Rick Perry: Mr. Bipartisan?
Vince Leibowitz | Nov 09, 2006 | Comments 0
Rick Perry wants to be Mr. Bipartisan now that he suddenly has nothing near a “clear mandate” and well short of a “landslide:”
“Over the next four years, I intend to set a positive tone, to govern with a very inclusive agenda, because Texas is better off when we work together. … We need less partisanship, we need less cynicism, we need more bridge-building in this state,” the governor said.
Do I feel a chill or did Hell just freeze over? Rick Perry wants to be BIPARTISAN?
This is the same man who orchestrated the “Father’s Day Massacre,” favors executing the mentally retarded, has taken more money from James Leininger than possibly any politician in Texas history, and has generally run as partisan a shop as you’ve ever seen.
If anything, Rick Perry has been the most partisan governor in Texas History. I have difficulty, especially with the right-wingers still in the Lege, that he’ll be able to accomplish this. Remember that the right-wingers have to worry about being challenged in primaries by other right wingers if they fail to appropriately kiss the Leininger ring.
Does this new bipartisanship mean he’ll back down from radical issues like school vouchers?
Don’t bet on it. This will be Perry’s last term and he’s still got a lot of proverbial debts to pay off, the biggest one being to Leininger.
He’ll be bi-partisan, so long as bipartisan means still being able to shove things down people’s throats…like vouchers.
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Filed Under: 2006 Texas Elections
