Rick Perry: All Hat, No Cattle?

Image via WikipediaGovernor Rick Perry of Texas has leapfrogged into the lead among Republican hopefuls in the race for President Barack Obama's job in 2012.  Texans are all too familiar with Perry and his right-of-center positions, but north of the panhandle he might have trouble convincing voters that he's anything more than just another extremist in a GOP that's full of them.

• Perry's accused Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke of being "treasonous" for wanting to print more money in an economic crisis for political purposes, then threatened him Texas-style.
• The Governor was caught on tape explaining to an 11-year old why he thinks global warming/climate change is a hoax.  Oh, and he also doesn't think much of evolution either.  It's no accident Perry comes from a state where its social morals determine what goes into the school textbooks your kids read, no matter where you live.
• Yahoo News reports that Perry wrote a book detailing how he'd make over the Constitution if he were President.  Besides the usual Republican talking points (banning abortions and gay marriage, etc.), Perry would have Congress overriding Supreme Court decisions with a two-thirds vote, as well as taking away the right of voters to elect U.S. Senators, leaving that job to state legislatures.
• Perry's rhetoric is so anti-Washington that, if he could, he'd move the nation's capitol to Austin, Texas.

Both Perry and Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota are competing for the same conservative Christian-Tea Party voter, but the Governor has a decided advantage in corporate donations and experience.  However, if Sarah Palin finally decides to run, that could complicate things.  And former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts could slide on through to the GOP nomination.

Whether or not you think Governor Rick Perry is serious about what he believes in, or if he's just spinning Texas tall tales, there's no question he's a force to be reckoned with.  But do we really want another chief executive from the Lone Star State in the White House, after having just endured eight years of the previous occupant?