Today, former Republican Governor Rick Perry spoke at the Eagle Forum in St. Louis, Missouri and announced that he was suspending his presidential campaign. He noted that he believes the 2016 Republican field is the strongest the party has had “in a generation.” As a result, as he steps aside, he feels the GOP is “in good hands.” [emphasis mine]: :
When I gave my life to Christ, I said, “Your ways are greater than my ways. Your will is better than mine.
Today I say that His will remains a mystery, but some things have become clear.
That’s why today I’m suspending my campaign for President of the United States.
We have a lot of room to play – the best in a generation – so I step aside, knowing that our party is in good hands and as long as we listen to the people, the cause of conservatism will be there.
I share this news without regret. It has been a privilege and an honor to travel through this country, talk to the American people about their hopes and dreams, and see the optimism prevail despite a period of cynical politics.
As I approach the next chapter of my life, I do so with the love of my life by my side, Anita Perry. We have a house in the countryside, two lovely children and two adorable grandchildren, four dogs and the most lovely sunset from our porch you can imagine.
Life is good. And I am a blessed man.
Governor Perry talked about his early life as a Boy Scout, an Eagle Scout, his military service in the Air Force and selling Bibles door to door, which he believed prepared him for a career in politics. He was selling a message to people. He also criticized President Obama as a “separator who is dicing the electorate”; Congress for neglecting its constitutional duties, such as maintaining a sturdy military; and Washington for centralizing too much power in the hands of the political class. He also mentioned how our current foreign policy has “emboldened our adversaries,” allowed ISIS to gain a huge foothold in the Middle East, and ushered in the flawed Iran nuclear deal.
But he also touched on his history as governor, a history of creating more than a million jobs, securing the border, cutting taxes, passing balancing budgets and increasing high school graduation rates. This is a great narrative for a presidential bid, but like all national campaigns; you have to raise money.
In August, Katie wrote that the Perry campaign would stop paying its staff due to a lack of cash. By conservative estimates, candidates need to raise at least $75 million to overcome hurdles in early voting states. On August 25, Perry spokeswoman Lucy Nashed said some employees they went back to their salariesbut only in Iowa and South Carolina.
By tardy August, Perry’s staff at Iowa consisted of only one paid employee, strategist Jamie Johnson, According to Down Policy. The rest of the Iowa staff was laid off as the campaign tried to recalibrate its goals of mobilizing operations in South Carolina.
Until September 2 Washington Post. he wrote that Perry’s campaign was no longer providing wages to workers in New Hampshire:
In New Hampshire, Rick Perry’s presidential campaign has lost its entire staff, according to a former top aide to a former governor in New Hampshire.
“There’s no staff in New Hampshire,” Mike Dennehy said Wednesday, a day after news broke that one of Perry’s remaining staffers in the Granite State had defected to Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s campaign.
Dennehy, who no longer technically works for Perry’s campaign, said he personally encouraged New Hampshire workers to look for another job. Dennehy said he has no plans to join another campaign.
September 8 CNN reported that Perry’s South Carolina location has closed.
Perry also mentioned in his remarks that we cannot have a Republican “chief arbiter” or “indulge nativist appeals that further divide the nation.” I’ll give you a few guesses as to which candidate he was referring to in this case:
Let me be clear: for us in Christ, our citizenship is first and foremost in the kingdom of God, our brothers and sisters are those made in the image of God, and our duty – after loving God with all our heart, mind and soul – is to love our neighbors as themselves, regardless of where they come from.
Demeaning people of Latino descent is not only an expression of ignorance, but it also betrays the example of Christ. We can enforce our laws and our borders, and we can love all who live within our borders without betraying our values.
It’s time to elevate our debate from divisive name-calling, from name-calling without solutions, and start discussing how we will make this country a better place for all if a conservative is elected president.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. He noted that optimism is rooted in conservatism and that he believes America can be great again. Governor Perry leaves the presidential stage; confident that the best days for our nation are yet to come.
