Dialogues › Sleep of Reason › Rick Perry

Perry became governor when George W. Bush resigned to become president, and Perry went on to win three terms. He entered the presidential campaign in 2011 and suspended his campaign in early 2012, endorsing New Gingrich and later Mitt Romney. He is liked by conservatives and the Tea Party.

Perry wrote two books, On My Honor: Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts are Worth Fighting For and Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America from Washington, which takes issue with the federal government’s right to collect income tax. He is married with two children.

Perry’s presidential campaign highlighted economic growth in Texas, anti-tax and anti-regulation policies, and social values. As governor, he opposed creating a state income tax. He signed Grover Norquist’s pledge to “oppose and veto any and all efforts to increase taxes” in 2009.

In October 2011, 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 this 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.

He said that Social Security was like “an illegal Ponzi scheme” and suggested that it was unconstitutional. His comments have been criticized by Cheney, Rove, and Romney.

In 2011, Perry sharply criticized the Federal Reserve, stating that it would be “almost treacherous – or treasonous in my opinion” to be “printing money to play politics.” He suggested that if the Federal Reserve Chairman visited Texas, “we would treat him pretty ugly,” a remark the White House criticized as threatening.

Perry supported President Clinton’s national health care reform efforts, later saying he wanted more attention paid to rural health care. However, as governor he has opposed federal health care reform and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, calling it “socialism on American soil” and calling for its repeal.

Texas leads the nation in the proportion of uninsured residents (26%) and has the lowest level of access to prenatal care. Because insured residents carry the burden of caring for those who are uninsured, insurance premiums have risen and Texas ranks next-to-last among states in terms of affordability of health insurance. Medicaid spending, currently covering one in three Texas children, has been cut, making enrollment more difficult. In 2003 Perry signed a bill restricting non-medical damages in medical malpractice judgments, but it has neither increased the number of physicians nor limited healthcare costs.

Perry opposes all abortions unless the mother’s life is at risk, including in cases of rape or incest. In 2011 Perry had stem cell surgery and started to lay groundwork for the commercialization of the adult stem cell industry in Texas.

He supported Texas’ same-sex anti-sodomy law, struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court, a decision Perry thought violated the 14th Amendment, and he supports a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Perry also criticized the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

Perry supports the death penalty and in 2002 vetoed legislation banning the execution of mentally retarded inmates.

Perry called climate science a “contrived phony mess.” He opposes regulation of greenhouse gas emissions because it would have “devastating implications” for the Texas economy and energy industry.

In 2006, Perry stated that he believes that the Bible is without error and that those who do not accept Jesus as their savior will go to hell. He says he is “a firm believer in intelligent design as a matter of faith and intellect” and thinks it should be taught along with evolution.

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