Texas Public Radio
Originally Posted: June 4, 2015
When the state’s longest serving governor announces his second presidential run Thursday, he is going to be surrounded by a star-studded group his campaign calls “patriots.”
At the Addison Airport just north of Dallas, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, 65, will be flanked by decorated soldiers, including former Navy Seal Marcus Luttrell, who wrote the book, Lone Survivor. Taya Kyle, the widow of the celebrated military sniper and author, Chris Kyle, will also be there.
In a growing field of more than a dozen Republican presidential candidates, Perry will try to remind voters he served six years in the Air Force during the Vietnam era.
Political Science Prof. Cal Jillson, from Southern Methodist University, thinks that message is a stretch for Perry. “He’s one of the few Republican candidates, other than Lindsey Graham, who has military service, but it was a very long time ago,” says Jillson. Jillson says Perry’s stronger message will be that he presided over the State of Texas during an economic boom that, on his watch, created more jobs in Texas than any other state. LISTEN