Posted on 08/17/2011 4:41:52 PM PDT by Brices Crossroads
Texas, we have a problem. Your GOP governor is running for president against Barack Obama. Yet, one of his most infamous acts as executive of the nation's second-largest state smacks of every worst habit of the Obama administration. And his newly crafted rationalizations for the atrocious decision are positively Clintonesque.
In February 2007, Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed a shocking executive order forcing every sixth-grade girl to submit to a three-jab regimen of the Gardasil vaccine. He also forced state health officials to make the vaccine available "free" to girls ages 9 to 18. The drug, promoted by manufacturer Merck as an effective shield against the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV) and genital warts, as well as cervical cancer, had only been approved by the Food and Drug Administration eight months prior to Perry's edict.
Gardasil's wear-off time and long-term side effects have yet to be determined. "Serious questions" remain about its "overall effectiveness," according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Even the chair of the federal panel that recommended Gardasil for children opposes mandating it as a condition of school enrollment. Young girls and boys are simply not at an increased risk of contracting HPV in the classroom the way they are at risk of contracting measles or other school-age communicable diseases.
Perry defenders pointed to a bogus "opt-out" provision in his mandate "to protect the right of parents to be the final authority on their children's health care." But requiring parents to seek the government's permission to keep an untested drug out of their kids' veins is a plain usurpation of their authority. Translation: Ask your bureaucratic overlord to determine if a Gardasil waiver is right for you.
Libertarians and social conservatives alike slammed Perry's reckless disregard for parental rights and individual liberty. The Republican-dominated legislature also balked. In May 2007, both chambers passed bills overturning the governor's unilaterally imposed health order.
Fast-forward five years. After announcing his 2012 presidential bid this weekend, Perry now admits he "didn't do my research well enough" on the Gardasil vaccine before stuffing his bad medicine down Texans' throats. On Monday, he added: "That particular issue is one that I readily stand up and say I made a mistake on. I listened to the legislature ... and I agreed with their decision."
Perry downplayed his underhanded maneuver as an aberrational "error," and then — gobsmackingly — he spun the debacle as a display of his great character: "One of the things I do pride myself on, I listen. When the electorate says, 'Hey, that's not what we want to do,' we backed up, took a look at what we did."
Are these non-apology apologies enough to quell the concerns of voters looking for a presidential candidate who will provide a clear, unmistakable contrast to Barack Obama? Not by a long shot.
How Obama-like was this scandal? Let us count the ways:
TRAMPLING OF THE DELIBERATIVE PROCESS
Since Day One, President Obama has short-circuited transparency, public debate and congressional oversight. How can Perry effectively challenge the White House's czar fetish, stealth recess appointments, selective waiver-mania and backdoor legislating through administrative orders when Perry himself employed the very same process as governor? Not only did Perry defend going above the heads of elected state legislators, but his office also falsely claimed the legislature had no right to repeal the executive order. "The order is effective until Perry or a successor changes it, and the Legislature has no authority to repeal it," Perry spokeswoman Krista Moody told The Washington Post in February 2007.
When both the House and Senate repealed the law six weeks later, Perry did not — as he now claims — listen humbly or "agree with their decision."
HUMAN SHIELD DEMAGOGUERY.
In response to the legislature's rebuke, the infuriated governor attacked those who supported repeal as "shameful" spreaders of "misinformation" who were putting "women's lives" at risk. Borrowing a tried-and-true Alinskyite page from the progressive left, Perry surrounded himself with female cervical cancer victims and deflected criticism of his imperial tactics with emotional anecdotes.
He then lionized himself and the minority of politicians who voted against repeal of his Gardasil order. "They will never have to think twice about whether they did the right thing. No lost lives will occupy the confines of their conscience, sacrificed on the altar of political expediency." Perry, of course, has now put his own ghastly Gardasil order on that same altar — but with no apology to all those he demonized and exploited along the way.
CRONYISM.
Most noxious of all, Perry wraps his big government health mandate in the "pro-life" mantle. But the do-gooder theater is a distraction from the business-as-usual back-scratching and astro-turfing that are Obama hallmarks. Perry's former chief of staff Mike Toomey is a top Merck lobbyist. Toomey's mother-in-law headed a Merck-funded front group pushing vaccination mandates. And Merck's political action committee pitched in $6,000 to Perry's re-election campaign in 2007.
