Politex

Perry and Romney tango over whose book is a bigger problem politically

Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney had a spirited exchange about controversial sentences in their respective books.

Romney got the ball rolling after Perry said he had no desire to shift Social Security entirely to the states. 

"The bottom line is we never said we're going to move this back to the states," Perry said.

Romney accused Perry of saying in his book, Fed Up!, that the federal government "shouldn't be in the Social Security business."

"So you better find that Rick Perry and get him to stop saying that," Romney said.

Perry shot back by noting that Romney had written about nationalized health care in the hardcover version of his book and then taken it out for the paperback version.

Romney's response: "I actually wrote my book."

-Aman Batheja

The nine candidates, all in a row

(AP Photo/John Raoux)

Debate may include crowdsourced questions about sanctuary cities, NASA

Tonight's presidential debate in Orlando is co-sponsored by Google and the Internet giant is using its YouTube video site to crowdsource some of the debate questions.

The website has received thousands of questions for tonight's debate. Google has posted videos of some of the submissions on a list labeled "Hottest." Among those near the top are one directed at Gov. Rick Perry and another from a Texas man about an issue near and dear to many in the state: NASA.

Here's a question from Eliana Sheriff of Palos Verdes Penisula, California about Perry's views on sanctuary cities and illegal immigration:

Davis files redistricting lawsuit in San Antonio

Two days after the Justice Department declined to challenge the state's new voting map for senate districts, State Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, filed a lawsuit today in federal court in San Antonio alleging that the maps disenfranchise minority groups in North Texas.

State Rep. Marc Veasey of Fort Worth and Tarrant County Commissioner Roy Brooks, both Democrats, joined Davis as plaintiffs in the suit. 

"The State's proposed state senate plan was drawn with the purpose, and has the effect, of minimizing and reducing the voting strength of minority populations in the Tarrant and Dallas counties area of North Texas," the lawsuit reads.

Earlier this year, state Republicans redrew the state's political boundaries to reflect population growth. The maps are now subject to lawsuits in San Antonio and Washington, D.C.

Regarding the map of the state's 31 senate districts, Fort Worth-based District 10 has drawn the most attention as urban minority communities that strongly backed Davis in 2008 were put into suburban districts. 

The new map puts African-American communities in Southeast Fort Worth, Everman and Forest Hill in  a district which stretches to Waco. The heavily-Hispanic northside of Fort Worth was moved to district that includes much of Denton County.

Davis is widely seen as facing an uphill climb for reelection if the map Gov. Rick Perry signed this summer holds. On Monday, the US Justice Department said in a court filing that new voting maps for Congress and the Texas House do not meet federal anti-discrimination requirements. The Justice Department did not take issue with the senate map. All of the maps still have to be approved by Washington, D.C. District Court's three-judge panel.

Republican leaders involved in crafting the maps have repeatedly said they are all fair and legal.

We've posted Davis' lawsuit here. 

-Aman Batheja

Latest polls: Perry 4th in New Hampshire, leads in Texas, nationwide

As Gov. Rick Perry heads into his third presidential debate tonight, new polls have him continuing to lead the presidential race, but not in New Hampshire, where the first primary will be held.

The latest nationwide McClatchy/Marist poll of Republican and Republican leaning voters shows Perry in the lead with 30 percent support followed by Mitt Romney with 22 percent, Michele Bachman with 12 percent and Ron Paul with 7 percent. The live telephone poll was conducted Sept. 13 and 14 and has a margin of error of 5.5 percentage points.

(The McClatchy poll also looked at how President Barack Obama fared head-to-head against some Republicans. Nationwide, Perry loses to Obama 50 percent to 41 percent. Romney wins 46 percent to 44 percent. Rudy Giuliani, who isn't running as of yet, does even better, besting Obama 49 percent to 42 percent.)

In all-important New Hampshire, meanwhile, Perry came in a distant fourth in the latest Suffolk University/7NEWS poll of likely Republican primary voters. Romney leads the pack there with 41 percent, followed by Paul at 14 percent and Jon Huntsman at 10 percent. Perry drew 8 percent support. The live telephone poll was conducted Sept. 18-20 and has a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.

Meanwhile, in Texas, Perry unsurprisingly leads the Republican field with 49 percent support while Romney draws just 10 percent support, according to Democratic firm Public Policy Polling. Everyone else polls in single-digits in Texas. Perry's support in his home state appears to have grown significantly in recent months. Back in June, the same pollster found Perry leading the presidential pack but with just 31 percent support. The automated telephone poll surveyed Texas Republican primary voters from Sept. 15 to 18 and has a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.

