By Stephen Raines
Since December 21 2000 Rick Perry has served as Texas 47th Governor twice reelected by Texas voters. Throughout his term in office Governor Perry has proven himself to be a leader who does what he believes is right regardless of what critics may say. He faces critics boldly and without apology much like his political hero Texas icon Sam Houston.
Houston once espoused a motto Do right and damn the consequences. This fits Governor Perry and his style very well. The key term for discussion in the phrase of course is what is right in the opinion of Governor Perry and the Texas voter.
Most challengers defeat incumbent governors by running against the incumbents record and persuading voters toward unhappiness with that record. Governor Perry eagerly stands on his record as a conservative. His opponent in the Republican primary will also her record as a conservative. For today we will focus on Governor Perrys brand of conservatism.
A conservative by Governor Perrys definition espouses traditional values and business friendly solutions.
Traditional values include opposition to abortion including funding for abortion through any means and supports pro-life group positions on just about every subject including a requirement for parental consent for a minor to obtain an abortion and a ban on embryonic stem cell research.
Efforts to amend the state constitution to ban gay-lesbian marriage in any form recognized by the state have also been included in Governor Perrys agenda. States rights centers in his argument on the issue of gay rights. He carries this argument on states rights to many other concerns including opposition to funding mandates sent down from Washington D.C. and the federal government.
To this end he championed the cause to support a more rigorous interpretation of the 10th amendment to the US Constitution and supports efforts to refuse federal funds in the economic stimulus package promoted by President Barack Obama that required a permanent increase in benefits to unemployed workers.
For business friendly solutions Perry promotes a solid record for property tax reduction lower spending by state government lawsuit and medical malpractice reform economic growth through investment and opposition to tax increases.
His list of endorsements from business to social to conservative interest groups fairly represents his diligent work with the same groups on their key issues.
On property tax reduction in 2005 Perry signed a $15.7 billion property tax cut for homeowners and businesses that also included new taxpayer protections against appraisal increases. Governor Perry fought very hard to protect property owners from increases and persuaded legislators to approve the largest property tax cut in Texas history.
In response to an order by the Texas Supreme Court to change funding structures for public school finance Governor Perry appointed a commission led by former Comptroller John Sharp and Perrys former deputy Robert Howden to provide a solution. The Sharp-Howden commission developed an adjustment to the state franchise tax that closed loopholes for some businesses while changing the structure of the tax to a gross receipts based tax lowering the actual rate.
Many business groups supported the move to close loopholes because of the long-term benefit of a lowered rate.
For other business friendly solutions his record on reform of lawsuits and medical malpractice shines brightly. In 2002 and 2003 he led the battle to pass sweeping lawsuit reforms. Perry campaigned for candidates for the Texas Legislature that promised to vote with him on sweeping lawsuit reform.
Even Governor Perrys critics agree he helped swing the votes for measures that dramatically reduced lawsuits against medical providers. The Texas Medical Association brags that patients have better access to healthcare because thousands of doctors have returned to practice. Texans for Lawsuit Reform a conservative political group whose objective is to restore litigation to its traditional and appropriate role in our society credits Governor Perry for his record on their interests.
On economic growth through investment Perry made job creation a top priority of his administration. His office claims Texas has gained more than 630000 new jobs over the last three years. The Texas business climate has been ranked one of
the nations best by business interest magazines. Those same magazines applaud Governor Perry for his initiation and use of the Texas Enterprise Fund and the Texas Emerging Technology Fund.
Governor Perry also proudly promotes his record on government spending. In 2003 Governor Perry became the first governor since World War II to sign a budget that lowered state spending. Governor Perry lays claim to using his line item veto to cut over $2.5 billion in proposed spending. His office calculates that figure to be six times more than the last four Texas governors combined.
The brand of conservatism Governor Perry publicly supports mirrors his record on the issues.
For supporters of traditional values and business friendly solutions Governor Perry has fairly established a solid record as governor and has proven he should be trusted to continue in his role as governor.
