Sarah Palin might have sounded like an ally of Representative Michele Bachmann on Monday night when she assailed a short-lived Texas mandate that girls receive the H.P.V. vaccine, calling it a possible product of “crony capitalism.”
But, as she continues to consider her own presidential bid, the comments could also be interpreted as her first overt attack on Gov. Rick Perry, the man who signed the 2007 order -– a move he later withdrew and was forced to defend at the Republican debate on Monday night.
“I knew even at that time something was up with that issue,” Ms. Palin said on Fox News Channel after the debate, noting that Mr. Perry’s former chief of staff had ties to Merck, the company that manufactures the Gardasil vaccine. “And now we’re finding out, yeah, something was up with that issue. It was an illustration or a bit of evidence of some crony capitalism.”
All three politicians – Ms. Palin, Mrs. Bachmann and Mr. Perry – would need to rely on both social conservatives and Tea Party activists to win the G.O.P. nod. So it’s not hard to see why the issue is proving appealing fodder for the two women. The can use it to undermine Mr. Perry’s credibility with social conservatives by noting that he would have required girls under 12 to be inoculated against the virus that causes cervical cancer, which is generally transmitted sexually. And the argument that his move was influenced by donations and ties to lobbyists appeals to Tea Party supporters skeptical of government authority and backroom political dealing.
When Ms. Palin first used the term “crony capitalism” earlier this month to describe generally the process by which lawmakers become wealthy by using taxpayer dollars to benefit corporations and donors, she was talking about Mr. Perry.
In fact, up to this point, she had resisted applying any criticism directly to him. Last year, she campaigned for Mr. Perry as he fought back a challenge from Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in the Republican gubernatorial primary. In January 2010, she posted a note on Facebook saying she looked forward to supporting him and other candidates “so they can continue to fight for our American values.” (The other two she mentioned by name, by the way: Senator John McCain and Mrs. Bachmann.)
During that race Ms. Palin said he “walks the walk of a true conservative,” and the two are thought to have a cordial relationship off the trail.
Up to this point in the G.O.P. primary, Ms. Palin has called Mr. Perry a “fine candidate” and defended him after he called Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s approach “treasonous,” saying he was “voicing great concerns that many of us share.”
And during a recent trip to Iowa, when asked to contrast their records as governor, the former Alaska governor declined, noting that Texas has a weak executive.
“That doesn’t mean he’s doing a better job or worse job than any other governor, including myself,” Ms. Palin said.
Mrs. Bachmann is taking the the “crony capitalist” line and running with it. We’re still waiting to see whether Ms. Palin lets the Minnesotan continue to be the sole beneficiary, or if she’ll start using the phrase in her own campaign.
Related:
GOP Candidates Rail Against Perry Over Mandatory HPV Vaccination
Bachmann Finds an Issue With H.P.V. Debate
Video: Bachmann Claims Vaccine Causes Mental Retardation
About That Gardasil Mandate “Opt-Out” Perry Is Touting - Rick Santorum said at the CNN/Tea Party Sponsored debate, “If anything, this should have been an Opt-In not an Opt-Out! This is another over-reach of government. Will give vaccines at schools only for illnesses that can easily be passed from student to student during the normal school day process.”
Texas Governor Orders STD Vaccine for all Girls (By Executive Order)
Stealth Vaccine Laws Allow Children to Consent to Vaccines
Dr. Mercola: Don’t Let Your Child Be the Next Victim of This Deadly Vaccine
Gardasil: Oversold, Over-Hyped, and Risky?
Research Firm Blows Hole In Big Pharma Vaccination Lie
Vaccines: Cooking Up a Witches Brew of Death and Deceit
Vaccinations, Obama, and the Illusionatis Depopulation
Sterilization of Our Children Has Begun With the H1N1 Vaccine… -Lots of informative links
Review: The New World of ObamaCare
Bilderberg Behind Rick Perry 2012 Run Given Their Nod in 2007
By Ask Marion for True Health Is True Wealth
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