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Texas Gov. Rick Perry originally endorsed Newt Gingrich as the top candidate after dropping out of the Republican presidential race. But with Gingrich set to quit the campaign trail, Perry on Wednesday evening gave his support to the probable nominee, Mitt Romney. "Mitt Romney has earned the Republican presidential nomination through hard work, a strong organization, and [a] disciplined message of restoring America after nearly four years of failed job-killing policies from President [Barack] Obama and his administration," Perry said in a statement provided to FOX News Channel. "So today I join the many conservative Republicans across the nation in...

[Snip] ...He whined that the debate audience wouldn’t be able to cheer him. He then grumped that audience was stacked against him when it didn’t cheer him. He spends endless hours complaining about Mitt Romney’s ads and debate triumph — lies, lies, all lies, he tells us. His spokesperson R.C. Hammond, like his boss, labels opponents “liars.” Gingrich complains that he failed in his debate because his principal opponent — you guessed it — was telling untruths. (Not a very good debater then, is he?) He says that he’ll trail President Obama demanding his Lincoln-Douglas-style debate, but his campaign flunky...

He should have delayed a month, or a month and a half. Was it the decision to schedule back surgery on July 1, putting Perry’s physical recovery on a collision course with a grueling schedule of fundraisers and campaign events? Was it the failure to prepare better for debates that soon turned disastrous? Was it simply a matter of getting in the race too late? Perry’s own string of verbal goofs, probably some of the worst in modern American political history, were so crippling that it is questionable whether any paid professionals could have pulled him out of the ditch....

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Rick Perry’s withdrawal and perfectly timed endorsement of Newt Gingrich on Thursday probably will help the former House speaker pick up a percentage point or two in South Carolina’s Republican primary on Saturday, political analysts predict. The Perry endorsement, coupled with the news that the final count in Iowa showed Mitt Romney actually lost the Jan. 3 caucuses to Rick Santorum, brightened what could have been a much tougher day on the campaign trail for Mr. Gingrich, who is again facing questions about his personal history of marital infidelity. But the Texas governor’s carefully chosen words of...

Everyone of the candidates except Mitt Romney is getting the Drudge Report Treatment.

I’m told reliably that Governor Perry will head up a 10th Amendment project for Speaker Gingrich to rally Governors and state legislators toward a plan of devolving power from Washington. This project will include helping shape the Republican platform for the general election. Governor Perry will also campaign for Speaker Gingrich in Texas.

Waiting on Perry to take podium any moment! He will endorse Newt!

Perry to End Bid for Presidency By JEFF ZELENY 9:51 a.m. | Updated CHARLESTON, S.C. — Gov. Rick Perry of Texas will end his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday and endorse Newt Gingrich, two campaign officials confirmed, a decision that could influence the South Carolina primary on Saturday

Rick Perry is, by most accounts, a good governor of Texas. He was elected first in 2002 and has been re-elected twice, since. That is no small feat and is a good indication that he is a capable administrator of a complex state with a population about three-quarters that of Canada’s. But as a Republican candidate for president, the man has been a doofus.

You hear that sound? Of course you do. It’s a dog whistle. I’m told that we conservatives (read: racists) use dog whistles all the time to clandestinely run down members of minority groups and others with whom we disagree. It is fascinating, I will concede, that the people we use these coded messages to badmouth—blacks, Latinos, etc.—often seem more adept at hearing the high-frequency whistles than we do. Why, just today, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee became the latest member of the Congressional Black Caucus to call out Newt Gingrich for the “underlying suggestions” in his reference to Barack Obama as...

.............."People are very frightened, not just about current conditions, but the future of this country for their children, grandchildren and the $15 trillion worth of debt. I ask people if you were better off today than you were $4 trillion ago … and people get it." Snip VIDEO -- discusses Tax System. “We can’t fire the nominee in September, because by then it will be too late,” he said, adding, “If we’ve got a flawed candidate that’s going forward and someone who is gonna get eaten alive, either because of business practices or because of their taxes or the system...

..."It doesn't surprise me but it's again -- the president's focused more on the next election than on the next generation. "Getting this country independent of foreign sources of crude from countries that are not our friends is really problematic. So this Canadian oil, there's a possibility we could lose it to China with that decision so I hope Americans will really become unhinged with that decision because it is a really bad decision for our country, for energy independence and sends a horrible message at a time that were headed to $4 and $5 oil or excuse me $4...

