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... “We have a president who is a socialist,” Perry said in response to a question at the early-morning eye-opener GOP debate in Concord, N.H. “I reject the premise that Obama reflects our founding fathers,” Perry said. “He doesn’t.”..

Rick Perry established a new gold standard for hawkish foreign policy at Saturday night’s GOP debate in New Hampshire. Not only is he mad President Obama withdrew US forces, he wants to put them back on the ground there immediately. “I would send troops back into Iraq,” Rick Perry told a New Hampshire audience at Saturday night’s GOP debate, warning that without yet another military operation in Iraq it would fall under the influence of neighboring Iran. “I think it’s a huge error for us,” he said. “We’re going to see Iran in my opinion, move back in at literally...

After his embarrassing result in Iowa, Rick Perry seemed to get the message the polls have been sending him for months: Republican voters just aren’t that into him. On caucus night, said he’d go back to Texas and figure out what comes next. But within hours, Perry was sprinting into South Carolina, to make at least one more stand. Given that the TPM Poll Average shows Perry pulling just 4.8% support in the state, a clear question arises: What on earth is he thinking? The answer is, team Perry really thinks they can make it happen in South Carolina. The...

Ready, aim fire. That’s apparently Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s idea of relaxation before returning to the campaign trail this weekend. Ahead of Saturday night’s ABC News-Yahoo-WMUR debate in New Hampshire Perry took a few moments to himself at an Austin-area shooting range. “Just relaxing a bit @ Red’s Range before we leave for New Hampshire!” @governorperry tweeted Friday along with a photo of himself wearing a green sweatshirt and a baseball cap with a firearm in hand. On the campaign trail, Perry, a staunch defender of second amendment rights, has not been shy about talking about his “long love affair”...

Three days after cancelling appearances in South Carolina and returning to Texas to “reassess” his presidential campaign, Texas Gov. Rick Perry released a statement Friday saying he will compete nationwide. "As my campaign for president moves forward, our superior organization and resources allow me to compete nationwide, where I’m confident our unmatched jobs record, conservative fiscal and social policies, and status as the only Washington outsider can win over Republican voters," Perry said in a news release announcing he had filed paperwork to be listed on primary election ballots in Arizona, Illinois, Ohio, Vermont and Washington, D.C.

Mitt Romney's numbers in South Carolina are surging, and he now has a solid lead over his rivals for the Republican presidential nomination, according to a new survey of likely GOP primary voters in the Palmetto state. ......................................................... According to the poll, 37% of likely GOP primary voters in South Carolina say they are currently backing Romney ..................................................... Santorum and Gingrich are battling for second place, with Santorum at 19% and Gingrich at 18%

The last we saw of South Carolina polling three weeks ago, Newt Gingrich had a large lead over Mitt Romney, the only two candidates in double digits, and Rick Santorum tied Jon Huntsman for last place. My, how things have changed over the Christmas holidays. After their dead-heat finish in Iowa, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum now lead the latest Rasmussen poll 27/24, respectively, and Gingrich has dropped to 18%: What a difference a caucus makes. Rick Santorum who two months ago had one percent (1%) support among likely South Carolina Republican Primary voters now is running a close second...

Earlier this week, the Chicago Tribune ran a little noted editorial on the insider trading scandal plaguing Congress, calling out phony efforts to reform the rules and demanding that we finally put a stop to this outrageous and unethical behavior. If you haven’t read the editorial yet, I recommend you do because while the professional political punditry class is more interested in superfluous items like the political horse race and candidate attire, the reality is that members of both parties in Washington, D.C., are abusing their positions and ordinary Americans have had enough. As the editorial notes, “’60 Minutes’ reported...

National conservative leaders are wondering who, if anyone, can stop Mitt Romney from walking off with the Republican nomination after his narrow win in Iowa and his expected comfortable victory in New Hampshire next week. The name that keeps surfacing is Rick Perry, which says a lot about the desperation that the anti-Romney forces are feeling now. [snip] Perry insiders say that the plausible course forward for the candidate is to make this a one-on-one race with Mr. Romney so that the conservative vote doesn't split in two, three or four ways. South Carolina has a history of deciding the...

.....It's too bad that his confrontation with Politico reporter Mike Allen didn't come earlier in the campaign, because "You got a name?" makes a great sound bite on how to treat the left-wing media ambushes. It would also be the way he would probably confront world leaders who are not operating in our best interests -- firm but unwavering. One thing is for certain: a president Perry would not be bowing to any Saudi potentate or any other world leader. ......Frankly, I don't think pragmatism is what is called for at this time. Slash-and-burn is what is needed to reduce...

