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Posted on 01/02/2012 3:11:08 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
DES MOINES - As Texas Governor Rick Perry makes his final pre-caucus appearances before Iowa voters today, he will be joined on the stump by a figure who’s well-known locally: 2000 presidential candidate Steve Forbes.
....But also joining Perry will be someone who once preferred to live in the shadows: former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell.
He received the Navy Cross after surviving a vicious 2005 battle in which three of his fellow SEALs were killed when they were discovered inside Afghanistan while pursuing a Taliban leader.
Luttrell later wrote about the experience in his book, “The Lone Survivor.” It is being made into a Peter Berg movie due for release next year.
Unlike Forbes, Luttrell isn’t expected to testify today to Perry’s policy. Rather, he will speak to his character.
In a story Perry himself related to me, CNN’s Peter Hamby, and BuzzFeed/Politico’s Ben Smith during a chance encounter at Des Moines’s Django restaurant last night, Luttrell and the governor formed a bond after their own chance meeting on Coronado Island in San Diego.
[MUST be read, big snip]
Over time, Rick and Anita Perry - the parents of two children - offered him a spare bedroom in the third floor of their Austin-area home. (They still are unable to live in the Texas Governor’s Mansion since it was burned by an arsonist while being renovated in 2008.)
Luttrell’s “bed” was nothing more than an air mattress, the governor related.
Perry said he also intervened with Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to get Luttrell the medical and psychological treatment he needed. He ended up being a regular presence in the home for about two years.
In 2010, Luttrell established the Lone Survivor Foundation, which is aimed at helping wounded warriors return home.”
Also in 2010, he got married. And...
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
After reading about this, Rick Perry just went up a notch in my estimation. He has good character. Unfortunately, he still can’t debate well, which is a major strike against him, as it is so necessary to a presidential run. However, just as a man, he is a fine man with good values. For that, I admire him.
Buy the Book Lone Survivor by M. Luttrell It’s amazing what that team went through.
Luttrell’s story is why I am glad men like him are on our side.
I am a Perry supporter. He has a lot of class in a lot of ways...yeah, he screwed up a couple debates, so what...but he is who we need to clean that rat nest out in D.C.
Perry would be a surpurb Commander in Chief.
Perry initially resisted, mimicking with flailing arms how he gets antsy after more than three days in the same place, but he recalled being won over as they arrived at the red-roofed Hotel del Coronado.
Well of course, who wouldm't love The Del? It's wonderful!
Bumps!
Well said.
We need YOU to clean the rat nest out in the media.
Thank you.
God bless our troops.
"...Remember Marcus Luttrell from Lone Survivor fame?
See Here: "Badass of the Week" for a reminder (language warning!)
Well, Marcus was having a really tough time after he returned from Afghanistan. A trauma like that would make anyone a little off center. So Rick and Anita took Marcus in. They gave him things to do and made sure he got to San Antonio for all his medical visits.
Rick, having also been in the military, had long talks to the wee hours with Marcus about the aftershock of Marcus losing all his team members.
After Marcus moved back home, some thug teenagers killed his dog, the rehabilitation dog Marcus was given at Walter Reed. What happened then can be found on the internet. What is not reported is that Marcus called Rick on his cell phone and told Rick that punks had killed his dog. Rick sent the Texas Rangers to intercept the thugs. They are now in jail.
When Rick Perry tells you he’s a friend and will always be there for you, he means it. It is not just empty words he says before he throws you under the bus. Now, Rick and Anita have taken in even more Navy Seals who have had tramatic experiences, trying to help them like they did Marcus.
You ever read about that in any newspaper? No, and you won’t. Like I said, the measure of a man is what he does when nobody is watching.
I know this much. Rick Perry is a good man. Yeah, he’s made a few mistakes, but so has every other candidate whose running. But it is time that we have a really good person in the Oval Office, so if Rick decides to run, he not only has my vote, I will work my tail off for him."
The day after Pete was killed, I was sitting at the dining room table with Hardtail, just trying to make sense of all that was going on.
My cell phone rang. "Unknown" said the caller ID.
Thought about letting it pass, but I answered it.
"Alan, this is Rick Perry."…..
“I had rather have a man of good character than the “smartest” smooth gladhander calling themselves a “conservative”.”
______________
I don’t think that Perry is stupid, he just comes off like a country-bumpkin. I think that he has done a good job of shaking off his fumbles and effectively made fun of himself after gaffes. He was really good on Letterman after the “three gov’t agencies” stumble and I think people will give him a second look if he gets the nod.
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Wonderful story.
By the way .... Yes, Fox News, there is a Rick Perry.
Fox and Friends had Perry on for an entire segment and he was outstanding. They will have Anita on tomorrow morning and I know she will be charming as always.
It may not be terminal. Medical advances are made all the time.
I’m impressed that you are still interested in the welfare of your country at this point. that’s wonderful.
And I think you’ve made the right choice in Governor Perry
It really does speak to Perry's Character.Whether he was moved by compassion, shared military service, or "it was the right thing to do" for Marcus, he stepped up to the plate.
There are no stories like this about the current occupant of the White House.
The Perrys have big hearts and do not seek publicity as they quietly put their Christian beliefs into practice. It’s how you act behind closed doors when nobody is looking that speaks to your true character.
Here is a video interview with Mrs. Perry broadcast April '05.
Also, if anyone is interested, this is the same interviewer speaking to the man Rick Perry appointed Texas Chief Justice, Wallace Jefferson -- a good example of the caliber and character of leaders Gov. Perry surrounds himself with – unlike Obama who appoints and defends appointments such as U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
CC I am so sorry to hear this. I did not know you are ill and I am going to keep you in my prayers.
What is not reported is that Marcus called Rick on his cell phone and told Rick that punks had killed his dog. Rick sent the Texas Rangers to intercept the thugs.
Okay, Chasaway, that moved me to tears.
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