[snip] "Here’s the quotation that’s getting the most attention: “Rick Santorum is a good man. He is a good father. He is a good Catholic. But he hasn’t always been a good conservative. And I make exceptions with his vote for Sonya Sotomayor as a for instance. That is a really liberal jurist that he helped put on track to become a Supreme Court jurist back when he voted to allow her to be on the Appellate Court. I mean, she is pro-abortion, would be my estimation of that. I mean, Obama is a very liberal president and she is...

A federal appeals court in Virginia today denied an emergency request by Republican presidential hopefuls Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich to be placed on the ballot for the Virginia primary. After failing to get the required 10,000 signatures necessary to be placed on the ballot, the two candidates argued that Virginia’s strict ballot law was unconstitutional. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit agreed with a lower court and ruled today that the candidates had waited too long to file their suit. The court ruled unanimously that Perry and the other candidates “had every...

From Public Policy Polling, this is really bad news for Rick Perry -- although at this point it cannot be unexpected: Rick Perry's Presidential campaign is doing about as bad in Texas now as it is everywhere else in the country. When PPP last polled the state in September he was at 49%, leading Mitt Romney by 39 points. Now Perry's support has declined by 31 points, leaving him in 3rd place at 18%. Mitt Romney at 24% and Newt Gingrich at 23% lead the way with Rick Santorum at 15%, Ron Paul at 12%, and Buddy Roemer at 0%...

For Turkey, busy riding an economic boom and preoccupied with soccer scandals and revolutionary shifts across its borders, the race for the U.S. Republican nomination hasn’t exactly been a box office draw. Until Tuesday, that is … Late Monday, Texas governor and presidential hopeful Rick Perry said that Turkey was governed by “what many perceive to be Islamic terrorists,” and should be booted out of NATO. The governor’s remarks, made during the Fox News Channel and Wall Street Journal GOP debate in South Carolina, came in response to a question from the moderator over whether Turkey still belonged in...

Austin to get $11.7M in sales tax revenue Austin will collect $11.7 million in sales tax revenue from the state this month for sales that took place in November, up 6.2 percent from the same period last year, according to data released by Texas Comptroller Susan Combs. State sales tax revenue was $1.98 billion, up 9.5 percent compared to November 2010 sales. “Sales tax revenue continues to grow in almost all major economic categories and revenue has now increased for 21 consecutive months,” Combs said. Sales taxes from retail trade and restaurant activity continue to improve and tax revenue from...

....[Gov. Rick] Perry's comments put him at odds with Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, who said the images could damage the war effort. "The Marine Corps prides itself that we don't lower ourselves to the level of the enemy," McCain said when asked about Perry's position. "So it makes me sad more than anything else, because ... I can't tell you how wonderful these people (Marines) are. And it hurts their reputation and their image." No one has been charged in the case, but officials in the U.S. and abroad have called for...

An exclusive InsiderAdvantage poll released Sunday night shows GOP frontrunner Mitt Romney gaining in his lead in the South Carolina primary while former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is holding steady in second place. In the poll of 720 likely registered voters in South Carolina GOP Primary, Romney was leading with 32 percent of the vote. Gingrich was second with 21 percent followed by Ron Paul with 14 percent. The rundown: * Romney: 32% * Gingrich: 21% * Paul: 14% * Santorum: 13% * Huntsman: 6% * Perry: 5% * Other: 2% * Undecided/ No opinion: 7% “The poll is among...

AUSTIN - Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Sunday that he is undaunted by his failure to win the backing of leading social conservatives and expressed confidence that he can still rally conservative voters in Saturday's South Carolina primary with his message of job creation and economic recovery. ....Perry was unapologetic about describing front-runner Mitt Romney's business activities as "vulture" capitalism, despite criticism from a number of leading Republicans, who warned that Democrats could exploit Perry's use of the term if Romney becomes the nominee. Perry said the issue of job creation and Romney's record at Bain Capital is certain to...

Rick Perry says he's going on to campaign in Florida's Jan. 31 Republican presidential primary - no matter how he fares in South Carolina.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s lawyers filed a motion with a federal appeals court Sunday, seeking to win him a place on the Republican presidential primary ballot in Virginia even though his campaign failed to gather the 10,000 signatures required by state law. On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge John Gibney ruled that Perry, Newt Gingrich and other candidates who failed to make the cut waited too long to pursue their legal challenges, which were brought as ballot printing was getting underway and the mailing of absentee ballots was about to commence. However, Gibney said Perry and the other candidates would...

(CNN) – Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Sunday that Marines videotaped urinating on dead Taliban fighters in Afghanistan made a "dumb" mistake, but should not face criminal prosecution. In an interview Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union," the Republican presidential candidate said the Obama administration over-reacted to the incident by talking about possible criminal charges and speaking with what he called "disdain" about the U.S. military. According to Perry, famous military figures including U.S. Gen. George Patton acted similarly in a war environment. "When you're 18 or 19, you do dumb things. These kids made a mistake, there's not...

Republican presidential candidate Gov. Rick Perry of Texas continued to fight for votes Saturday, squeezing in a quick morning talk in Mount Pleasant before a Fox News forum. Perry, who is polling in fifth place, stopped by Page’s Okra Grill on Coleman Boulevard, emphasizing that he’s the only candidate in the race who doesn’t have a Wall Street or Washington, D.C., mentality. If elected, Perry said, he would support a 20 percent flat tax for all — corporations and individuals. “Corporate lobbyists will hate that, but tough,” said Perry. “I’m tired of Main Street paying for all of these corporate...

When Allie Jennings and her husband, Ethan, graduated form college in 2003, they had no trouble finding jobs. “I just think raising a son, and then being married to someone who would like to climb the ladder in business, I think Gov. Perry represents a lot of opportunity for our family,” Allie Jennings said. Perry announced his candidacy during a rally in Charleston over the summer, and the Jennings were there to see him as Perry emphasized his record on job creation while governor of Texas. In January 2001, a month after Perry took office, there were 10,023,806 jobs in...

**CLICK Picture** [12:57]Republican presidential candidate Texas Governor Rick Perry (2nd L) arrives for the Huckabee Forum 2, a televised event, in Charleston, South Carolina, January 14, 2012. MRC: Best showing yet for Gov Rick Perry in the Huckabee Formun GOP debate.

South Carolina GOP leader Patrick Haddon, who formerly supported Texas Gov. Rick Perry in the 2012 presidential primary, yesterday announced his endorsement of Rick Santorum. "After looking at all the candidates and their political careers, and looking for a true conservative that has been fighting for real Republican causes, there is only one candidate that has been a consistent conservative fighting [for] family values and supporting pro-life issues," said Haddon, former chairman of the Greenville County GOP. "That is why Shelly and I are proud to endorse Senator Rick Santorum for President of the United States." Haddon's endorsement of Santorum...

Following a hearing in Richmond today, U.S. district judge John Gibney ruled against Rick Perry's challenge to the Virginia ballot rules. In his opinion, Gibney says Perry, and the other candidates who joined the challenge, waited too long to bring the suit. "They knew the rules in Virginia many months ago; the limitations on circulators affected them as soon as they began to circulate petitions," he writes. "They plaintiffs could have challenged the Virginia law at that time. Instead, they waited until after the time to gather petitions had ended and they had lost the political battle to be on...

Rick Perry is still struggling to remember which three Cabinet-level government agencies he would like to eliminate if elected president. Perry was asked about his proposal during a radio interview with Savannah, Ga., radio host Bill Edwards, according to ABC News.“Three right off the bat, you know, Commerce, Interior and Energy, are three that you think,” Perry said. But Perry had previously suggested that he would eliminate the Department of Education, not the Department of the Interior.  Edwards went on to ask Perry about the Department of Education later in the interview. “They are blackmailing states with our own money,...

Texas Gov. Rick Perry's part-time Congress proposal has become the blueprint for a bill Rep. Timothy Johnson, an Illinois Republican, will introduce next week. The Citizen Legislators Act would limit the days Congress works to five per month, or 60 business days per session. It also would cut the salaries of representatives and senators in half. But like Perry's plan, Johnson's bill allows members to have jobs outside of Congress. The caveat is that their income cannot be earned as "a result of the privilege of their office, such as speaking tours, lobbying and consulting." Like Perry, Johnson says he...

....[Gov. Rick] Perry, a states’ rights advocate, along with former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, are challenging Virginia’s residency requirement for people who circulate ballot petitions. Candidates must collect 10,000 signatures -- at least 400 hundred of them from each of the 11 congressional districts. As of the deadline, only Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas qualified. Timing is critical. Officials at the State Board of Elections say they need to mail absentee ballots by Jan. 21 to get them out 45 days before...

