things have been worse and our problems are mostly of our own doing and can be fixed. We've still got two oceans, lots of space, and good people (I include Southerners and Republicans in there as well).

- Pnaut

August 24, 2011 at 7:38pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K I prefer lawyers because they are more sensitive to individual rights. A lawyer would not have relied on John Yoo's torture memo.

- Nusholtz

August 24, 2011 at 8:34pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Is it possible to image Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy organizing a 30,000 person “Catholics only” prayer service as a campaign launch? One of the famous quotes from Kennedy’s address to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, during the 1960 national election, was, “I am not the Catholic candidate for President. I am the Democratic Party’s candidate for President who also happens to be a Catholic. I do not speak for my Church on public matters — and the Church does not speak for me.”

- LawrenceGulotta

August 24, 2011 at 8:41pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

thanks pnaut, for your compassion, but I really need help now, and lawyers are as bad as doctors in doing more harm to me, especially in the past two weeks. so, I give up wanting to live rather than this slow painful ... and really tired of partisan bash-hackering, especially the elitist intolerance of alleged liberals... From those radical Founding Fathers: Thomas Paine: “As to the assumed authority of any assembly in making paper money, or paper of any kind, a legal tender, or in other language, a compulsive payment, it is a most presumptuous attempt at arbitrary power. There can be no such power in a republican government: the people have no freedom — and property no security — where this practice can be acted: and the committee who shall bring in a report for this purpose, or the member who moves for it, and he who seconds it merits impeachment, and sooner or later may expect it.” “… and the punishment of a member who should move for such a law ought to be death.” George Washington: “We are fast verging to anarchy & confusion! … They are determined to annihilate all debts public & private, and have Agrarian Laws, which are easily effected by the means of unfunded paper money which shall be a tender in all cases whatever.” Thomas Jefferson: “Paper money is liable to be abused, has been, is, and forever will be abused, in every country in which it is permitted.”

- K2K

August 24, 2011 at 8:56pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K: Yes, we should all be guided by what the Founding Fathers thought, without regard to whether what they said or did is actually applicable to modern society on their own merits. Jeez. I have little tolerance for the "if the Framers said it, it must be right" argument. Yes, they were some very smart people and had some good ideas. They also owned slaves, you know. Hamilton argued for a chief executive with lifetime tenure. I believe that while Lincoln felt very strongly that slavery was wrong, he also didn't think the races were equal. Should these ideas be given more weight because of who said them? I find it hard to believe that most people think we'd be better off under a Perry administration than a second term under Obama. What policies that Perry advocates would constitute an improvement? More tax cuts for the wealthy? More undermining of our already ragged social safety net? More people without health insurance? Perry's assertion that Texas schools teach creationism alongside Darwinism is not only abhorrent from a policy point of view--creationism is not science and so does not belong in a science classroom--and factually false (Texas schools don't teach creationism alongside evolution) but also shows ignorance of the Constitution, since courts have repeatedly ruled that doing so would be unconstitutional. You'd think a governor would know these things, but not knowing them (or pretending not to know them) is probably a plus with the Republican primary electorate.

- dsimon

August 24, 2011 at 9:28pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K Founding Fathers? 35 out of the 55 people who framed the U.S. constitution were lawyers. John Adams, who wrote the unreasonable seizures portion of the 4th amendment was an attorney. He successfully represented John Hancock in the admiralty court, when the British tried to throw Hancock in jail.

- Nusholtz

August 24, 2011 at 9:36pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

thank you Lawrence, good posts!

- Idefix

August 24, 2011 at 9:58pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

"p.s. blackton: I did not chop any quote - at 11:57 am, I copied directly from an article by a Baltimore Sun journalist named David Zurawik." OK, Zurawik chopped the quote, K2K. But Zurawik's article is designed to dance neatly around the actual full text of Perry's remarks in order to suggest that people are being unreasonable in their response. I'm personally not freaked by Perry, but I do wonder why military service is only valid if you're a Republican.

