Rick Perry disavows his own book...before he was for it?

[HomerJS]

The latest GOP hopeful Rick Perry flips-flops and then flips back again on the subject of social security and medicare. Perry published the book Fed Up just 9 months ago. I think he'll have a tough time with this one...

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2011/08/22/300479/rick-perry-disavows-fed-up/

Here is the flip-flop

Last November, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) published Fed Up, a 240-page ode to tentherism, which argues that everything from child labor laws to the Clean Air Act to Medicare violates the Constitution. As it turns out, however, claiming that America’s entire social safety net is unconstitutional isn’t a very popular position — so Perry’s now trying to take it all back just one week into his presidential campaign:

[Perry's] communications director, Ray Sullivan, said Thursday that he had “never heard” the governor suggest [Social Security] was unconstitutional. Not only that, Mr. Sullivan said, but “Fed Up!” is not meant to reflect the governor’s current views on how to fix the program. [...]

In an interview, Mr. Sullivan acknowledged that many passages in Mr. Perry’s “Fed Up!” could dog his presidential campaign. The book, Mr. Sullivan said, “is a look back, not a path forward.” It was written “as a review and critique of 50 years of federal excesses, not in any way as a 2012 campaign blueprint or manifesto,” Mr. Sullivan said.

Now here comes the back breaking flip back.

On Sunday evening, at Mr. Perry’s first campaign stop in Iowa, a questioner asked the governor to talk about how he would fix the country’s rickety entitlement programs. Mr. Perry shot back: “Have you read my book, ‘Fed Up!’ Get a copy and read it.”

 

[nick1985]

thinkprogress

lol

 

[Thump553]

He and Romney together could have a great four person debate (assuming they each limit themselves to only two positions per issue).

I think Perry's stature as the supposed Savior (captialization intended) of the GOP is fading fast. I wonder who will be the next big thing? I remain convinced that Chris Christie will not run this time, no matter what.

 

[xj0hnx]

Thinkprogress linking to Thinkprogress for interpretations of his book, claiming he's disavowing it, yet quoting him telling people to get it and read it? lol Thinkprogress, I don't think I've seen a story from there yet that isn't full of holes in logic and/or truth.

 

[nick1985]

^

this.

But to the OP I'm sure thinkprogress is a shining beacon of truth compared to Fox News. Isn't that right OP?

 

[TheSlamma]

Thinkregress

 

[QuantumPion]

Was Obama a flip-flopper for passing Obamacare even though it didn't include single-payer medicine, which was his stated goal? Same logic with Perry. There is nothing inconsistent about saying social security is bad but does not need to be instantly eliminated.

 

[nick1985]

Was Obama a flip-flopper for passing Obamacare even though it didn't include single-payer medicine, which was his stated goal? Same logic with Perry. There is nothing inconsistent about saying social security is bad but does not need to be instantly eliminated.

Yeah but to a blind partisan like the OP, there is no comparison.

 

[woolfe9999]

Thinkprogress linking to Thinkprogress for interpretations of his book, claiming he's disavowing it, yet quoting him telling people to get it and read it? lol Thinkprogress, I don't think I've seen a story from there yet that isn't full of holes in logic and/or truth.

Which part of TP's analysis do you disagree with? That the book claims all these federal programs are unconstitutional, or that he is at least disavowing the idea of getting rid of these programs now? It seems that both of these things are objectively verifiable and not really a matter of opinion.

 

[soundforbjt]

Attack the messenger, not the guy who disagrees now with what he "wrote" 9 months ago.

 

[GarfieldtheCat]

thinkprogress

lol

What brilliant and typically insightful posting. If that website said 2+2=4, I guess you would deny it?

Anyway, is Slate far-right enough for you to believe?

Link

Or CBS:
Link

OR WP?
Link

Funny how you cannot comment on the facts, only the messenger.

Now that you have "right wing approved" websites saying the same thing, would like to comment on his total flip-flop?

 

[woolfe9999]

Attack the messenger, not the guy who disagrees now with what he "wrote" 9 months ago.

Right, I don't see attacking the messenger here since it really isn't a matter of opinion that he wrote all those programs are unconstitutional in that book, and that he is now at the very least waffling on the subject when asked. I've seen clips of him doing that very thing, a major presidential candidate refusing to take a position on something so critical as whether we should keep or disband social security.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

No surprise here, Perry is GUMBY the amazing bendable polititian. You can mold him into any position you want to.

Yesterday federal government is bad and he will lead his state to suceed and has no intention of ever running for President, Today federal government is good and he wants to be President. Yesterday Medicare and SS are unconstitutional evils, Today he realizes he needs senior votes to have any chance to get elected so all of a sudden SS and Medicare arent so bad.

And he has only begun to put his foot in his mouth, he's not smart enough to forsee the future consequences of his actions. Remember this guy is an Aggie that graduated with a 2 point grade average, he's not even smart enough to be a good dirt farmer.

 

[theeedude]

Government hands off my Medicare!

