Politex

Fort Worth lawmakers rally for Medicaid spending in Texas

AUSTIN - Fort Worth lawmakers were among about 200 people who rallied Wednesday on the state capitol steps, calling for Texas to spend more money on Medicaid - a move that potentially could bring in $100 billion in new federal funds to the state to cover health care for more residents.

"We know Gov. Perry is completely out of touch with the reality that's facing Texans in the area of health care," state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, told the crowd. "He is out of touch with Texans who have to wait until they are so sick they have to go to the emergency room so they can get health care."

State Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, urged the crowd not to be discouraged by the inaction thus far on the issue.

"Where there's a will, there's a way," Burnam said.

Expanding Medicaid to cover more adults is a key part of the federal government's Affordable Health Care Act. But Texas thus far has declined to embrace it.

Texas could get $100 billion in federal funds for a $15 billion investment in state funds, according to one report.

The noon rally was sponsored by Austin Interfaith, which includes leaders and clergy from numerous religions and denominations.

- Gordon Dickson

@gdickson

Perry Rocks the Gridiron in D.C.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry made his comeback Saturday night at D.C.'s Gridiron dinner - the political/press bash (white tie and tails, no less) that lets reporters make fun of politicos, and in Perry's case, let him make fun of himself.

It was kind of like Perry at the Improv - epecially when, in one of the night's biggest lines, he said, "The weakest Republican field in history and they kicked my butt!"

"So, OK, let's get my campaign performance out of the way right up front," said Perry.

"Now, yes, I admit that I did accidentally say that the American Revolution occurred in the 16th century.

"Hey, folks, they call the 1500s the 16th century . . . the 1600s the 17th century . . . the 1700s the 18th century and so forth.

"See, there's a flaw in the system. . .

"Now, yes, it' true I also accidentally said the voting age was 21. What I did was I asked for the support of those, quote, who will be 21 by November 12th . . . which isn't even election day.

"So, yeah, I lose the voters under 21, but they would have voted on the wrong day anyway.

"At that point my gaffes started to cancel each other out.

"Some said my debating style is very similar to that other Texas Cicero, George W. Bush…

…The only difference between George and me is that I say, 'Oops.'

. . .

"With all my gaffes, people forget that I once led the Republican primary race. It was the most exhilarating 3 hours of my life."

Here's how Perry singed his GOP opponents:

Mitt Romney: "You know, it was weird standing next to him at the debates. I kept waiting for him to say, 'Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon?'

But look, I like Mitt Romney as much as one really good-looking man can like another really good-looking man . . . without breaking the law in Texas."

Rick Santorum: "I used to have so much fun needling Rick. I'd say, 'Now, tell me again, which one of the Village People were you? The Indian or the policeman?'"

Ron Paul: "I got to know him a bit. He reminds you so much of a crazy uncle - you kind of expect him to pull a nickel out of your ear."

Newt Gingrich. "He's like the Pillsbury Dough Boy with this really huge brain. I endorsed Newt because he told me if he's elected, he'd name me the commander of Moon Base Alpha."

And sitting at the head table with him was the Democratic speaker for the evening: DNC Chairwoman, Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

"Even though Debbie and I are from different parties, she has been very complimentary. Earlier she told me, 'Rick, you don't know how sorry I am you won't be your party's nominee.'

"That's really sweet, darlin'," Perry said in what turned out to be a real crowd-pleasing moment.

"President Obama couldn't be here. I read he was in Korea at the DMZ. Would someone tell me why he had to go all the way to Korea to get a driver's license?….Must have something to do with that birth certificate thing."

Perry set his sights on Leon Panetta - who was subbing for Obama. Only thing is that Perry had called for Panetta to resign. "I regret saying that — partly because he's sitting right here ... and partly because, ever since, we've had Predator drones circling the governor's mansion."