- ironyroad

August 25, 2011 at 12:25am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

irony: I think everyone values military service. Kerry's loss was inexplicable to me, except for when I heard him speak - he does tend to convolute at length. Vietnam was a true national trauma, and I was surprised at how some vets still held it aganist Kerry that he told his view of what was a horrible mistake of a war. Interesting that HBO's :Generation Kill" about 1st Marine Recon into Iraq certainly was no paean to unquestioned reverence for the military, even though one had to respect most of the Marines for being committed in spite of mostly stupid orders. You keep fixating on Daschle when he was in a Senate contest, not for CinC. It is different when the contest is for the Presidency. Perry was introducing himself to get his bio out there, and I do not think he said anything directly disparaging about anyone, e.g., Mitt Romney and his five sons never served one minute in any military. I think of Perry's Air Force tenure a bit differently - he was based in Germany and Saudi Arabia in the 1970's and he notes how that helped him learn about other ways of life during the Cold war and the rise of terror, especially in Germany. Perry was smart enough to fly C-130's, something I do not think is that easy to do. I had a 10th grade special needs student in 2004 who wanted to fly fighter jets because he thought it was just like a computer game, no pilot skill/judgment or map reading skills required. THAT was scary! (I was trying to generate enthusiasm for studying maps when studying global history and the student went into a rant about how useless maps are because computers do everything) Zurawik was trying to give some examples of bad journalism. His article is highlighted today at RCP. Like Zurawik and almost everyone else, including Shapiro in this blogpost, I think Perry used the wrong words, should never accuse the Fed of political influences, while actually making some of us think a bit more about the controversial idea of the Fed trying to stimulate a bit more inflation. BUT, I also realized he was trying to get the attention of Ron Paul voters in Iowa, and Perry also stole the media focus away from Bachmann. Trying to please all factions inside the GOP is actually harder than trying to please all the factions inside the Democratic Party. Perry knows he needs some Ron Paulites, who are near fanatics. No candidate is perfect since George Washington, and that is why the Constitution created the Electoral College - do not trust the populist rabble :) How we evolved into this crazy system of duopoly primaries that make Iowa so important, that then makes a handful of swing states the only battleground, is a good topic for someone else's book. Watching and listening toPerry's announcement speech was the first time I have felt a small stir of confidence in my head and heart at the same time from a politician, EVER. Must be our Scout kinship. That glimmer is now gone because I think the presidency is an impossible job, and the extremes of both parties in Congress are just a lot of screaming past each other while trying to protect THEIR jobs.

- K2K

August 25, 2011 at 9:32am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

nusholtz: I have never paid a lawyer who ever did anything for me, except for one house closing. only doctors have done more damage, but for three years, I have needed a lawyer and, in NYS, I am now ready to die rather than ever talk with a lawyer about anything. Too many lawyers in Congress, and, as I recall, except for Lincoln, our greatest presidents were NOT lawyers.

- K2K

August 25, 2011 at 9:37am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K: "except for Lincoln, our greatest presidents were NOT lawyers." Well, who one defines as "greatest" is highly subjective and would constitute a very small group, hardly a sound basis for drawing statistical conclusions. But FDR was a lawyer. So was Jefferson. "Too many lawyers in Congress." Many of our best representatives in Congress were, and are, lawyers. Sure, there are some duds as well. Maybe it's because efficacy in these offices may not have much to do with being or not being a lawyer, or any other prior profession? Maybe there are good representatives and bad representatives, good presidents and bad presidents, good lawyers and bad lawyers--and they have nothing to do with each other? I'm still waiting for an explanation of what Perry policies would constitute an improvement.

- dsimon

August 25, 2011 at 10:30am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K, I appreciate the extended response and I agree with a lot of what you say -- or, at least, I agree with the spirit in which I think you're arguing. I still have to say, however, that I haven't noticed Perry's apparent education in other nations and cultures flowing into his political career including the governorship of Texas, which is not a leader among states for promoting a civilized and mutually respectful conversation between the U.S. and foreign countries. [Don't get me started on Arizona!] Perhaps he is an intelligent guy, but he's pandering to a very unintelligent electoral base in a world where we can't actually afford too much stupidity. We don't have the buffer zones that we once had. The problem of intelligence has been around certainly since the 1900s and the famous hostility to academic expert advice for political leaders (the Brains Trust). Then, it was more Democrats who were the "I think with my gut" folks. Times and parties change, but the particular resentment at ex-military becoming Democrats is, I believe, part of a whole mindset that assumes the military is about conservative "gut" values when in fact it's about initiative and flexibility, which are basically liberal skills. Painting it in broad colors here, but you know what I mean.

- ironyroad

August 25, 2011 at 3:24pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

irony: Texas has 25 million people, a GDP comparable to Russia, and is the #1 exporting state in $ value which includes oil and gas technology /services & high tech. Perry has been on trade missions to 23 countries in his ten years as governor. http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2011/08/rick-perry-and-the-great-immigrant-state/244084/?google_editors_picks=true is Erica Greider on Perry and Mexico, "What Rick Perry Can Teach the GOP About Immigration" hint: Texas is NOT Arizona. http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/08/22/shurat-hadin-flotilla/#more-764845 "Meet the Legal Wonks Who Brought Down the Flotilla" [very interesting read in it's entirety] "...Next, Shurat HaDin lawyers discovered American flotilla activists were potentially in violation of the Neutrality Act, which prohibits U.S. citizens from taking part in a hostile act against an allied country. “So we approached the Attorney General of the United States to fix it. And we also got Gov. Rick Perry to write a letter to Eric Holder,” said Darshan-Leitner. It may seem a little weird that the governor of Texas would be one of the first people Darshan-Leitner approached to help with the plan. But she explained that Perry was enthusiastically on-board with the cause ever since he met her on a trip to Israel. “I once spoke at a mission that Perry took part in, in Israel,” she said. “And he approached me and said, ‘I love what you do. It’s amazing what you do. If you ever need help combating Israel’s enemies, I’m here to assist.’” ..." [K2K adds that Texas banks did not succumb to the sub-prime bubble/bust because they learned their lessons from the 1980's S&L debacle. Some regulations stuck at the State level. I admit to noting Perry's recent legislative victory to combat human trafficking of women and children. It is actually interesting to read the attacks on Perry from the left (stupid hick) and right (too liberal). ah, what a minefield to win a duopoly nomination. fractiousness-ole-ole-ole]

- K2K

August 25, 2011 at 6:35pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Interesting, but I don't quite see what it has to do with my particular response. Perry's trade missions were I'm sure fun, but . . .

- ironyroad

August 25, 2011 at 7:58pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

@LawrenceGulotta Fine analysis of religious beliefs of Americans. May I ask you why President Obama's "church" was not included in that analysis?

- SayNo2TAM

August 26, 2011 at 12:01am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

@K2K "K2K adds that Texas banks did not succumb to the sub-prime bubble/bust because they learned their lessons from the 1980's S&L debacle. " Excellent point. That debacle was caused by the government not allowing banks to price many loans competitively. In Texas, unlike in other states, they apparently learned how to resist the CRA and the pressure from the Fed to comply with it. That's what's behind Perry's Bernanke remark.

- SayNo2TAM

August 26, 2011 at 1:19am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

irony: The Economist's Erica Greider on deciphering Perry on foreign policy: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/08/24/the_cowboy_abroad?page=full "...Perry's record on foreign affairs, such as it is, suggests that business interests take precedence over more abstract concerns. ..." SayNo: I still think Perry's poorly worded criticism of the Fed was 1) to get the attention of Ron Paul voters (Perry was in Iowa the day after Paul almost tied Bachmann in the Ames Straw poll), and 2) clumsy stab at the valid question as to whether trying to induce more inflation and a weaker dollar through a QE3 is a good idea. Personally, I think Perry was trying to get Ron Paul voters to take a closer look in Perry's introduction week. While a weaker dollar may be good for U.S. exports, it has also been part of why gasoline prices have jumped so much. I do not know anything about the Texas housing market except I was aware that it did not experience the bubble like Las Vegas. It is entirely possible that Countrywide was not active in Texas, and that local S&L have a disproportionate share of Texas mortgages.

- K2K

August 26, 2011 at 10:16am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

"it's about initiative and flexibility, which are basically liberal skills" Perhaps "liberal" in the way Jane Austen applied it. I don't see such liberality of ideas and arguments being applied in this magazine either by the authors or the participants as would meet that high standard. You, ironyroad, might be the only exception when you actually exercise that liberal muscle in your intellect. And I'm not sure I understand: Are you drawing a correspondence between intelligence and academic expert advice?

- noga1

August 28, 2011 at 9:59am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

SHARE HIGHLIGHT

0 CHARACTERS SELECTED

TWEET THIS

POST TO TUMBLR

SHARE ON FACEBOOK

Close