Texas Gov. Rick Perry has been indicted on abuse of power charges. Heh.
For the sake of fairness let us acknowledge that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is being investigated for doing something similar to what Perry is accused of doing, and it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Cuomo is guilty. If Cuomo is indicted, I bet it won’t happen until after the September primary, where he faces a more progressive challenger. But that’s another post.
For background [on the Perry indictment], see Think Progress and a somewhat more cautious analysis from Texas Monthly.
Ooops!
I didn’t put an * in p*rn!
My bad!
If Perry’s tried in the “right” court, is there a jury that will convict him?
Tom DeLay’s still out there.
OMG! Goodhair Perry strikes again! I hope he gets busted to the wide-maybe that’ll happen. What terrifies me is that he just might get to be President; after all, George Bush did it.
Speaking as a former Correctional Officer, I can tell you that drunks aren’t the nicest people in the world especially when they get busted. So Lehmberg was a jerk in jail;what does this have to do with anything? Perry is a proven idiot/asshole. That has a LOT to do with everything in my book.
Taking a torpedo amidships doesn’t guarantee you will sink, but it does guarantee that the delivery of cargo will be delayed. The indictment is the story of the moment but the real story is the one that will play out in the national media in the months Rick Perry is trying to build presidential momentum.
The cronyism in the original investigation of grants awarded to political favorites was little league Texas politics that would have died in Texas. Clark Kent, the guv of Texas, gave the story national legs by obstructing justice. He tried to force the democrat behind the investigation into resigning so he could replace her with a republican who would cover up the scandal. When she refused, he used line-item authority to defund the department doing the investigation. Perry will defend that his actions were legal, and therefore moral. Voters in the middle won’t buy it.
I will make two predictions that I’m willing to bet on. Perry won’t occupy a jail cell for years and years – but he won’t occupy the White House, either. With Christie’s substantial ass in a similar wringer (no jail – no White House) – the question is whether Jeb will enter the race late as a dark horse savior. I’m not sure he wants to run – there’s lots of easier ways to make piles of money for a Bush and the allure of fame and glory might not be there for him after both previous Bush presidencies ended sadly.