Tornado Alley (PROG)

[Alex G]

What Rick Perry Doesn't Want To Talk About
http://politicalcorrection.org/blog/201108150011
August 15, 2011 4:48 pm ET by Alan Pyke

Now that Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is officially a White House candidate for 2012, it's important to look beyond the glossy exterior presented in his stump speeches and media appearances. The shine comes off his record pretty quick. Political Correction has prepared three short reports laying out what Rick Perry doesn't want to talk about.

Ethics:

Non-partisan watchdog Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington named Perry one of the most unethical governors in the country, in part because of Perry's brand of graft is particularly efficient: One of every five dollars his campaign raised through 2010 came from political appointees. One major Perry donor actually got approval from a Perry-appointed commission for his company to ship nuclear waste into Texas from out of state.

Perhaps worst of all, Perry sent a man who was likely innocent to his death in 2004 despite having scientific evidence in his office that called Cameron Todd Willingham's guilt into serious question. Five years later, he derailed an investigation into the execution and his own handling of the case.

Constititutional Confusion:

Perry has taken a series of hypocritical positions on states' rights, and holds repressive right-wing views on abortion and sexuality. Those views are important enough to Perry that he supports amending the Constitution to impose them on the nation. While he's at it, he'd like to see the direct election of senators end.

Perry's Economics Claims Are Not The Whole Truth:

The so-called "Texas miracle" isn't even atypical, let alone miraculous. Job growth under Perry's tenure failed to keep up with population growth, and the unemployment rate in Texas is only lower than the nation's because it entered the recession later. Furthermore, Perry's policies have little to do with the Texas economy, which benefits from geography and abundant fossil fuel reserves.

We'll hear none of this in Perry's speeches as his campaign moves forward, which makes it all the more important to understand.