Texas Gov. Rick Perry seems to have picked up a few useful tips from real estate mogul and one-time presidential candidate Donald Trump. His use of provocative language such as calling Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” and that the Obama administration is “socialist” is right out of the Donald’s playbook,
The Washington Post’s political blog The Fix reports.
“In the days following businessman/reality television star Donald Trump’s decision not to run for president, we penned a piece that examined the lesson the Donald taught the GOP field,” the Fix wrote. “That lesson? That Republican voters badly wanted someone to fight President Obama, rhetorically, on every front and at all times.
“Trump chose an issue — Obama’s citizenship — that wasted his fundamental insight because it was so outside the mainstream and so easily proven false. But the seed of Trump’s idea — casting oneself as a fighter willing to take it to Obama — is now bearing fruit for Perry, who met with the ‘Apprentice’ star Wednesday night.”
In a recent interview with Time Magazine, Perry acknowledged that some establishment Republicans might find “some of my rhetoric to be inflammatory … but I’m really talking to the American citizen out there,” adding, “I think Americans are just tired of this political correctness and politicians who are tiptoeing around important issues.”
The Post said that while many attribute Perry’s frontrunner status to his conservative positions, it’s the way he talks that may be more important.
“He is unapologetically confrontational — both with Obama and his Republican rivals. He is proudly anti-intellectual. And he is openly disdainful of everyone and everything in Washington, D.C.,” the Fix wrote.
“In some ways, what Perry says is besides the point. It’s how he says it that matters more to Republican voters desperate for someone they think gets it and is willing to go all out to beat the president next fall. Tone always matters in politics, but especially so in presidential politics.”
The article goes on to contrast Perry with another conservative candidate, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a “nice guy” no longer in the race.
“In his Time interview, Perry attributed his quick rise in the race to Republican voters ‘looking for someone whom they can be excited about.’ That sentiment is the right one, although we’d say it slightly differently. Perry is the fighter Republicans have been waiting for. Expect him to keep swinging,” the Fix wrote in conclusion.
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