 

[Drako]

Disavoes?

Interesting

And thinkprogress.org, seriously?

 

[woolfe9999]

I somewhat disagree with Think Progress's use of the term "disavow" (misspelled by the OP) here. If you listen to Perry's actual statements, I think it's quite a bit worse than that. He states in Fed Up that SS, Medicare and other federal programs are unconstitutional. The trouble is he now neither disavows nor affirms that. When asked if we should disband those programs, he says things like, "I think we should have a conversation with the American people about how to go forward on those programs." (That's nearly an exact quote IIRC.)

What the hell does that mean? Either they're unconstitutional or they're not. If they're unconstitutional, it isn't a supposed to be a matter of public opinion whether we keep them or not. There is no straddling a "middle ground" when it comes to things which are "unconstitutional." He he either needs to say he no longer believes they are unconstitutional, or say he still believes that and therefore they must be disbanded.

Unlike many, I don't have a problem with a candidate changing his mind on an issue, because people do in fact change their minds. But that isn't really what's happening here. What's happening, rather, is that Perry wants to have his cake and eat it too. He wants to tout the book in order to appeal to tea partiers but decline to take a firm stance on a massively important issue so that he can preserve his electability.

Regardless of anyone's opinion about Think Progress, Perry is in a serious bind with this book of his. He took a position that is very politically unpopular in that book, and he's going to have to figure out how to articulate a coherent position before too long, because the waffling isn't going to cut it for much longer. If he keeps dodging these questions, more and more people will take notice, including even those on the far right who want to see him clearly affirm the position he took in his book.

 

[PokerGuy]

thinkprogress

lol

This. Sorry, can't take any drivel from that source seriously.

 

[PokerGuy]

When asked if we should disband those programs, he says things like, "I think we should have a conversation with the American people about how to go forward on those programs." (That's nearly an exact quote IIRC.)

Saying you think something is unconstitutional is not the same as saying it needs to be disbanded now. You can always say that while you think they are unconstitutional, 1) the courts have ruled differently, and 2) you want to keep the programs but done in a different way so as to be constitutional, 3) amend the constitution to allow for such programs.

 

[soundforbjt]

This. Sorry, can't take any drivel from that source seriously.

What about the two right-leaning sources saying the same thing?

 

[woolfe9999]

This. Sorry, can't take any drivel from that source seriously.

Then use what brain you have. Read Perry's book, or excerpts from it, then listen to how he answers questions about the issues he discusses in that book. No need to involve Think Progress or any other intermediary.

Your response is of course typical of the brain dead partisan, be it on the left or the right. If you can just criticize the source you don't need to consider the issue.

I think it's just fine if conservatives want to stick their head in the sand about this, particularly those who support Perry. He clearly has a major problem with this book and it's going to come up over and over again in both the primary and, if he gets the nomination, in the general election, and it should.

 

[woolfe9999]

Saying you think something is unconstitutional is not the same as saying it needs to be disbanded now. You can always say that while you think they are unconstitutional, 1) the courts have ruled differently, and 2) you want to keep the programs but done in a different way so as to be constitutional, 3) amend the constitution to allow for such programs.

I can't agree with your number 1 proposition. If a POTUS or any member of Congress believes that something is unconstitutional, they should be working to disband it regardless of what the courts say, other than your second proposition, i.e. that you may want to modify it to make it constitutional, or amend the constitution, as you say. The trouble is, Perry has not taken your positions 2 or 3. Instead, he's waffling on the issue. Saying "I'll do whatever the American people want to do" is a copout when the issue is the Constitutionality of basically most of what the federal government does.

I don't have a problem with whatever stance Perry wants to take on these issues, but he is a major presidential candidate and he needs to have a stance and quit waffling.

 

[jhbball]

Yeah but to a blind partisan like the OP, there is no comparison.

irony alert #5024

 

[Macamus Prime]

Thinkprogress is running a story on how the sky is blue.

The armchair detectives of these forums soon prove the sky is NOT blue,... simply by stating "LOL!!!!shift+1!!!! Teh STINKSprogresss is teh stooopids!!!!!"

Said armchair detectives are then asked to design, build and fly a rocket to the moon. When asked to provide progress on their efforts, they reply with; ,... lol, wut? U r dumb,....

<.<

>.>

 

[trenchfoot]

Thinkprogress is running a story on how the sky is blue.

The armchair detectives of these forums soon prove the sky is NOT blue,... simply by stating "LOL!!!!shift+1!!!! Teh STINKSprogresss is teh stooopids!!!!!"

Said armchair detectives are then asked to design, build and fly a rocket to the moon. When asked to provide progress on their efforts, they reply with; ,... lol, wut? U r dumb,....

<.<

>.>

LOL, this reminds me of that CarFax commercial and the salesmen who waffle on the CarFax requests.

Show us the CarFax Perry. lol

 

[Ausm]

This. Sorry, can't take any drivel from that source seriously.

I say the same thing about Fux News.