Why Perry Runs

Rick Perry’s numbers have gone so far south in the past week that Tierra del Fuego must look like a tropical island paradise in comparison.

But we all knew that Rick Perry had not a snowball’s chance in H-E-double-hockey sticks of getting the nomination.

We here in Texas, volunteers or draftees, it doesn’t matter, knew the truth. Rick Perry was destined to implode right there in public. And he didn’t let us down. Perry’s numbers in Florida are now in the single digits from what I hear.

No one thought he would get the nomination. And here is the thing, and the theme of this posting: I don’t think Rick Perry thought he would get the nomination either. It was never about wanting the job. Never about the politics.

It was all about the campaign contributions.

Apparently, according to this article on the Austin American-Statesman’s website, Rick Perry has surpassed every other GOP candidate in raking in campaign contributions, something on the order of $17 million in less than a month and a half. And only 50 large of it must be spent on the Fall campaign. It is, nearly all of it, for the primaries.

Rick Perry knows how to spend campaign cash and taxpayer money just so that it will personally enrich Rick Perry. He is an expert in this. Rick Perry is a very, very rich man and he has spent his entire career running for public office. A public servant who is as rich as Croesus.

And now he has another $17 million to convert. Even at 10 cents on the dollar that is a decent haul.

So I don’t really think that Perry is too concerned about his frosty numbers. The checks are all cashed. They will in all probability drop off now that he has disenchanted everyone in the GOP except for the rabid racists (and maybe even some of those).