Photo credit: Dave Davidson – Prezography.com
After former Governor Rick Perry shared his remarks with Dallas County Republicans he gave about a five minute press avail for the members of the media who were present.
He was asked if he was ready for the Iowa Caucus, and Perry stated that he doesn’t want to get ahead of the process as he’s not declared candidate.
“Before you can win a gold medal you have got to be prepared. That is what this is all about,” Perry said.
He reflected on his brief 2012 campaign. “Good lessons, good, but frustrating lessons learned in 2011 is that you need to be healthy. You need to be prepared, you need to spend a lot of time in New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina – those early states,” he said.
“And that is what we are doing. We are doing the preparatory work. I think last year was a good example of coming to Iowa often, helping candidates, and we were here just as much as any of the other prospective candidates. We’ll continue that very steady diet of coming to Iowa,” he added.
Perry did not enter the 2012 race until the day of the Ames Straw Poll which is awfully late for candidates to jump in. He missed the straw poll and made his announcement at the RedState Gathering. 2012 Iowa Caucus winner Rick Santorum started coming to Iowa a year out and made it around the state. 2008 Iowa Caucus winner Mike Huckabee also spent a lot of time in Iowa.
He also had back surgery shortly before running, and he affirmed to the media present that his health was fine.
Another reporter standing in front of me mentioned to Perry his new Iowa hire, Jamie Johnson, wrote a controversial email in 2011 while working for Santorum. Johnson wrote, “The question then comes, ‘Is it God’s highest desire, that is, his biblically expressed will, … to have a woman rule the institutions of the family, the church, and the state?’ ”
Johnson had sent this email to a friend in June of 2011, and he didn’t intend for it to be made public which it was in the fall.
This reporter then asked Perry, “Is that your view?” Graciously Perry took the question (because I’m waiting for Democrat candidates to be asked by mainstream press if they agree with every position their staff may hold).
“I think that my last three chiefs of staff in the governor’s office were women so I would suggest to you that we had some extraordinary talent that was right there at the top of my organization. I am the candidate and my views are the ones that matter, not someone who works with me. The next President of the United States is going to be decided on who has the best vision, optimistic vision, who understands how to get this country back on track, not their gender,” Perry stated.
Well said Governor as if a candidate should be held responsible for or shares every belief by every single staff member.
You can watch the the press avail below or here.