You’re not going to lose a lot of bets by inferring that a candidate who says he is “suspending” his campaign is in fact about to drop out. But Rick Perry’s reconsideration of his role in the Republican nomination race appears to have been genuine and he is pressing forward for the time being. Why did Mr. Perry decide to remain in the race? Knowing the answer is crucial to understanding whether Mr. Perry has any chance of mounting a comeback — and how his decision might reverberate upon Mitt Romney and the other Republican candidates. Let me posit two...

Last night, I wondered if four of the “Not Romneys” would “have the self-control to stop hitting the other Not Romneys and focus on Romney?” For much of this morning, it appeared there would be two fewer of them, with indications that Perry and Bachmann would depart the race. But now, perhaps not; Perry’s personal Twitter account just chirped, “And the next leg of the marathon is the Palmetto State…Here we come South Carolina!!!” It featured this photo:

Many point to the fact that different Republican candidates have captured our fancy over the past few months as a sign of weakness. In fact, it’s a sign of strength. Everyone is calling the field weak. Maybe it’s that there are a lot of facets to being President and actually we know that each and everyone of the candidates on the dais are better than the current occupant of the oval office. Republicans just want to let them macerate and pick the best one. The field may be stronger than the congnescenti think. I haven’t picked a horse to back,...

After a disappointing fifth-place finish in Tuesday's Iowa caucuses, Texas Governor Rick Perry said he is going home to Texas to assess "whether there is a path forward for myself in this race." "With the voters' decision tonight in Iowa, I've decided to return to Texas, assess the results of tonight's caucus, determine whether there is a path forward for myself in this race," Perry told supporters at the end of the night. The candidate, once considered a frontrunner in the race for the GOP nomination, earned just 10 percent on Tuesday's contest with more

DES MOINES, Iowa--He's mentioned during the presidential candidates' speeches. His image appears in their political ads. Is Tim Tebow the new Ronald Reagan? What does a young NFL quarterback have to do with politics? Nothing, really. But the born-again athlete's star power and popularity have prompted several of the presidential candidates to try to hook themselves to his star. A political action committee supporting Bachmann is the latest to get in on the Tebow comparison, running TV ads in Iowa that liken her to the 24-year-old born-again Christian.

....“You’ve got a choice, and that choice is in a governor who has a track record of creating jobs,” Perry told a standing crowd of about 175 in a packed hotel ballroom here in the town that shares his name. “We understand how to compete.” ....No other candidate in the race talks about their home state anything like the way Perry does about his. Michele Bachmann behaves as though if she represents Iowa in the House, not Minnesota. Mitt Romney seems to downplay his history in Massachusetts, highlighting instead the vacation home he owns in New Hampshire. Newt Gingrich represented...

Perry,Iowa — After witnessing the Perry rally in Perry, Iowa, I have a sudden urge to rush out, purchase a firearm, and start rearing eagles. And if it had that effect on me, you know it was potent stuff. The Perry rally at the HotelPattee was far, far nicer than the Santorum rally. Santorum stood on the stairs and addressed a tepid crowd of people without amplification, only four of whom were holding signs, while someone vacuumed in the background. Perry had a country music performer entertaining crowds in a nice room that Santorum seemed unaware was part of the...

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With less than 48 hours until Iowans kick off the GOP caucuses, a crowd of California lawmakers have joined Steve Forbes, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and other supporters making a final push for Texas Gov. Rick Perry. California Assemblymembers Dan Logue, Shannon Grove, Brian Jones and Curt Hagman have all hit the ground in the Hawkeye State Iowa Monday, ready for duty. Logue, in a phone interview, just told us that “Iowa is going to do well for Perry — and this is just the first step of many steps.”

Rick Perry gave two network and one local affiliate interviews this morning, starting at 5:45 a.m., reiterating his closing lines in Iowa, which are he's the non-Washington insider and he's the only social conservative with the money and campaign organization to run a national campaign. ...Perry hits three cities today on his last major trip across Iowa, ending tonight in - fittingly - a town called Perry. He's traveling with flat-tax proponent Steve Forbes, friend and decorated former Navy Seal Marcus Luttrell, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, Congressman Sam Graves [Missouri], Congressman Mick...