It’s not the top story as I write this, but here’s the screencap from earlier this afternoon:
That link went to this piece by Texas liberal James “Bush’s Brain” Moore, who’s suddenly the hottest ticket in cable news for his willingness to tell panicky leftists that Perry will succeed in bringing about the wingnut apocalypse that Bush only dared dream of. Why is utterly predictable hackery running in a slot that’s normally reserved for hard news? You already know why.
When Bush came to Austin, he held private meetings with each of the 181 state senators and representatives from both parties. He asked them what their legislative agenda included, shared what was on his radar and discussed how they might work together. An astonishing notion, cooperation, but in politics common sense often passes for genius.
Perry, though, was having none of that stinking compromise and kumbaya business. A coalition of hard-right conservatives had taken control of the Legislature, and they weren’t interested in a governor who cut deals. But they didn’t have to push Perry to the right-hand edge of their flat earth; he bravely led them…
Bush might have contemplated reductions in health care for budget cuts and forced up your property taxes with a legislative shell game, but he would have at least felt bad about it. Perry would tell you either not to get sick or make enough money to buy your own damned health care and shut up and pay your property taxes because we need you to underwrite all the tax breaks we give corporations coming to Texas because they are going to make campaign donations.
Perry thinks of W as a country club Republican, a politician too willing to work out deals. Bush doesn’t think of Perry much at all. The people who want Jesus as a screensaver on every computer in public schools, call women who have had abortions “baby killers,” think that being a homosexual is a “lifestyle choice,” and are convinced that humans once saddled up and rode west on dinosaurs; these people all made Bush uncomfortable. But Perry loves them. He shares many of their beliefs. They helped elect him governor.
Thus does the new Hitler become the reluctant Hitler in hindsight. Elsewhere in the piece we discover (a) Bush dressed like less of a poseur than Perry and (b) both men were cheerleaders in college, which should be disqualifying because, and I quote, “No one has yet adequately explained how America can elect cheerleaders to the position of national quarterback.” Top story today. CNN.com
GWB is a Republican but no conservative. He was good on national defense. He was a big government advocate. The massive prescription drug program was vote buying of the first order.
We shall see @ Perry. He’s a Republican so you can bet the media club will vet him.