The PerryCare executive fiat was not simply a one-off mistake explained away by lack of "research." It exposed a fundamental lapse in both political and policy judgments, an appalling lack of ethics and a disturbing willingness to smear principled defenders of limited government who object to the Nanny State using their children as guinea pigs.
Trusting Rick Perry's tea party credentials is a perilous shot in the dark.
Perry lost me just on amnesty.....the rest of his rotten history is just icing on the cake.
Have you ever seen a time when Sarah Palin hasn't been loving life? This woman has been through what no other political candidate in the past 50 years - including Reagan - has been subjected to and is no worse for wear.
Not many people could have endured what she has in the past 30 months and kept on smiling.
Exactly. Apparently some have never heard of HB 1098.
Most of these posts are hit and run smears full of half truths and lies.
Like falsely accusing Perry of millions of dollars of kickbacks.
Preach to them about the lies and not me about telling the truth about these non stop Perry trashing sessions which are seem a little more than planned.
The fact you think these posters all have good intentioned is rather odd considering the non stop astroturfing by paid posters that goes on here all the time. As for Michelle post , she goes off on her high horse and gets shrill too.
I like Malkin but I don't follow her or anyone else blindly.
The progressive introduction of vaccines to infants exactly tracks the increasing incidence of Autism, and some other similar behaviorial syndromes.
I’m sure that you’d like to dismiss that fact, so go ahead and do so. It won’t go away though.
His liberal positions on illegal immigration are disturbing. But his endorsement of pro-abortion Rudy Giuliani I find unforgivable.
I don’t find txroadkill’s post any less informative than your post.
Your charge that it’s “spam” is ludicrous**. You’re entitled to your opinion, but that browbeating crap when someone disagrees with you is over the top.
** However, if you prefer, call the txroadkill post “spam”, then admit your OP is “spam” as well. Fair is fair.
Perry has an absolutely crappy record, and I cannot imagine a single legitimate reason to try to dismiss that fact.
We have one excellent candidate and two very good runners up, all of which lack any semblance of the level of negatives that surround Perry.
Nothing in your links prove your point. There are no facts, just guesses.
I've participated in many Perry discussions in the past week. Anyone not advocating for the RINO Perry has been viciously attacked with said attack many times involving something anti-Palin.
I've done my homework on Perry. He is not a Tea Party candidate. He's not even conservative. I find it disturbing that so many here think this man is our best hope in preventing Obama from having a second term. Really disturbing.
Geeez, you’re truly going bezerk. Paid posters? Name one!
We’ve just come off a 47 DAY FReepathon! Accusations like yours against good, loyal members for merely disagreeing with YOU and for NOT jumping on Governor Perry’s EARLY band wagon is really over the top and certainly not in Free Republic’s best interest.
How short is your memory? Have you forgotten the years of anti-Palin posts? The smearing, trashing, slashing and shredding by posters against her here, that BTW, still goes on to this day on almost, if not every, Palin thread posted?
Free Republic will never be a chorus. It’s not set up that way, but paid posters by members whose names we see everyday?
Get real!!!
FYI = Governor Perry is an unknown governor/politician to many of us here, and for those who do know him, NOT ALL share your glorious opinion and those members are free to express their opinion, post articles about him, and otherwise post links to history and current events or opinion pieces about him, like this one by Michele Malkin!
I have not said anything unonscionable about him. I am still trying to learn, so spare me your rhetoric about your delusional *paid posters* until you can cite even ONE and prove it to Jim Robinson.
I have stated on several threads why I do not think Palin will not run. That reason is I listen to Dan Patrick on KSEV in Houston. He is a state senator here in Texas...and hopefully will be our next US Senator. He is friends with Perry and has discussed this issue more than once. He spoke about the friendship between Palin and Perry and that the Perry would not announce "yes" until he was sure Palin was a "no."
I also know someone very close to the governor who is in state politics who has said Palin has asured Gov. Perry she is out.
So...do I know what Palin WILL do? No. But I have a good idea based on some pretty reliable witnesses.
