"Face the Nation" transcripts, June 24, 2012: Gov. Perry, Gov. Pawlenty, Mayor Villaraigosa

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: Well, what we were talking about there is the economic impact that it has on the states. And-- and these two issues, of which President Obama and what we as governors have to deal with, are completely and absolutely different. President Obama is going around the Congress and, frankly, a-- a very lawless way of doing it. He's basically-- he couldn't get it done through Congress, so he's just basically, during a election year, using this as a political wedge issue. Very, very different. What Governor Romney has strongly talked about was securing the border. And that's what all of us governors have to deal with is the reality of a federal government that has absolutely failed when it comes to the issue of securing the border. If this President over the last three and a half years had made any effort to secure the border instead of running operations like Fast and Furious where-- I mean, Bob, you got to admit, this is almost Nixonian, if not absolutely Nixonian in the cover-up that's going on with this Fast and Furious. Don't you agree with that?

BOB SCHIEFFER: Well, I would-- I would ask you what do you think should be done on that? Do you think Congress should hold the attorney general in contempt? It's-- it's coming down to that. Give me your thoughts on what should happen here.

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: Well, when you think about it, we've had over three hundred Mexican nationals killed directly attributable to this Fast and Furious operation where they brought those guns into Mexico, and a former Marine and a Border Patrol agent by the name of Brian Terry lost his life. I mean, with Watergate, you had a second-rate burglary. And now you have a President who is using his executive privilege to keep that information from Congress. If that's not Nixonian, then I don't know what is, Bob.

BOB SCHIEFFER: So but-- but you're saying-- would you favor the Congress holding him in contempt because it looks like that's what may be about to happen here?

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: What I would favor is the President of the United States being transparent with what is going on. I mean what is so important-- I mean what are they hiding? What has gone on that is so important that I'm going to use executive privilege to keep the United States Congress from having documents? This is really troubling.

BOB SCHIEFFER (overlapping): What-- what--

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: Very troubling to the American people.

BOB SCHIEFFER: What exactly are you accusing the President of here, Governor?

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: I don't know. I mean that's the issue. If-- if-- if he will be transparent, if he will be open with Congress and the American people then we will know what went on with Fast and Furious. Why were those guns being transported and-- and then totally lost control of, and ending up in the hands of cartels who used them for criminal activities up to and including murder of United States Border Patrol Agent.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Let me shift just a little bit and get back to talking about Governor Romney. During the primaries, you accused him of being a vulture capitalist. Well, now the Obama campaign is making a lot out of the fact that some of the businesses that went bankrupt that Bain Capital had an investment is-- newspaper reports say that Governor Romney made millions of dollars as those companies went bankrupt and people were put out of work. Have you rethought your feelings about his business background?

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: Well, I'd say this that attack didn't work during the primary. It's not going to work during the general election either. As a matter of fact you had a number of major Democrat operatives and office holders scold the President rather strongly for going after Mitt Romney with that same exact attack. I'll give the President some advice, it didn't work back in 2012, and it's-- or the early part of 2012 and it's not going to work in the last months of this campaign either.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Well, I-- I don't-- I'm not quite sure I understand or I follow your logic there. It was your attack. Are you saying you were wrong? Or are you saying you somehow had it wrong or--

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: That's exact--

BOB SCHIEFFER: --or what?

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: That's exactly what I'm saying. I'm saying that is a-- a wrong attack that's not going to work politically. So if you want to spend your time trying to deflect off of the miserable economy that this country is in. You know, we talk about immigration and we talk about the Hispanic vote. The Hispanic population is three percentage points higher in unemployment. There are two million more Hispanics not working today. This President's going to pitch everything at the wall that he can to deflect off the sour economy that we have in this country, particularly, in the Hispanic population. So, yeah, I'd go talk about everything else in the world to try to deflect the--

BOB SCHIEFFER: Okay.

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: --American people off of the most important issue and that is how are we going to get Americans working again?

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right. Well, Governor, are you going to get out and campaign for Governor Romney?

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: Oh, already am. We're-- we're working for him every day. I'm going to be out in California doing some events and wherever he needs me, I will be.

BOB SCHIEFFER: All right. Well, thank you so much, Governor. Tim Pawlenty--

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: You're welcome, Bob.

BOB SCHIEFFER: --is the--

GOVERNOR RICK PERRY: It's good to see you.

BOB SCHIEFFER: Thank you so much.

1 Comments +

Add a Comment


by historicalaccuracy June 24, 2012 4:09 PM EDT: I'm not sure that Perry is correct. The Bain attacks were ineffective in the Republican primary because the GOP is the party of freedom and generally believes that whatever works in business is to be praised. The country as a whole does not as uniformly praise amoral business practices, or outsourcing. There are plenty of people who would call businesses that outsource unpatriotic. Remember the old tradition of "buying American" when it came to big ticket items like cars.

Perry is one of the big three primary opponents to call Romney a habitual liar (Gingrich and Santorum were the others) who distorted their records. Good to see he now thinks Romney is more honest, or does he?:; Reply to this comment