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCIV) -- The 17-year-old stood in front of a dark window on a crowded downtown streetscape, hands sweating and a look of nervousness on his face. He won't be old enough to vote in the upcoming primary, but he said he will be praying for Perry. That's exactly how the bright orange sign read that Joe Mitchell held high as the Texas governor approached on Thursday. "I won't be old enough to vote, but I will pray!! Perry 2012." Mitchell, a senior at Summerville High School cut class to meet the man vying to become the next president,...

WASHINGTON--GOP White House hopefuls Rick Perry and Ron Paul did not file correctly for the March 20 Illinois presidential primary "beauty contest," leaving them open to a challenge that could knock them off the ballot. Illinois law requires candidates to file using their home addresses. Paul, a Texas congressman used an address in Virgnia and Perry, the Texas governor used a post office box in Austin, Texas for an address. Newt Gingrich, Paul, Perry, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Buddy Roemer all filed the required 3,000 signatures. Jon Huntsman skipped Illlinois.

Looks like there’s a little war brewing between Rick Perry and former presidential candidate Herman Cain, who recently criticized the Texas governor’s depth and knowledge of political issues. “I hope Herman doesn’t think running a Godfather’s Pizza is the same as running the state of Texas,” Perry said on Laura Ingraham’s Radio Show after the host played a clip of Cain’s comments and the Texas governor touted his job creation record in the state. During an interview on the Fox Business Network Wednesday, Cain called Perry a “foregone superstar” who “wasn’t deep on any of the issues.” “He started out...

It is commonly argued that Mitt Romney has benefited from a weak Republican field, which is true. And that the attacks of his opponents have been late and diffuse. True, and true. But the political accomplishment of Willard Mitt Romney should not be underestimated. The moderate, technocratic former governor of a liberal state is poised to secure the nomination of the most monolithically conservative Republican Party of modern history. Some of this improbable achievement can be attributed to Romney's skills as a candidate. In 14 debates, he delivered one gaffe (the $10,000 bet) and once lost his temper (with Rick...

In politics, as in life, there can be an overwhelming temptation to go along to get along; to be a team player; to do the easy thing even when it’s not the right thing. For far too long, insiders from both parties have played these games. Talk up fiscal responsibility, but spend big. Talk about a federal government that fulfills its basic responsibilities, but then vote to expand it beyond all recognition so that it cannot possibly do so. Talk about doing what’s right, but then do what the establishment wants instead. Americans deserve better—and they deserve to get to...

Obama picks immigration reform advocate to lead domestic policy By Amie Parnes and Erik Wasson - 01/10/12 01:27 PM ET President Obama has picked a strong advocate of immigration reform to head the Domestic Policy Council. The White House announced Tuesday that Cecilia Muñoz, a former senior vice president of the National Council of La Raza, would replace Melody Barnes at the top of the council. White House press secretary Jay Carney announced the appointment during his press briefing. Muñoz is now serving as the White House's director of intergovernmental affairs and is in charge of outreach to state and...

"Michele Bachmann is Glenn Close From Fatal Attraction" Franky Boy was caught on camera. “Rick Perry is George Bush without the intellect.” And then, once he was caught and realized there were cameras, he gives a great little remark to the guy that was recording it: “Take your suit and go. This is a private conversation!” Something tells me these two opinions–as well as the ego– are quite common at Faux News.

....Perry started slashing away at Romney’s record as chief executive at Bain Capital on Monday, but was more caustic Tuesday in condemning the firm’s practice of making money in corporate takeover deals that sometimes triggered job losses. "They’re vultures that are sitting out there on the tree limb, waiting for the company to get sick, and then they sweep in, they eat the carcass, they leave with that, and they leave the skeleton,” Perry told about 100 seniors here at the Sun City retirement complex. ......Perry went on to castigate the Obama administration for allegedly failing to stop “self-dealing” on...

No Virginia ballots should be ordered or mailed to absentee voters until a federal judge decides which Republican presidential candidates will be on the state's primary ballot. That temporary order was made Monday by District Judge John A. Gibney Jr., who will make a final decision Friday, Jan. 13, said Joseph Nixon, the lead counsel for Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Perry filed a lawsuit last month against Virginia's State Board of Elections after he didn't get enough signatures to get on the March 6 primary ballot. Only two Republican candidates did: former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Texas Rep. Ron...

