Perry ducked state law on disclosing some stimulus money

[white cloud]

By Laylan Copelin AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Published: 9:39 p.m. Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Post a Comment E-mail Print ShareLarger Type Small Type
Gov. Rick Perry has always publicly stiff-armed federal stimulus dollars, even as he accepted billions to balance the state budget and tens of millions that he could award to constituents.

He even ignored state law and his own executive order that require all state agencies and institutions of higher education to be "accountable and transparent" by posting their stimulus spending reports on their Web sites.

Until Tuesday, that is.

After a reporter's inquiry, the Governor's Criminal Justice Division began posting reports, some of them months old, on its Web site. Perry's spokeswoman, Katherine Cesinger, would not elaborate on why the governor chose not to follow the law that he expected other state officials to follow.

State Rep. Jim Dunnam, D-Waco , who leads the House committee overseeing federal stimulus programs in Texas, said Tuesday that he isn't surprised by the governor's actions.


http://www.statesman.com/news/texas-politics/perry-ducked-state-law-on-disclosing-some-stimulus-561458.html

[sonias]

1. Silly citizen - laws don't apply to them

Perry is a "do what I say, not what I do" authoritarian.

Let's keep putting that stimulus number out there- Texas took $16 billion under Perry's watch. Not that there is anything wrong with taking the money. The crime is in the cover up and lying that Perry does to hide it.

Last year, Perry accepted about $16 billion in federal stimulus money so lawmakers could avoid deep budget cuts or tax increases. But he refused to accept smaller amounts for unemployment benefits and education programs, saying that money came with "strings attached," an argument his critics rejected.

Perry's failure to file reports on the governor's Web site involves only the money administered directly through his office.

The governor's office has received about $92.2 million of the $110 million it requested from the federal government for law enforcement purposes. About $81 million has been obligated and $6.8 million disbursed, according to the Comptroller of Public Accounts, which maintains weekly reports of the state's stimulus activities.

Perry's office submitted the weekly summaries with totals, but Texans looking for greater detail were directed from the weekly report back to the governor's Web site to find a report from 2006 — three years before the stimulus program existed.

Citizens looking for spending details would have had to navigate the federal site, recovery.gov, where all agencies, including the Texas governor, must post reports.

If it wasn't for the Obama's administration policy of transparency Perry would never fess up. :eyes:

[white cloud]

2. I am wondering if

he got a Tea Party invite to speak?

[sonias]

3. He did - he declined the in person appearance for a phone conference

Interestingly he's telling all the tea party folks to watch out for infiltrators.

AAS Postcard from the Lege blog 4/15/10
Tea Party rally off to a slow start amid Perry warnings of liberal infiltration

About 200 people gathered at the Capitol today for a tax day protest — a far cry from the estimated 1,500 people who gathered a year ago at the statehouse for a tea party rally.

One of the organizers, George Scaggs of New Revolution Now, said he hoped for more attendees and noted that other protests will occur at the Capitol later today.

The noontime gathering is scheduled to include speakers ranging from state Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, to state Rep. Wayne Christian, R-Center, and the Texas director of Americans for Prosperity Peggy Venable.

Meanwhile, the Associated Press was reporting that Gov. Rick Perry is telling tea party organizers across the state to watch their backs for liberals who wish to do them harm.

In an invitation-only conference call with tea party organizers in Texas, Perry urged those participating in today’s tax day rallies to “continue looking over your shoulder … for people trying to make the tea party into something that it’s not.”

Oh how they love to blame the left for everything - even the roots of their own racism! :eyes: