Rick Perry presidential campaign, 2012
Encyclopedia
Rick Perry
, the four-term Governor of Texas
, announced via a spokesman on August 11, 2011, that he will be running for the 2012 Republican Party nomination for president of the United States
. He formally launched his campaign on August 13, 2011, in Charleston, South Carolina
.
in September 2009, but his name was removed at his own request. In April 2008 while appearing as a guest on CNBC
's Kudlow & Company
, he specifically stated that he would not agree to serve as Vice President
in a McCain
administration, stating that he already had "the best job in the world" as governor of Texas. Further, during a Republican gubernatorial debate in January 2010, when asked if he would commit to serving out his term if re-elected, he replied that "the place hasn't been made yet" where he would rather serve than the governor of Texas. In December 2010, when asked if he was a "definite maybe" to run for President in 2012, he replied, "a definite no, brother".
On May 27, 2011, he said he is "going to think about" running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination after the close of the Texas legislative session. Perry said in a response to a question from a reporter, "but I think about a lot of things," he added with a grin.
, the ABC
affiliate in Austin
, the state capital. As the Associated Press
bulletin announcing his entry into the race came across the wire, Perry signed and dated a printed copy of the bulletin. On August 13, 2011, in a speech at Charleston, South Carolina
, Perry officially announced that he would be a candidate for the Republican nomination. He later stated that it was his wife who encouraged him to run for president, as he was happy being governor of Texas.
, the president of the watchdog group Democracy 21
, who said, “The idea that such a PAC is going to be independent from the campaign is ridiculous." Perry's former legislative director, Dan Shelley, is also running a pro-Perry super PAC. Perry's longstanding feud with Karl Rove
may be another factor in his Super PAC fundraising, as Rove is a key advisor to many major Republican donors.
Perry took the fundraising lead in his first reporting period. The biggest source of his donations was from employees of George Brint Ryan's tax and accounting firm.
that Mark Hemingway of the Weekly Standard asked if Perry had suffered a stroke
, and Brit Hume
of Fox News stated that Perry, "at a time when he needed to raise his game, I mean, he did worse, it seems to me, than he had done in previous debates." However, Paul Burka, senior executive editor at Texas Monthly
, said "Eventually the debates will end, and retail politics will take center stage. I think Perry will have an advantage in that format because he is better at the meet-and-greet and connecting with people than Mitt Romney is."
After he mishandled a question about how he would respond to a "3am call" as president, Perry's advisers insisted that he get more sleep before the remaining debates. However, Alex Castellanos said of his next performance, at Dartmouth College
, that the next time he should bring a mattress. Perry admitted after the event that "Debates are not my strong suit." Perry's performance in the Las Vegas debate was better received, at least in comparison to the other GOP hopefuls.
Perry finished in second place in the 2011 California, Florida, Michigan and National Federation of Republican Women’s Convention straw polls. He later placed fourth in the Values Voter Summit straw poll and then fifth in the Midwest Leadership Conference and South Carolina tea party straw polls.
He has continued at around fifth place since, including in the Illinois GOP straw poll.
, joined Perry after Pawlenty withdrew from the race.
In October 2011, Perry's deputy finance director, Louisa Imperiale, left the campaign for personal reasons.
In October 2011, the Washington Post reported that Perry's family leases a hunting camp once called "Niggerhead
". According to some local residents interviewed by the Post, the Perrys used the camp for years before painting over a large rock with that name on it, which stands at an entrance to the area, and during this time Perry hosted friends and supporters at the camp. Perry was criticized as being "insensitive" by Republican primary rival Herman Cain
. Perry's campaign disputed the claims made by Cain and the Post, stating that the Perrys painted over the rock almost immediately after acquiring a lease on the property in 1983.
Following the controversy, Perry's record on racial issues was scrutinized, including his having defended a display of Confederate
symbols and having allegedly run "race-baiting" ads during his 1990 campaign against progressive activist Jim Hightower
for Texas agriculture commissioner. The ads pictured Hightower next to Jesse Jackson
while a voice-over asks "Does Agriculture Commissioner Jim Hightower share your values?" The ads were criticized for their racial content by leaders in Texas' congressional black caucus. However, several black Texas Democrats, such as former state Senator Ron Wilson and current Senator Royce West
, have defended Perry against accusations of racism, with Wilson saying "He doesn’t have a racist bone in his body. He didn't then, and he doesn't now." and West pointing to "many things he has done that were sensitive to ethnic minorities".
Perry's links to the New Apostolic Reformation
and its founder C. Peter Wagner
, who helped organize Perry's prayer rally The Response, have also received scrutiny. Perry has said he doesn't necessarily endorse the views of Wagner, who has advocated publicly burning statues of Catholic saints and claimed that Japan is controlled by demons because its emperor had sex with the sun goddess.