And I know what primaries are about...and primaries are ALSO about not beating up the candidates...mis-representing the issues to the extreme (and this issue is a classic example...being a democrat is another) to the point that they come out of the primary SO DAMAGED they can't beat the incumbant.
Why? Because you will look like a darn idiot sitting here trashing Perry for 6 months only to turn around and have to be a cheerleader to get Abaddon out of office.
"Perry is a DEMOCRAT! Perry is NOT a conservative. Perry is a RINO! Perry is NO BETTER THAN OBAMA!"
Perry wins the GOP Nomination....
"Ooops. Nevermind. Vote for Perry!
Yeah...You look like a fool.
Whoops, I forgot. Brave, faceless people who post under aliases (like you and me) are under constant attack.lol
Now...I know it must be something for young twerps like you to say "nonsense from the class of 1998"...especially when you ain't even a toddler out of diapers noob...but we we're the Monica Lewinsky class. Heck...you couldn't even manage a log in until after BHO got elected. So pardon me if I ignore you from now on.
You nailed it. This is worthy of a discussion, but Malkin way over-played in this one. This issue simply is about a 3 on a 10 scale. The illegal immigration problem is about the only major issue I have with Perry, and will evaluate how he handles it as a national candidate. Few are great on this issue, he's in the middle, and needs to present a reasonable plan to earn conservative votes. Bachmann gets a good grade, but as a third term congressman hasn't dealt with it the way a border state governor has.
Well, I guess that makes you one of those *paid* posters....LOL.
I’m still trying to learn about Governor Perry from both sides and I must admit, his most enthusiastic supporters are making it TOUGH!
I want to be able to really support and work hard for our eventual TEA PARTY GOP NOMINEEE, but I’ll be dmaned if I’m going to settle for another poseur only to be disappointed again! Oh, I might, vote for almost anyone, save for Romney, but I won’t get out and work for a less than solid TEA PARTY CREDENTIALED NOMINEE.
I’m holding out for Sarah Palin, (truly believe she’s running) and we’ll see how the MARATHON PRIMARIES SHAKE OUT!
God bless and protect Sarah Palin, her precious family and all her TEA PARTY patriot supporters and patriots everywhere!
GO SARAH! WE GOT YOUR BACK, YOU BETCHA!
I am really disappointed in this article by Ms. Malkin, which is over the top. One is that TX parents can OPT out of ANY vaccine. Two is that this did not pass the legislature, so this is a non-issue and happened 4 years ago. Third is that from a public health stand point, vaccines must be given prior to becoming sexually active and over a substantial period of time to be effective. If someone becomes ill, then the vaccines would be useless. Fourth is that Ms Malkin has trashed a good GOP candidate that could likely beat Obama. The other candidates are not likely to be able to succeed.
I have no problem with people reporting facts, but there are freepers who are intent on destroying any candidate other than their own, without being honest about their agenda.
///
i agree!
...but some do that for Perry also. (like Huck.)
in fairness, do you complain about them also?
a few days ago, i decided to support Perry.
previously, i’ve criticised Palin, Bachmann, and Cain.
but in the past week, i have seen more vicious personal attacks by Perry supports, than all the others put together.
that was why i started reading more. and started learning about not just Gardasil, but pro Amnesty, anti AZ law,
running Al Gore’s election campaign, pro Islam, and much more.
( i don’t trust ANY person claiming to be evangelical,
who quotes from the Quran, and praises the religion,
that denies the divinity of Jesus,
and who’s followers kill our troops in the name of ! )
Michelle Malkin has endured as much vicious attacks by the left as Palin. and now i seen Perry supporters killing the messenger. Mark Levine IS a true conservative, and he also has serious problems with Perry. So Perry supporters can start trashing him too. ...that will win more votes.
Illegal immigrants cost TEXAS 17 BILLION, EACH YEAR.
costs CA 21 billion each year. MAJOR problem.
you want Perry to solve it, when he opposes even the AZ law?
Islam. major problem. a regional WAR may start next month,
when the U.N. creates Palestine.
you want Perry to solve it, quoting the Quran?
Gardsasil is simply an example, of overreaching by executive order, and not listening to the people.
we already HAVE that in the WH. Why bother with Perry?
Texas government has increased under Perry.
we need someone who will CUT spending and government size.
is there ANY evidence, that Perry will do it in the WH ?
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