(AP Photo/Mike Carlson)

-Aman Batheja

Perry Gets Endorsement from Conservative Stalwart - Kansas Gov. Brownback

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, a former U.S. GOP senator, has endorsed Texas Gov. Rick Perry

“Rick Perry is the right leader for this moment in history,” said Brownback, a 2008 presidential also-ran. “Now more than ever, America needs a president who knows how to create jobs and stop Washington’s runaway spending.

“Rick Perry balanced budgets in tough economic times, signed the largest tax cut in state history and helped Texas become the national leader in job creation. On the most important issues of our time, his record of leadership serves as a blueprint for America’s renewal.”

 http://midwestdemocracyproject.org/blogs/entries/brownback-endorses-rick-perry/#ixzz1Yi0pMIRp

 

-- Maria Recio

 

 

http://midwestdemocracyproject.org/blogs/entries/brownback-endorses-rick-perry/

Truitt likely not running for Davis' Senate seat

State Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller, said Wednesday she will likely not run for the state Senate.

"I am pretty sure I'm going to stay put," Truitt said.

"I have seniority and leadership in the house. I would be giving up most of the territory that I've been representing for a long time."

Truitt currently chairs the House Pensions, Investments & Financial Services Committee.

"To give up the leadership role in the House to go start over in the Senate just doesn't feel real right."

Truitt is one of several Republicans who said last month that she may run for the seat currently held by Fort Worth Democrat Wendy Davis. State Rep. Mark Shelton, R-Fort Worth, and Fort Worth lawyer Dee Kelly, Jr., have also said they may run for the seat. State Rep. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, has announced he is running for the seat.

This morning, Republican Giovanni Capriglione announced he will run next year for the seat currently held by Truitt.

-Aman Batheja

Perry launches new ad with Pawlenty's old director

Gov. Rick Perry's campaign released a video online today contrasting the Texas Governor's record with recent bad national economic news under President Obama.

The ad has the kind of striking visuals and quick pacing one might expect in a movie trailer and will look familiar to anyone who caught the video Tim Pawlenty's presidential campaign released back in January. Both ads are the work of the same director, Lucas Baiano, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Here's Perry ad, called "Proven Leadership:"

Factcheck.org has taken issue with some of the ad's claims.

-Aman Batheja

Perry's "Fed Up!" book to be reprinted with new cover

A book by Gov. Rick Perry is getting a second printing and a new cover as the publisher takes advantage of his newfound fame.

Little, Brown & Company is reprinting Perry's "Fed Up!" with a new cover that prominently features Perry's face. The original cover only had Perry's name and the title.

"It is a new jacket we designed in anticipation of reprints which are likely to come very shortly," said Carolyn O'Keefe, a spokeswoman for the publisher.

When "Fed Up!" came out last November, Perry was not as well-known nationally as many other conservative figures that routinely publish political works. Now, nearly a year later, Perry has greatly increased his name I.D. and is a more recognizable personality.

The book has caused some headaches for Perry's campaign as some of his statements in it, such as comparing Social Security to a "ponzi scheme," have provided fodder for opponents. Perry has said on the campaign trail that he stands by everything in the book.

All the net proceeds for the book go to the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank in Austin.

Below is the new "Fed Up!" cover followed by the original cover.

 

-Aman Batheja

Paul moves back into third place while Perry holds his lead in GOP primary race

Long-time Texas Congressman Ron Paul has moved back into a solid third place in the latest USA  Today/Gallup poll, vaulting ahead of Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney continue to battle it out atop the ongoing national tracking poll. The latest survey, conducted Thursday through Sunday, had Perry leading with 31 percent of the support from Republican and Republican-leaning voters, compared to 24 percent for Romney. Paul followed with 13 percent and Bachman joined former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and businessman Herman Cain at 5 percent. Bachmann had polled in double digits in the last USA Today/Gallup poll in early August.

The latest poll shows Perry running stronger among Republicans and independents who lean toward the GOP, which is the key voting segment in deciding the party's primaries. But Romney runs better among swing voters who typically decide the fate of general elections. In head-to-head matchups against President Barack Obama, Romney beats the incumbent while Perry trails him slightly.

Another interesting Perry factoid: 44 percent of those surveyed declared they will not be voting for the governor, while only 35 percent held that view toward Romney.

America gets its next opportunity to get to know the candidates better Thursday night on Fox News in a debate scheduled for 8-10 p.m. CDT.

-- John Gravois