Perry received negative media attention when clips of a speech he delivered at an annual banquet in New Hampshire went viral on the Internet. The way the video was cut suggested he was under the influence of alcohol or medicine, something Perry later denied. New Hampshire Republican officials defended Perry, saying the speech was well-received by the audience. At the November 9, 2011, Republican debate, he was unable to remember the name of one of the three government agencies he would eliminate as part of his policy to cut federal spending. Fifteen minutes later, Perry said that the agency he had been trying to think of to eliminate was the Department of Energy
. The Guardian
called it "one of the most humiliating debate performances in recent US political history" and reporters asked him if he was going to continue in the race after that gaffe. Perry joked off the incident and accepted it with humility. Observers have speculated that he may have had a natural "retrieval failure" as a result of stress put on him by past poor debates and personal pressure to shine at the event.
In a later debate, he called for the United States to start foreign aid to zero, and require each country to justify and be accountable for the aid they receive. At the debate, he was immediately asked how he would address Israel's foreign aid, which is over $30 billion. He reassured the commentators that Israel was a "special ally" for the United States and would receive "significant" aid.
In an ad
released in November 2011, Perry slammed President Barack Obama
for saying, "We've been a little bit lazy I think over the last couple of decades." While many Republicans have joined Perry in condemning the remarks, the ad was criticized as misleading by the media. Perry went on to say that the "lazy" remark suggested that Obama "grew up in a privileged way". In the same week, he challenged House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
to a debate about overhauling Congress
. Pelosi declined and mocked Perry's November 9 debate performance.
Rick Perry
James Richard "Rick" Perry is the 47th and current Governor of Texas. A Republican, Perry was elected Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 1998 and assumed the governorship in December 2000 when then-governor George W. Bush resigned to become President of the United States. Perry was elected to full...
, the four-term Governor of Texas
Governor of Texas
The governor of Texas is the head of the executive branch of Texas's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature, and to convene the legislature...
, announced via a spokesman on August 11, 2011, that he will be running for the 2012 Republican Party nomination for president of the United States
Republican Party (United States) presidential primaries, 2012
The 2012 Republican presidential primaries are the selection processes in which voters of the Republican Party will choose their nominee for President of the United States in the 2012 presidential election. The primary contest began with a fairly wide field, and is the first presidential primary...
. He formally launched his campaign on August 13, 2011, in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
.
Background
Perry had persistently denied aspirations to higher office; he was originally included on the 2012 Presidential Straw Poll ballot at the Values Voter SummitValues Voter Summit
The Values Voter Summit is an annual political conference for American social conservative activists and elected officials from across the United States....
in September 2009, but his name was removed at his own request. In April 2008 while appearing as a guest on CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
's Kudlow & Company
Kudlow & Company
The Kudlow Report is a news television program about business and politics hosted by Lawrence Kudlow, that airs on the CNBC television channel at 7pm ET. The show began airing on January 26, 2009. It is a successor to Kudlow & Company, which aired from 2005 until October 2008...
, he specifically stated that he would not agree to serve as Vice President
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
in a McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
administration, stating that he already had "the best job in the world" as governor of Texas. Further, during a Republican gubernatorial debate in January 2010, when asked if he would commit to serving out his term if re-elected, he replied that "the place hasn't been made yet" where he would rather serve than the governor of Texas. In December 2010, when asked if he was a "definite maybe" to run for President in 2012, he replied, "a definite no, brother".
On May 27, 2011, he said he is "going to think about" running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination after the close of the Texas legislative session. Perry said in a response to a question from a reporter, "but I think about a lot of things," he added with a grin.
Announcement
On August 11, 2011, a Perry spokesman said that he will be running for president, with plans to announce his formal entry into the race two days later. Perry himself confirmed it on a visit to KVUEKVUE
KVUE, virtual channel 24 , is the local Austin, Texas-based ABC affiliate, owned by Belo Corporation. Its transmitter is located in West Lake Hills, just west of Downtown...
, the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate in Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, the state capital. As the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
bulletin announcing his entry into the race came across the wire, Perry signed and dated a printed copy of the bulletin. On August 13, 2011, in a speech at Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, Perry officially announced that he would be a candidate for the Republican nomination. He later stated that it was his wife who encouraged him to run for president, as he was happy being governor of Texas.
