A legislative aide to Sen. John Tower (R.), McClure was leaning on a door when a rancher from Paint Creek, Texas, named Rick Perry walked past. Newly retired from the Air Force, Perry held a degree in animal science from Texas A&M. His class ring gave him away.
Spotting the ring, McClure, a fellow Texas A&M grad, introduced himself, and the two hit it off. Thirteen years later McClure, a notary public, would swear Perry into office as Texas’s agriculture commissioner, his first statewide office.
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And as for Perry’s retail skills, Luce says they’re Grade A. “Rick campaigned in all 256 counties in the state,” he says. “He went to rural and urban areas; he did small and big events. Rick is a campaigner.”
Perry may be a latecomer to the Iowa race, but he is an old hand at face-to-face politics. This former Texas agriculture commissioner knows a thing or two about grass roots. <<<
>>>......Among Republicans in the contest, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney leads the money race and reported an $18.4 million haul in the second quarter. President Barack Obama’s campaign aides have told donors privately that they hope to meet or go beyond the $750 million the campaign raised in 2008.
When it comes to financing a presidential campaign “it’s a numbers game,” said investor Michael Fourticq Sr., managing partner at Hancock Park Associates, one of the hosts of the meeting with the Texas governor.
For Perry, “I think the money is there,” Fourticq said.
Perry is on a two-day swing through California, where he planned a string of private meetings. It was his third trip to the nation’s most populous state since June 12.
He declined to answer questions as he rushed into a hotel conference room, saying “I’m late already.” When he left the hotel he avoided the main entrance, where a reporter and photographer were waiting.....<<<<
http://www.laramieboomerang.com/articles/2011/07/20/ap/politics/us_perry_2012.txt