Perry got a standing ovation, but earlier he got a pretty good mocking from the Gridiron members, who in over-the-top cowboy gear (including a horse costume) sang, "They call this man Rick Perry," to the tune of "They call the wind Maria":

"Rick Perry blew debates around

And sent the pundits flyin'

When OOPS became my fav'rite sound

My race was clearly dyin'"

-- Maria Recio

In last 3 weeks of campaign, Perry raised less than $400,000, spent more than $3 million

Gov. Rick Perry's defunct presidential campaign struggled to stay afloat in its final weeks, according to a campaign finance report. 

Perry's campaign raised $389,000 in January and burned through $3.3 million, according to a report filed with the Federal Elections Commission.

Perry ended his campaign on Jan. 19 but has not yet shut down his presidential campaign account. At the end of the month, the campaign had $860,168 remaining.

Previous campaign finance reports showed that Perry's fundraising plunged near the end of 2011 as poor debate performances marred his standing in the polls.

According to his latest report, Perry's campaign spent much of its money on advertising in South Carolina. 

Last week, Salvatore Purpura, Perry's campaign treasurer, wrote a letter to the FEC asking to convert Perry's account into a political action committee, possibly a so-called Super PAC. Purpura wrote in the letter that the campaign had $270,000 in donations that could only be used for the general election.

-Aman Batheja

Poll: Santorum way ahead of Romney, Gingrich and Paul among Texas Republicans

A new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll released Monday morning shows Rick Santorum's support among Texas Republicans is almost equal to the combined support of his three leading rivals in the GOP primary.

Santorum drew 45 percent of the vote in the survey.  Newt Gingrich came in second with 18 percent support, followed by Mitt Romney at 16 percent and US Rep. Ron Paul, R-Lake Jackson, at 14 percent. 

The survey was conducted online Feb. 8-15 from a dataset of 800 Texas voters and then weighted to better match the overall Texas population. The presidential preference portion of the poll had a margin of error of 5.1 percentage points.  

The results suggest a major reshuffling of the presidential race in Texas in light of Gov. Rick Perry's exit from the race and Santorum's recent nationwide surge. Last month, a poll of Texas Republican primary voters from Public Policy Polling found Romney leading with 24 percent support followed closely by Gingrich at 23 percent and Perry at 18 percent. Santorum came in fourth at 15 percent followed by Paul at 12 percent.

This would be better news for Santorum if the Texas primary were taking place soon. It was originally scheduled for early March but has since been pushed back multiple times due to legal disptues over political maps. A federal judge recently said the primary would likely take place on May 29 but warned it could end up even later.

Santorum will be in North Texas this Thursday. He is scheduled to attend a Westlake fundraiser for the Red, White and Blue Fund, a Super PAC supporting his presidential campaign.

-Aman Batheja

Texans dominated funding of several Republican Super PACs

Texas connections abound in the campaign finance reports from Super PACs filed yesterday with the Federal Elections Commission.

Texans made up the majority of funding for at least five Super PACs involved in the presidential race.

Two wealthy Texans in particular, Harold Simmons of Dallas and Bob Perry of Houston, were especially active, giving to multiple groups. Both men previously helped fund Swiftboat Veterans for Truth, a group credited with undermining John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign against George W. Bush. 

Simmons is known as a pioneer of the leveraged buyout and is developing a controversial nuclear waste disposal site in West Texas. Bob Perry is the CEO of homebuilding giant Perry Homes.

Here's a closer look at how deep-pocketed Texans figured into Super PAC funding in 2011:

Perry's fundraising plunged in fourth quarter

Gov. Rick Perry's presidential campaign has filed its campaign fundraising report for the last three months of 2011 and it shows a major drop in donations following the campaign's gangbusters launch over the summer.   

Perry's campaign raised $2.9 million form October to December, less than a fifth of the $17.2 million it showed raising in its July-to-September report. That initial total was even more impressive considering that Perry's campaign had been active for about 40 days.

The stark decline in Perry's fundraising suggests high-profile stumbles during the fall debates impacted his ability to attract donors.   