Top tier candidate
Because of Perry's comparatively late entry into the race, he was behind other candidates in fundraising and was under pressure to raise money quickly. He had never before had to comply with federal rules for campaign finance. Questions were raised about his fundraising methods. For example, his campaign was supported by a super PAC called "Make America Great Again". A super PAC is allowed to raise unlimited funds from individuals and even from corporations, which cannot contribute to federal candidates, but the super PAC is required to be completely independent from the campaign. Make America Great Again was created and headed by Mike Toomey, who had been Perry's chief of staff. This arrangement was criticized as illegal by Fred WertheimerFred Wertheimer
Fredric Michael "Fred" Wertheimer is an American activist notable for his work on campaign finance reform. He served as president of Common Cause and is currently the President and CEO of Democracy 21 and Democracy 21 Education Fund, which he founded in 1997.He has received honorary Doctorates...
, the president of the watchdog group Democracy 21
Democracy 21
Democracy 21 is a non-profit organization in the United States that works to remove the influence of private money from politics . It was founded in 1997 by longtime activist Fred Wertheimer, and is based in Washington, DC...
, who said, “The idea that such a PAC is going to be independent from the campaign is ridiculous." Perry's former legislative director, Dan Shelley, is also running a pro-Perry super PAC. Perry's longstanding feud with Karl Rove
Feud between Karl Rove and Rick Perry
Top George W. Bush consultant Karl Rove and Texas Governor Rick Perry have a widely-reported and longstanding feud that originated in 1998 and has extended to open hostility among top campaign operatives in both camps, and even resulted in top Bush allies openly campaigning against Perry in his...
may be another factor in his Super PAC fundraising, as Rove is a key advisor to many major Republican donors.
Perry took the fundraising lead in his first reporting period. The biggest source of his donations was from employees of George Brint Ryan's tax and accounting firm.
Debates and drop in polls
Perry's performances in the GOP debates received generally poor reviews from the media. His speech was so garbled in a debate held in Orlando, FloridaOrlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
that Mark Hemingway of the Weekly Standard asked if Perry had suffered a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
, and Brit Hume
Brit Hume
Brit Hume is an American television journalist and political commentator.For twenty years he was a correspondent for the American Broadcasting Company, including Chief White House Correspondent. He then spent ten years as the Washington, D.C. managing editor of the Fox News Channel and the anchor...
of Fox News stated that Perry, "at a time when he needed to raise his game, I mean, he did worse, it seems to me, than he had done in previous debates." However, Paul Burka, senior executive editor at Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
, said "Eventually the debates will end, and retail politics will take center stage. I think Perry will have an advantage in that format because he is better at the meet-and-greet and connecting with people than Mitt Romney is."
After he mishandled a question about how he would respond to a "3am call" as president, Perry's advisers insisted that he get more sleep before the remaining debates. However, Alex Castellanos said of his next performance, at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, that the next time he should bring a mattress. Perry admitted after the event that "Debates are not my strong suit." Perry's performance in the Las Vegas debate was better received, at least in comparison to the other GOP hopefuls.
Perry finished in second place in the 2011 California, Florida, Michigan and National Federation of Republican Women’s Convention straw polls. He later placed fourth in the Values Voter Summit straw poll and then fifth in the Midwest Leadership Conference and South Carolina tea party straw polls.
He has continued at around fifth place since, including in the Illinois GOP straw poll.
Negative media attention
Lucas Baiano, who made commercials for Tim PawlentyTim Pawlenty
Timothy James "Tim" Pawlenty , also known affectionately among supporters as T-Paw, is an American politician who served as the 39th Governor of Minnesota . He was a Republican candidate for President of the United States in the 2012 election from May to August 2011...
, joined Perry after Pawlenty withdrew from the race.
In October 2011, Perry's deputy finance director, Louisa Imperiale, left the campaign for personal reasons.
In October 2011, the Washington Post reported that Perry's family leases a hunting camp once called "Niggerhead
Niggerhead
In several English-speaking countries, Niggerhead or nigger head is a former name for several things thought to resemble a black person's head....
". According to some local residents interviewed by the Post, the Perrys used the camp for years before painting over a large rock with that name on it, which stands at an entrance to the area, and during this time Perry hosted friends and supporters at the camp. Perry was criticized as being "insensitive" by Republican primary rival Herman Cain
Herman Cain
Herman Cain is a candidate for the 2012 U.S. Republican Party presidential nomination.Cain has a background as a business executive, syndicated columnist, and radio host from Georgia. He served as chairman and CEO of Godfather's Pizza from 1986 to 1996...
. Perry's campaign disputed the claims made by Cain and the Post, stating that the Perrys painted over the rock almost immediately after acquiring a lease on the property in 1983.