There's no conflict between the three legs of Conservatism, in spite of the confusion surrounding contraception and homosexual “rights” we witnessed during the New Hampshire debates. Social issues such as the right to life and traditional marriage are equally compatible with small government and States' rights as National security and fiscal responsibility, just as the Declaration of Independence is compatible with the10th Amendment to the US Constitution. Conservatives agree that the best government governs least, but we don't forget that there is a proper role for even the Federal government. After all, the Constitution is based on the existence of...

A federal judge is preventing Virginia from printing ballots until he issues a ruling on Texas Gov. Rick Perry's ballot challenge. U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney Jr. has ordered the Virginia State Board of Elections to send directives to each of the state's local boards, telling them not to print any absentee ballots until after the emergency motion is heard on Friday. Virginia's primary is on March 6th. In order to get absentee ballots mailed overseas in time, Virginia needed to start printing ballots this weekend, and mailing them out by Jan 21.

This election—including the Republican primary contest— is about a fundamental question in American politics: We have an opportunity to decisively turn away from big government in Washington. Do we want to take it? Conservatives across the country are fed up with President Obama’s Washington approach to governance. Massive, budget-busting, deficit spending (except on defense, where he proposes cuts that are downright dangerous). Bailouts. An ever-mounting national debt. A federal government that has reached its tentacles further into Americans’ lives, by virtue of Obamacare with its noxious individual mandate to purchase health insurance. Excessive, bureaucratically dictated, job-killing environmental regulation. Dodd-Frank. The...

...Mr. Perry mocked Mr. Romney’s recent statement that there were times he had worried about losing his job, pointing out that Mr. Romney had grown up wealthy and privileged. “I mean, he actually said this,” Mr. Perry told more than 100 diners at a breakfast gathering here. “Now, I have no doubt Mitt Romney was worried about pink slips — whether he was going to have enough of them to hand out because his company, Bain Capital, of all the jobs that they killed,” Mr. Perry said. “I’m sure he was worried that he would run out of pink slips.”...

Is Rick Perry the Tea Party’s last hope in the 2012 election? As he prepares for his Alamo-moment in South Carolina, the longest serving governor in Texas history makes the case for limited government. Video It’s a deliberate play for South Carolina’s once powerful Tea Party to come to his aid. During the 9AM MSNBC debate today with David Gregory, Rick Perry promised the Tea Party across the country that he would have their back against big spending Republicans. But will they have his? Today, Amy Kremer of the Tea Party Express promised on Breitbart.tv that the organization will endorse...

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Republican presidential candidates Rick Perry and Rick Santorum campaigned in the Upstate on Sunday. Santorum made two stops in Greenville at Chiefs Wings and Firewater on Congaree Road and at Stax Restaurant on Woodruff Road. Perry campaigned at the Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg. Both candidates have made it clear that their focus is on winning South Carolina while Mitt Romney leads most polls leading into the New Hampshire primary. "I challenge you to go work in South Carolina in the next two weeks like you've never worked before," Perry urged supporters. "We've moved down here and we're...

AUSTIN — Gov. Rick Perry’s decision to soldier on through South Carolina has been mocked, criticized and questioned, but he’s carrying the hopes of Texans like Reagan and Miranda Ashley with him. The Harlingen teenagers volunteered for Perry in Iowa, covering their expenses by making pro-Perry posters, seeking sponsors and asking local businesses to display them. “A lot of businesses would hang them up. Some would tell us just to keep the poster, but a lot of them would donate money even if they weren’t Perry supporters, just because we were getting involved,” said Reagan, 17. Snip “It’s like having...

It’s the Republican debate “oops” moment that just won’t die. Texas Gov. Rick Perry got a few laughs during Sunday’s Meet the Press / Facebook debate, but this time he was in on the joke. Today, Perry named all three agencies that he thinks should be eliminated without any help from Ron Paul. Watch. Commerce Energy Education

Romney 30% Gingrich 23% Santorum 19% Paul 9% Perry 5% Huntsman 4%

The second Republican debate within 12 hours was held Sunday morning during an expanded version of Meet The Press. Having laid back last night and given Mitt Romney an opportunity to speak at greater length than he has during any previous debate, his five competitors came to muss Mitt’s rhetorical hair at this one. Newt Gingrich implored Romney to “drop the pious baloney” about his history as a conservative and his motives for running for President. Gingrich tried to blast Romney by loosening a shotgun blast: “The fact is, you had a very bad re-election rating, you dropped out of...