Posted on 07/17/2011 2:28:19 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Gov. Rick Perry's political stock has soared in recent months as he has traveled the country touting a decade of fiscal restraint in Texas under his leadership. Last month, Perry made Texas history by signing a two-year state budget that cuts overall spending for the first time in over 40 years.
Perry has long promoted the state's fiscal record as a model for the country and a key to why Texas has weathered the recession better than most other states. He has opposed new taxes and been vehemently anti-Washington, and his message is drawing interest among Republican primary voters nationwide.
Yet before the latest one, the Texas budget had consistently grown during Perry's time as governor, with total spending rising faster than inflation and population growth, state data show.
....Fed largely by state taxes and fees, general revenue has typically made up roughly half the Texas budget. It's the part of the budget that lawmakers spend most of their time arguing over during legislative sessions. Much of the rest of the budget is tied by provisions in federal law and the Texas Constitution.
When general revenue spending is examined by itself, the trends match better with the fiscal conservative image that Perry promotes. Though general revenue spending has grown with nearly every budget since Perry took office, it actually fell over the last decade an average of 0.6 percent every two years once those numbers are adjusted for inflation and the state's booming population growth. It rose during Bush's tenure.
"Obviously fiscal restraint is always something the governor has made a priority...He's the only Texas governor since World War II that has cut general revenue spending."
That distinction is one that Perry has touted repeatedly in recent years, from campaign commercials to the biography on the governor's office website..........
(Excerpt) Read more at star-telegram.com ...
Great 2 minute “Obama compliant media” slap-down.
End public schools. There is a way.
Why should Palin have finished her term as Governor under the circumstances? You do realize that had she and her State were under continuous attack by the Left, and that the RNC and Party bigwigs offered no support or help.
Critics love to point to Palin’s resignation as a disqualification for her becoming President. As a Conservative, I'm grateful she did resign in order to become the leading voice of Conservative values, speaking out against the Obama policies (when no others would) and creating history with the huge Conservative gains in the 2010 elections. Had she remained as Governor, it's possible we wouldn't control the House currently.
As for Perry, he does trend Conservative, yet does have issues with arguing against the Stimulus while accepting Stimulus funds to balance the Texas budget. Worse, the illegal immigration problem in Texas has increased since he became Governor.
I don't know why Perry didn't voice any desire to become President until recently. Is it at the urging of a Republican establishment? If so, what's the price of accepting their support? Time will tell.
You betcha
(at least through the part about her losing my vote by choosing perry as VP)
So I gleaned the essence of your post correctly.
A long way around the barn farmguy.
You’re a Sarah Palin supporter. Fine.
I don’t make a habit of making the rounds to other threads to undercut potential GOP conservative primary candidates.
Thank you for linking it to the thread.
Big Education (as all big government) becomes unresponsive to all but Big Government growth.
Rick Perry has pushed the idea of textbooks online.
Some more LINKS to add: Perry's education record distinctly different from Bush's
Higher Education Coalition attack on [Texas Gov. Rick] Perry raises eyebrows
[Texas Education Agency] TEA to lay off 178 workers [Thousands of pink slips for state workers] [great Freeper discussion about education then and now]
Gov. Perry: Veterans’ Experiences, Skills are Valuable to Our Workforce "The knowledge and skills our veterans bring back from service are an important, and all too often untapped, resource for our communities," Gov. Perry said. "While we can never fully thank them for their service to our nation, I'm proud to sign this important bill, which helps veterans and military service members transition to civilian life by applying their skills and experience to help them graduate more quickly and save money on tuition."
I don't just throw rocks. I write serious proposals for how conservative ideas can work in nearly every field thought to be the exclusive province of government, whether education, environment, transportation, defense, or social welfare. The lack of workable conservative alternatives in public discourse simply maddens me. You can read more, particularly on environmental issues, here and here. For a book on the original Biblical system of national defense, social welfare, and civil comity, lost for over 3,000 years, try this one.
Here is where I differ with a politician like Rick Perry. His ideas revolve around "the same thing, only less." They are not innovative or intelligently directed. They are merely compromises on leftist ideas that center further right than most. Even his hispandering is a mere play for power.
So what?
The marketplace offers alternatives that are fundamentally transformational, yet they somehow never become the point of debate. These are what we should be advancing, rather than Moonbeam ideas like "less is more."
His ideas revolve around “the same thing, only less.”
###
You’re right. He is what Lee Atwater used to call a “Me Too Republican”.
No.
I went to lengths to show that I wasn't advocating anyone that at this point I only have a preference. I could tell my your disingenuous synopsis of my words that you were trying to twist it into something I didn't say. I could tell you were creating a strawman.
Since it seems to be too difficult for the perry good ole boys to understand, I'll spell it out: perry is a deal killer
the Fort Worthless Star Telegram is almost as bad as the Dallas Morning News. Both papers hate Perry.
I like Perry. He’s done a lot of good things and would have done more except we have a Rino Senate.
I think he would make a great VP for Palin. Ryan is my first choice but Perry might be more popular.
I’m for Palin also but I see no need to trash other possible candidates (with a couple of (ha) exceptions)
Amen for reporting that mostly forgotten fact about Houston absorbing so many Katrina refugees.
Many of these people were the dregs of humanity (forgive me) and chose to stay in Houston long after it became possible to return to that cesspool from whence they came.
Your vote is fickle indeed, but I think Sarah will survive its loss, with God’s help.
All I have said is that perry is a deal killer. That stands for whoever he runs with and for whatever place he is on the ticket. I consider that as standing by my values, if you consider that fickle, so be it.
I did not say that Palin “should have” finished her term as governor. To someone who said that Palin had “no choice” I said she did have at least one choice: She “could have” finished her term.
I think that Sarah Palin has a powerful enough presence that she could have made herself known on a national level without running with that RINO, McCain.
Have you considered throwing your hat into the ring?
You have a lot of ideas.
Why not see if you can do what you see others have not done?
It’s always an option.
Your purity is overwhelming......... I am not fit to to touch the hem of your garment!
heavy sarcasm intended////>>>>
Probably not
(no sarcasm required)
It's interesting that you see the word "farm" in my screen name an think you can use it to invalidate my comments about perry.
No, if perry wanted to take my little place for his Spanish buddies toll road, he is welcome to it, so long as he pays the fair market value.
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