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Texas Gov. Rick Perry bristled at accusations during Monday’s GOP debate that he had done the bidding of a corporate donor by ordering schoolgirls to use a new vaccine. “The company was Merck, and it was a $5,000 contribution that I had received from them,” Perry said. “I raised about $30 million. (snip) But campaign disclosure records portray a much deeper financial connection with Merck than Perry’s remarks would suggest. Perry’s gubernatorial campaign, for example, received nearly $30,000 from the drugmaker since 2000, most of it prior to his decision in 2007 to order young girls to obtain Merck’s vaccine...

A month ago, I was “fringe” for spotlighting Rick Perry’s Gardasil problem. As I said then, it’s not just a “single-issue,” one-off problem. It’s about his instincts, judgment, non-apology apology, and ethics. For everyone still catching up, here’s my column from a month ago. Now, Gardasil is the search word of the day. And there’s a new development. After successfully highlighting Perry’s troubling abuse of executive power during last night’s debate, Michele Bachmann risks blowing it with some factually inaccurate assertions. She’s RIGHT on the principles, wrong on some of the details. She needs to stay on message and stick...

<p>Sarah Palin says she is not afraid to call out fellow Republicans when she thinks they have been "part of the problem." On Monday night, Palin accuses Republican candidate for President Rick Perry of engaging in "crony capitalism." Perry, as governor of Texas, mandated that young girls get a vaccination for the HPV virus in an executive order. Perry is criticized for this in part because of his connections to the drug manufacturer Merck.</p>

....SarahPalin popped up again in a post-debate interview Monday night with surprising praise for 2012 presidential contender Michele Bachmann, presumed by many to be her arch-rival for the Tea Party throne. Taking a hard jab at her old pal RickPerry, Palin applauded Bachmann for going after the Texas governor's 2007 executive order mandating HPV vaccines for pre-teen girls.... In a post-debate interview with Fox's Greta VanSusteren, Palin affirmed Bachmann's criticisms and went after Perry for what she called "crony capitalism:" That’s part of the problem that we have in this country is that people are afraid, even in our own...

Sarah Palin really liked this debate giving kudos to both Newt, for bringing up the massive waste in government, and Bachmann for bringing up the Merck/Gardasil issue with Perry. Of course she made sure to point out that we need more than just words, that we need proven records to back up their statements. She even points that when she was Governor of Alaska and she saw the Gardasil moves that Perry was making in Texas, that she told her Health and Human services department that Alaska wasn’t going to mandate vaccinations for their teenage daughters. And she even mentions...

I saw the GOP debate and the Greta interview with Palin and Bachman. I am absolutely against Perry's mandate of the Gardasil vaccine. On policy grounds. Period. But, to see the two ladies pile on with corruption charges against Perry was truly disgusting. If they have any proof that Perry mandated the vaccine to profit Merck, I am the first one who wants it. And, if proof emerges that he did so, I will be the first one to revoke my support for him. It happens in the industry all the time. Acquaintances get you an audience. So, in this...

BASTROP, Texas — Gov. Rick Perry did not show up as expected Saturday at a news conference convened by his office to brief reporters on the Texas wildfires. Perry aides, citing “logistical issues,” said the governor initially had been scheduled to appear at a location with restricted access. The location was changed to an accessible spot, which was a burned-out home and chocolate shop along the main highway, and local officials briefed the media on the fire situation without him. "He's in Austin," said Allison Castle, a spokeswoman for the governor, in response to a flurry of questions about Perry's...

Now that the GOP race is being framed as Mitt Romney vs. Rick Perry, the media has been comparing both candidates’ records, past accomplishments, and current popularity within the Republican party. To that extent, Bill Kristol predicted today that if the Republican race is a relatively “normal” one, Perry will be the GOP nominee. Chris Wallace highlighted Romney’s upcoming jobs speech, and asked Kristol what the former Massachusetts governor needs to do to reclaim his frontrunner status from Perry. Kristol offered some advice to the candidate, but then explained why Perry has a better chance of winning the race than...

Bear with me, this isn’t a “sound bite” subject. The Human Papilloma Virus is an infection, and should not be a moral issue. In contrast, the vaccine against four strains of the virus, Gardasil, has become a political issue, even though the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now recommends it for all boys and girls. Governor Rick Perry has been criticized for his February, 2007 Executive Order that made the vaccine mandatory for girls before entering the 6th grade. Very little is said about the part of the EO that affirmed the right of and facilitated parents who wish...

Who has a better chance of winning the Republican nomination?

Should Rick Perry conclude that voter discontent has left him an opening to enter the presidential race, the Texas governor would be among the Republican field's most conservative candidates. Rick Perry rejects the idea of global warming and the theory of evolution, arguing for natural climate variations and intelligent design of the universe. He branded Social Security and other New Deal safety net programmes "the second big step in the march of socialism," according to a book published last year. The "first step" was a national income tax, which he has said stands alongside the direct election of US senators...