Rick Perry & The Earthquake That Rocked DC

Texas Governor Rick Perry has clearly caused significant rumblings amongst the Washington elite. Both the Democrat and Republican establishments are flummoxed by the Governor’s ascendency. Neither party fully grasps the popular appeal of this anti-establishment candidate.


Mr. Perry’s attacks on the loose-money policies of the Federal Reserve are cracking the fault lines of Wall Street. His hostility toward the federal government’s accumulation of power is a threat to DC officialdom. The Governor’s convictions concerning tort-reform, the 10th Amendment, federal deregulation and the dominance of the U.S. dollar are the bedrock of establishment nightmares; the ground is shaking beneath them, the clouds are looming overhead.

So is Rick Perry to blame for the earthquake that recently rocked DC? Did his staunch conservatism, Texas swagger and pride of country roil the Potomac River and rattle the eastern seaboard?

Political parties are, by nature, disciplined and coordinated entities. They choose candidates based on fundraising capabilities, electability and, most importantly, the candidate’s willingness to tow the party line. These establishments are disinclined to favor strong individualists; they fear what they can’t control. Rick Perry is such a figure, unpredictable from the viewpoint of his own party, a “Cowboy” in the eyes of his enemies. He represents the real America, the fierce individualism, self-sufficiency and thirst for competition that’s buried beneath the entitlement-state.

Consider the threat that Perry poses to the powerful DC lobbies. It should come as no surprise that the politically connected and highly influential trial-lawyers’ lobby is attacking Mr. Perry. After all, in his decade as Governor of Texas, Perry has championed numerous laws reforming the state’s legal system, limiting erroneous lawsuits and taming the litigating beast. Consequently, these reforms have spawned an influx of business startups and drastically lowered the cost of living in Texas; the power of the plaintiff has been minimized and the lobby is plotting revenge.

Wall Street speculators, among the largest donors of the Democrat Party, are likewise thirsty for blood. Governor Perry has created controversy by challenging the motives of the Federal Reserve and its loose-money/weak dollar policies. Though a strong U.S. currency would surely serve to boost the nation’s economy, it would likewise have a negative effect on the speculators. Free market capitalism, when not manipulated, cannot grant favors to politically connected industries. Hence, the broad-based attacks on the Governor’s focused message.

The old-establishment is feeling the pre-shock of Perry’s federalist convictions. In the Governor’s own words: “I’ll work hard to try to make DC as inconsequential in your life as I can.” From Karl Rove to Howard Dean, these words signal an existential threat to politics-as-usual in Washington, a crack in the fault-lines of the establishment.

Fortunately, the earthquake that rocked DC on August 23rd resulted in minimal damage, yet November, 2012 may very well produce some real and devastating aftershocks. The American people should significantly benefit relative to the intensity of the shock.

New York & Texas - Policies & Results

Although the policies of the Obama Administration have served to hinder the growth and to minimize the efficiency of each of the fifty states, America’s government, at least in theory, remains a constitutional republic. As such, the government policies of each of the several states, and their respective impact on the citizenry, offers Americans an invaluable lesson on how to proceed in the future. No two states may better highlight the opposing views of government in America than those of New York and Texas. New York, a firmly regulated and highly taxed northeastern union stronghold, represents the epitome of modern liberalism. Texas, with a culture rooted in individual drive and a penchant for limited government, is a model of contemporary conservatism. It is not surprising that the opposing policies of New York and Texas, and their diverging views of government, have likewise produced entirely dissimilar results.

Taxes - New York claims the mantle of having the highest top marginal individual and corporate tax rates in the nation. Texas, in contrast, levies no state income tax at all. The population of Texas has increased exponentially over the course of the past decade, while New York has lost 1.75 million people to emigration. Due to the nature of its “defined-benefit” pension system and its unhealthy reliance on federal government “matching funds”, New York’s unfunded liabilities have continually increased, even as its population has diminished. This has led to a vicious cycle of repeated tax increases on an exceedingly narrow tax-base. Since 2009, Texas has added 265,300 new, net jobs to its workforce - New York, 98,200, a remarkable and illuminating comparison.

Healthcare - Texas Governor Rick Perry has been most successful in initiating tort-reform in his state, minimizing frivolous lawsuits and excessive settlement demands, thus providing cheaper services and more accessible healthcare for Texans. In contrast, New York, notorious for a legal system that fosters gratuitous settlements, claims a healthcare system that is among the highest priced and least accessible in the nation.

Energy - Texas is leading the shale oil boom that presently grips our nation. Governor Perry’s efforts to promote energy independence for Texans, via hydraulic fracturing, has led to strong economic growth and reduced energy prices in his state, as well as an increased capacity for American commodity production, e.g. steel and petrochemicals. In New York, on June 6th, the assembly passed a bill that bans all forms of hydraulic fracturing through mid-2012. The legislature cites environmental concerns as the impetus of its moratorium, notwithstanding evidence to the contrary, and with little regard for the millions of dollars and thousands of jobs the industry would bring to the state.

The stark contrast between the respective governments of New York and Texas is indicative of a broader conflict that presently pervades America. Through low taxes, minimal regulations and free trade initiatives, Texas has categorically rejected the economic model of government that currently prevails in Washington. Conversely, New York has warmly embraced the big-government, loose spending policies of the Obama Administration. Through an honest assessment of the pros and cons of New York and Texas policies, fair-minded Americans may clearly discern which role of government, liberal or conservative, will best promote their interests. Herein lays the veritable genius of America’s form of government.

Jeremy Pitcoff