Replies

"Ron Paul is a deranged fraud."

Hey, if I were saying Paul's a saint, you might have something there. But I'm not. I'm just pointing out that all the stuff Paul's said here is absolutely grade-A true about Mitt Perry, yet that stuff somehow doesn't get posted. Meanwhile, all the slams Rick Romney is posting about Paul in RESPONSE to Paul's ad, that is here as if that somehow defuses Paul's truth-telling, that crap is plastered all over and bumped.

But say what you want about Paul--it doesn't make Mitt Perry a conservative. Perry's got a record of RINOism going back to his party-hopping days. For example, sure, Perry was a Democrat when he endorsed Dukakis and Al Gore. But after he hopped parties, in 2008—a bit before he was running for President—he endorsed...Rudy Giuliani!?!?!? GIULIANI? A well known gay-marriage-lovin’ pro-choice liberal Yankee Republican is the best the “conservative” governor of Texas can think of? But he did eventually endorse McCain, too (in February, while a host of others were still alive and kicking).

In 2007—a bit before he was running for President—Perry issued an executive order to make Gardasil, a new vaccine for the human papillomavirus, a cause of cervical cancer, mandatory for girls entering sixth grade. Even if parents were given the chance to have their child opt out, Merck, the ONE company that produced the vaccine, had hired his former chief of staff to be its lobbyist.

Ol’ conservative Rick’s slush funds for his political pals, the state “tech” and “enterprise” funds, are paid for out of state coffers. Imagine, an executive branch official with a large pool of money spent on his cronies (say, Obama and big brokerage firms and bankers)? Heck, Obama has just the one fund—Perry has all kinds of TARPs in Texas!

For example, ol’ conservative Rick’s set up state funding for sports building expenses, including funds tapped for Formula One track in Austin. Because when you think of conservatives, it’s a given they want their taxes to pay for European race track building!

Perry tried to convince the Texas Legislature to use a portion of the Teachers’ Retirement Fund to finance start-up businesses. He tried to take out life insurance on all Texas’ retired teachers—not that they or their families would see any money from those policies (see “Dead Peasant Insurance”).

In 2003—a bit before he was running for President—Perry decided he’d use Texas condemnation power to take Texans’ private property, have a company from Spain build a toll road on it, for all practical purposes own the property for years and set toll rates themselves, and, of course, charge Texans to use it. Now, of course, he’s all about eminent domain reform (as of June, anyway)!

He tried to privatize—sell—the Texas lottery to get money now so his budget wouldn’t have to have extra taxes or cuts. Never mind that the money it would make in the short run wouldn’t come close to the long run loss to the state. Of course, he’s against gambling in casinos in Texas, though, because he’s well paid by casinos outside Texas to believe that.

Rick spoke out against using E-Verify to prevent illegal immigrants from getting jobs as state employees, who get their paychecks from the taxpayers. He insisted it “would not make a hill of beans’ difference.”

In 2000, when small government Rick was elected, total spending by the Texas state government was approximately $49 billion. In 2010, it was approximately $90 billion. According to usdebtclock.org, the debt to GDP ratio in Texas is 22.9% and the debt per citizen is $10,645. In California (a total financial basket case), the debt to GDP ratio is just 18.7% and the debt per citizen is only $9932. The total debt of the Texas government has more than doubled since Rick Perry became governor. But of course, Rick Perry is all about small government—now that he’s running in the GOP presidential primary.

Even with the Texas oil boom, 23 states have a lower unemployment rate. And from December 2007 and April 2011, weekly wages in the U.S. increased by about 5 percent. Texas wages increased by just 0.6% over that same period.

Texas insurance rates in just about every field are TERRIBLE, and it’s largely because government intrusion is all on the side of the insurers, who have their buddy Perry carrying their water. Imagine if Florida had basically let insurers walk away from the Homestead hurricane—Perry was even trying hard to get that to happen in Texas with Ike!

Rick Perry has repeatedly raised taxes and fees while he has been governor. Texans are faced with significantly higher taxes and fees than before Rick Perry was elected. The business margins tax that Rick Perry pushed through in 2007 meant that Texas companies now pay taxes based on the total revenue of their companies, so small companies pay taxes on revenue, not income or profits. So you own a business, you pay Texas corporate taxes even if you are losing money! Of course, this was supposed to drop our property taxes in Texas. But...um...the highest effective property tax rates in the country are in Wisconsin and Texas, where rates exceed $18 per $1,000 of property value! Texas might not have an income tax, but imagine what that looks like when figured into your monthly mortgage bill!

And in a 2006 editorial—a bit before he was running for President—Rick called putting a fence along the border with Mexico “cost prohibitive.” But now, of course, this year, he’s against sanctuary cities and illegal immigration, talking tough by sending the bill to Big Sis, after he’s run up the tab himself.

But Ron Paul's a "deranged fraud," so that must make all Perry's RINOism go away, eh? Insulting someone else suddenly makes Mitt Perry into a conservative?