Saturday, July 16, 2011

Rick Perry began political career as a young star for Texas Democrats

The GOP governor entered the Texas legislature as a Democrat in 1984, and served as Al Gore's Texas Campaign Chairman in the 1988 presidential campaign.

Jay Root | The Texas Tribune
15 July 2011


Gov. Rick Perry, a no-apologies conservative known for slashing government spending and opposing all tax increases, is about as Republican as you can get.
But that wasn't always the case.

Perry spent his first six years in politics as a Democrat, in a somewhat forgotten history that is sure to be revived and scrutinized by Republican opponents if he decides to run for president.

A raging liberal he was not. Elected to represent a slice of rural West Texas in the state House of Representatives in 1984, Perry, a young rancher and cotton farmer, gained an early reputation as a fiscal conservative. He was one of a few freshman "pit bulls," so named because they sat in the lower pit of the House Appropriations Committee, where they fought to keep spending low.

But Perry cast some votes and took a few stands that seem to be at odds with his current conservative stances.

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