Following the controversy, Perry's record on racial issues was scrutinized, including his having defended a display of Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
symbols and having allegedly run "race-baiting" ads during his 1990 campaign against progressive activist Jim Hightower
Jim Hightower
James Allen "Jim" Hightower is an American syndicated columnist, activist and author.-Life and career:Born in Denison, Texas, Hightower came from a working class background. He worked his way through college as assistant general manager of the Denton Chamber of Commerce and later landed a spot as...
for Texas agriculture commissioner. The ads pictured Hightower next to Jesse Jackson
Jesse Jackson
Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. is an African-American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as shadow senator for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. He was the founder of both entities that merged to...
while a voice-over asks "Does Agriculture Commissioner Jim Hightower share your values?" The ads were criticized for their racial content by leaders in Texas' congressional black caucus. However, several black Texas Democrats, such as former state Senator Ron Wilson and current Senator Royce West
Royce West
Royce Barry West is a Democratic African American member of the Texas Senate representing the Dallas-based 23rd District.-2004:-2002:-References:Royce Barry West...
, have defended Perry against accusations of racism, with Wilson saying "He doesn’t have a racist bone in his body. He didn't then, and he doesn't now." and West pointing to "many things he has done that were sensitive to ethnic minorities".
Perry's links to the New Apostolic Reformation
New Apostolic Reformation
The New Apostolic Reformation is a movement in Protestant Christianity largely associated with the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. The basic thesis asserts that God is restoring the lost offices of church governance, namely the offices of Prophet and Apostle.-Beliefs:The New Apostolic...
and its founder C. Peter Wagner
C. Peter Wagner
Charles Peter Wagner Christian missionary, writer, teacher, and church growth specialist, notable for his controversial spiritual warfare practices and beliefs...
, who helped organize Perry's prayer rally The Response, have also received scrutiny. Perry has said he doesn't necessarily endorse the views of Wagner, who has advocated publicly burning statues of Catholic saints and claimed that Japan is controlled by demons because its emperor had sex with the sun goddess.
Media campaign and recovery attempts
Perry's campaign, which announced that it had raised $17 million in early October, was well-positioned to endure a long and costly campaign against Mitt Romney. His campaign chose to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in television and radio advertisements in early states, and was able to finance serious ground operations. The commercials were positive and focused on his tax plan, energy initiatives, and jobs record as Texas governor. Perry put forward a flat tax proposal that would allow taxpayers to choose either their tax rate under existing law or a flat 20% rate. The plan would also eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits and inheritances. Asked if his tax plan would help wealthy taxpayers, Perry said he was not concerned about that because a lower tax rate would encourage greater investment and job creation by the wealthy. His tax plan was promoted as being so simple and easy, a taxpayer could calculate it on the back of an index card.Perry received negative media attention when clips of a speech he delivered at an annual banquet in New Hampshire went viral on the Internet. The way the video was cut suggested he was under the influence of alcohol or medicine, something Perry later denied. New Hampshire Republican officials defended Perry, saying the speech was well-received by the audience. At the November 9, 2011, Republican debate, he was unable to remember the name of one of the three government agencies he would eliminate as part of his policy to cut federal spending. Fifteen minutes later, Perry said that the agency he had been trying to think of to eliminate was the Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
. The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
called it "one of the most humiliating debate performances in recent US political history" and reporters asked him if he was going to continue in the race after that gaffe. Perry joked off the incident and accepted it with humility. Observers have speculated that he may have had a natural "retrieval failure" as a result of stress put on him by past poor debates and personal pressure to shine at the event.
In a later debate, he called for the United States to start foreign aid to zero, and require each country to justify and be accountable for the aid they receive. At the debate, he was immediately asked how he would address Israel's foreign aid, which is over $30 billion. He reassured the commentators that Israel was a "special ally" for the United States and would receive "significant" aid.
In an ad
Attack ad
In political campaigns, an attack ad is an advertisement whose message is meant as a personal attack against another candidate or political party...
released in November 2011, Perry slammed President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
for saying, "We've been a little bit lazy I think over the last couple of decades." While many Republicans have joined Perry in condemning the remarks, the ad was criticized as misleading by the media. Perry went on to say that the "lazy" remark suggested that Obama "grew up in a privileged way". In the same week, he challenged House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi is the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives and served as the 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011...
to a debate about overhauling Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. Pelosi declined and mocked Perry's November 9 debate performance.
Endorsements
List of Rick Perry endorsements |
|---|
Perry has received endorsements from: U.S. Representatives
Governors and state constitutional officers
Florida
South Carolina
Other
|
External links
- Rick Perry for President official campaign site
- Rick Perry collected news and commentary at The Texas TribuneThe Texas TribuneThe Texas Tribune is a nonprofit news organization headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas, devoted to state government and public policy. It aims to promote civic engagement through original, explanatory journalism and public events...