07.27.07
A Few Items On The Governor
Dave McNeely on what the governor’s plans may be, Perry won’t rule out another race. It’s frightening to think that if Perry was to run and win in 2010 he’s not even half done with, what would be, a 14 year run a governor.
If he is re-elected in 2010 and serves all of another four-year term, he will have been governor a little more than 14 years. Which means the six and a half years he’s occupied the governor’s mansion would be less than half his total tenure.
There are some who think Perry’s simply brandishing the re-election possibility to hold off being disregarded in the 2009 legislative session as a lame duck. The presumption is politicians in leadership positions who reveal too early they’re planning to leave may find their power over events and people is diminished.
One seasoned onlooker reasoned there’s about a 10 percent chance Perry will seek another term, a 10 percent chance he’ll quit before this term is over, and an 80 percent chance Perry will serve out this term and leave.
On retiring early, one observer said with the looming prospect of a significant budget deficit in 2009, Perry may want to exit before he has to eat a significant tax increase, or again make draconian cuts in programs like children’s health insurance, as he did in the last budget shortfall in 2003.
Or, he might figure it would make more sense to go out hot — perhaps to a position like chancellor of Texas A&M University, his alma mater, where he has appointed every member of the governing board.
It’s also possible Perry is just using the possibility of another campaign as a means to keep political money coming in, since he also uses that for expenses that can’t be charged to the state.
The lame duck trying not to seem too lame, still raising money to covert trips to Turkey and Dubai, is the theory that seems most plausible.
If he is going to run again he’s going to have to make up for what everyone agrees is a horrible veto. In today’s WacoTrib they have this editorial, Undoing Perry’s brutal veto. There’s much more from Kuff and Burka on this.