Texas Governor Rick Perry has seemingly made it a political mission to make as many rivals as campaign promises and it appears like his cowboy behavior is finally bit him in the rawhide.
After revealing his intent to veto $7.5 million in funds from an agency ran by a political rival after she pleaded guilty to a drunk driving charge, a grand jury flipped the script and indicted the governor on two felony counts, accusing him of abusing the power appointed to him.
Via Fox News:
Perry, a 2012 GOP presidential candidate with potential 2016 aspirations, was indicted Friday for allegedly abusing his power by vowing to veto $7.5 million in state funds for an agency run by Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, after she pleaded guilty to drunken driving in April 2013 and refused to resign.
Perry vetoed the money after Lehmberg, a Democrat, videotaped acting erratically during her arrest, refused to resign.
Perry was indicted by an Austin grand jury on felony counts of abuse of official capacity and coercion of a public servant. Maximum punishment on the first charge is five to 99 years in prison, and two to 10 years on the second.
The indictment comes toward the end of Perry’s final term in office. In office since 2000 and already the longest-serving governor in Texas history, Perry isn’t seeking re-election in November. But he was thought to be weighing a possible presidential run in 2016.
Unsurprisingly, the governor refused to go down without a fight, saying, “I wholeheartedly and unequivocally stand behind my veto … I will explore every legal avenue to expedite this matter and bring it to a swift conclusion. I am confident … this farce of a prosecution will be revealed for what it is.” in a national press conference.
Equally unsurprisingly, Democrats and Republicans both supported and lashed out at the charges, respectively, creating a blue and red divide on the issue.
Once again, partisanship shines bright in the shadow of the notion of liberty and justice.
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Photo: WENN
