Posted on 07/24/2014 6:11:07 PM PDT by Kaslin
Over the past three weeks, one Republican has gained more national attention than any other: Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX).
He has been everywhere - calling up the Texas National Guard, appearing on network interviews, headlining Sunday shows, touring the southern border with Fox News' Sean Hannity, appearing on The Blaze with Glenn Beck. Perry has penned national op-eds on border security in The Wall Street Journal and The USA Today.
Gov. Perry greeted President Obama on the tarmac, met with him in Dallas, and spent the next day on the southern border--a marked contrast with President Obama who spent the day at fundraisers and excoriating Republicans at a partisan speech in downtown Austin.
How did Gov. Perry fully seize this opportunity?
It began on July 3 when House Homeland Security Committee chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) held a field hearing on the border in McAllen, with Gov. Perry providing witness testimony which dominated the hearing.
When it comes to border security, Gov. Perry knows what he is talking about, after serving as Governor of Texas longer than FDR was president.
In fact, several months ago, the state of Texas began a $1.3 million per week border security surge through the rest of 2014. According to Gov. Perry, the state has spent over $500 million since 2005 on increased border protection and efforts to fight gangs and drug cartels.
Perry has surged by making three smart demands.
First, he cleverly pressured President Obama into a meeting with him while he was in Texas, by refusing to accept a perfunctory and patronizing White House offer of a 30-second handshake at the airport. Perry refused, asking instead for a "thoughtful policy discussion." The White House caved and reluctantly agreed to the meeting.
Second, he asked President Obama to visit the border while he was in Texas. The White House stubbornly refused and that question dominated the national media discussion that entire week. Even Democrats like Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX) went public, criticizing President Obama for not visiting the border. The result was the White House being on defense all week.
To put as fine a point on it as possible, Gov. Perry spent the day after his meeting with Obama on the border, receiving a briefing from border patrol officials and touring the border by boat and helicopter, with Fox News and radio host Sean Hannity in tow. The effect was a split screen comparison between Perry, on the border, seeing it firsthand, acting as an executive, and Obama, engaging in a partisan attack in a speech on the economy and conducting photo ops at a coffee shop and a barbecue restaurant in Austin.
Third, Gov. Perry requested 1,000 National Guard troops to be temporarily deployed to the southern border to send a strong message to Central American countries and help the border patrol with the influx of illegal immigrants pouring into the country. President Obama has not explicitly agreed to this request. He appears to want to trade this for his supplemental appropriations request, which Congress is currently considering.
Gov. Perry got tired of waiting and on Monday he order up to 1,000 Texas National Guard troops to the southern border, to serve as a force multiplier and help ease pressure on the border patrol, who are scrambling to deal with the unaccompanied children.
Good policy makes good politics, and Gov. Perry is not letting this opportunity go to waste. He is using this national story to collect data and engage the grassroots - an online petition on border security that he created now has over 100,000 signatures in the first week. The political benefit to Gov. Perry will likely last.
He has successfully re-positioned himself as the leading GOP voice on border security - valuable political real estate in the Republican Party. Border security issues will remain on the front burner through the 2014 election and likely through the 2016 election. Gov. Perry has aligned his national leadership on an issue for which he has expertise and knowledge, with his own executive record that he can reference. While Senators may talk about votes on immigration and border security, Gov. Perry can detail what he has actually done.
He is on the front lines in this crisis, at a time when few Republicans in Washington have stepped up to propose their own solution.
Perhaps most importantly, Gov. Perry re-positioned himself on an issue where he had been crosswise with the Republican base in the 2012 primary. Now, instead of focusing on thorny issues like in-state tuition, Gov. Perry can redirect the focus to border security.
Gov. Perry continues to prepare for a potential presidential bid, with more international travel planned, public policy issue briefings and political travel. In fact, Gov. Perry made his fourth trip ton Iowa this past weekend. He was received in Iowa far bigger star in Republican politics this week than he was three weeks ago, with a burst of new momentum, a national platform and a second look from the national media.
Ugh. Pony+Circus.
IRONIC - for the guy who all but rolled out a red carpet for these same people for the past 13.5 years he’s been in office.
But if he’s REALLY come around (and can also find Israel on a map), then kudos to him.
What New National Platform? This is the same tired candidate from 2012 with a new coat of lipstick. Oh and new eyeglasses.
Yes. The glasses are to make him look intelligent.
And not like somebody who couldn’t remember which three Federal Agencies he wants to close.
We were in a debate about Patton earlier today. My point was Patton was smart enough and prepared enough to exploit the situation.
We’ll see if Perry can make this work. The difference in the political world is Perry believes in what he is doing to his very soul. He’s livin’ and feelin’ it. Perry is a God fearing man doing what he was born to do. Obama is just exploiting the situation feeding his political dreams.
Some people resent Perry because they are jealous.
Perry may cause the rest of the possible Republican candidate field to reach a little. They will be vying for camera time.
It’s early, and Perry’s NG are temporary, hardly enforcers, and only observers, so what this actually produces is anyone’s guess. There are questions whether they are in any way armed. Surely they are, or what’s the point?
Texans have been let down by Perry before, after some big splash charm offense of his, so trust is wobbly with some of us. Hope this big splash amounts to something.
Is a native Texan I can say Perry is all hat and no cattle
Who would be, “jealous”?
Hey I’m just glad Perry wants to close something. :-)
At least he’s not handing out teddy bears & soccer balls.
Perry cozies up to La Raza then suddenly becomes an activist about border security?
I sometimes wonder how politicians, or for that matter, anyone who can justify such reversals in policies at the drop of a hat.
Rand Paul, Jeb Bush, Fatso, to name a few.
Perry is an accomplished flip flopping wind tester and there are plenty of low information voters ready to give him lift.
ping.
What a conservative ball-buster that turned out to be, huh. Guy had a brain fart, definitely disqualifies him as Prez. Actually, he was on pain meds after back surgery but I honestly don't think that was the brightest move, to run in that condition.
I'll tell you one thing though, I'd kill to have President Perry right now instead of Obama. I'd bet hard cash we'd be 8,000% better off.
Bump for good news. Sad that many on this site do not see it that way. If another Governor did this they would be singing their praises.
I agree with you completely
I’d still like to hear which agencies he wants to close and how he will go about doing it.
The DC monster needs to be trimmed way back.
Like some in here
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