The presidential campaign numbers may be somewhat misleading since some Perry backers also gave to separate Super PACs supporting Perry's bid.

Yet the latest figures provide a striking contrast to Perry's recent fundraising successes as governor.

Though he was operating on the national stage in his White House bid, Perry wasn't able to raise as much as he did in 2010 when he successfully won re-election against Republican US Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Democrat Bill White. Perry reported raising $28 million in his state account that year. From August to December of last year, his presidential campaign raised $20 million.

Here's a graph looking at Perry's fundraising history going back to 1997. Click on the graph for a closer look:

 

-Aman Batheja

Gingrich: Perry endorsement will make "an enormous difference in Texas"

Newt Gingrich spoke to PBS' Gwen Ifill today following Gov. Rick Perry's announcement that he was dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Gingrich.

"I think Gov. Perry actually endorsing me today was very helpful and I think will make a very big difference both around the country and an enormous difference in Texas," Gingrich said.

Here's the video:

-Aman Batheja

Perry and Gingrich: It's complicated

Gov. Rick Perry’s decision to end his presidential campaign and endorse former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich is sure to bring up more examination of the pair’s unusual history.

Before becoming primary rivals, Gingrich and Perry spent years as allies.

In 2010, Gingrich wrote a glowing foreword to Perry's last book, "Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America From Washington."

That year, the pair appeared together at a book signing at a Barnes & Noble in southwest Fort Worth. At the signing, Gingrich praised Perry's leadership and suggested President Obama seek out Perry for advice.

"I have to say there are very few people who I think could do a better job leading the country than Gov. Perry," Gingrich said.

Transcript of Gov. Rick Perry's speech ending his presidential campaign

Gov. Rick Perry ended his presidential campaign today in South Carolina, the same state he officially launched his presidential campaign in August. Below is a transcript of his remarks:

As I’ve stated numerous times during the campaign, this campaign has never been about the candidate. I ran for president because I love America. I love our people. I love our freedom and, matter of fact, this mission is greater than any one man.

As I’ve traveled across this great country, starting here in Charleston, going to New Hampshire, Iowa, California, down into Florida, numerous states in between obviously. I just covered this tremendous purpose, resiliency of our people. They’ve never lost hope despite the circumstances we find ourselves in. They haven’t stopped believing in the promise of America. They haven’t stopped believing in the American dream. Americans are down but we can never be counted out. We’re too great a people for that.

What’s broken in America is not our people, it’s our politics. And what we need in Washington is a place that is humbler with a federal government that is smaller so that our people can live freer.

 

From start to finish: A timeline of key moments in Rick Perry's presidential campaign

It's been nearly eight months since Texas Gov. Rick Perry first began speaking publicly about running for president. As he ends his presidential campaign this morning and endorses Newt Gingrich, here is a look back to the key moments of his presidential campaign with links to our coverage.

May 27, 2011: At a news conference near the end of the legislative session, Perry confirms he is thinking about running for president.

June 9, 2011: Several of Newt Gingrich’s senior campaign aides abruptly resign en masse, including Dave Carney and Rob Johnson, two former Perry advisers. The pair will eventually help Perry launch his presidential bid. 

June 18, 2011: Perry steals the show at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans, delivering an energetic speech that increases interest in him joining the presidential race.

Aug. 6, 2011: Perry is a featured speaker at The Response, a daylong prayer and fast at Houston’s Reliant Stadium that draws thousands in attendance and national attention due to Perry’s involvement. Organizers insisted the event was non-political though similar events have since been held in Iowa prior to that state's caucus and in South Carolina in advance of that state's primary.

Aug. 13, 2011: Perry makes if official, launching his campaign for president in South Carolina. "It is time to get America working again," Perry says. "That’s why, with the support of my family, and an unwavering belief in the goodness of America, I declare to you today my candidacy for President of the United States." Perry quickly jumps to the top of national polls.