AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — If Texas Gov. Rick Perry runs for president, he'd bring along strong conservative credentials. He denounces Social Security and other entitlement programs, and he represents activists in fights on social issues such as abortion and gay rights.
Even within his own party, Perry is a rabble-rouser. He complains that too few politicians are standing up for their conservative beliefs.
Perry puts his beliefs on display in his books and his legislative agenda in Texas.
He's advocated laws that require a sonogram before an abortion and that force police to enforce federal immigration law.
But most of all, he believes in state's rights and says that's where laws concerning marijuana and gay marriage should be decided.
Whether those politics can win him the presidency is an open question.
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