Medina calls Perry a 'capital crony'
An old foe is lashing out at Gov. Rick Perry, as he continues his campaign for president. Debra Medina - a GOP opponent in 2011's gubernatorial race - and a handful of tea party activists pointed out what they call “crony capitalism” formed under Perry's reign in Texas. ...“We want to take the opportunity and say it's not an HPV mandate but across all areas of public policy in Texas we've seen those sorts of practices,” Medina said. "We do all we can to inform the public about what's going on politically.”... "The stagnant economy is a predictable outcome of government picking winners and losers in businesses and industries that they will favor," Medina said.

Medina calls Perry a 'capital crony'
Perry's office: 'allegations are just wrong'

                View KXAN - Josh Hinkle Reports
AUSTIN (KXAN) - An old foe is lashing out at Gov. Rick Perry, as he continues his campaign for president. Debra Medina - a GOP opponent in 2011's gubernatorial race - and a handful of tea party activists pointed out what they call “crony capitalism” formed under Perry's reign in Texas.

"Michele Bachmann got it right. Gov. Perry's executive order was driven on money, not driven on good policy,” Medina said Thursday at the State Capitol.

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Perry leads most national polls but suffered a major blow in last week's GOP presidential debate when opponent Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann blasted him for his 2007 executive order mandating Texas girls to be vaccinated against human papillomvirus (HPV), a sexually-transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer. The Legislature shot down the HPV order.

“We want to take the opportunity and say it's not an HPV mandate but across all areas of public policy in Texas we've seen those sorts of practices,” Medina said. "We do all we can to inform the public about what's going on politically.”

Merck & Co. produces the vaccine and also employed Perry's former chief of staff, Mike Toomey, as a lobbyist, donating money to the governor's campaigns. Medina said the order amounted to “investment of taxpayer dollars in private business and laws that give preferential treatment to favored friends."

When asked about the comments, the governor's office said he “makes decisions in the best interest of Texas.”

“Any allegations otherwise are just wrong,” said Lucy Nashed, the governor's spokeswoman.

Perry continues to tout Texas' job market and economy on the campaign trail, saying the state gained more than 1 million jobs during his decade-long tenure. However, critics point out that many of those are low-wage jobs, as unemployment in the state grew to 8.5 percent last month, its highest rate in almost 25 years.

"The stagnant economy is a predictable outcome of government picking winners and losers in businesses and industries that they will favor," Medina said.

She listed “pay-to-play” examples like Dallas billionaire Harold Simmons, who gave more than $1 million to Perry's campaigns. A recent Texans for Public Justice report show Simmons' Waste Control Specialists lobbied state lawmakers in 2003 for a private monopoly for a low-level nuclear waste dump. This year, the legislature approved accepting waste from 36 other states, after which Medina said Simmons wrote a $100,000 check to Perry's presidential campaign.

Mark Miner, Perry's campaign spokesman, said Medina's charges are "false and misleading political propaganda that has been brought up before."

"Governor Perry is a true conservative and a responsible candidate," Miner said. "He has been a fiscal conservative in Texas and will be a fiscally conservative leader in the presidential race."

Medina, who said she supports Congressman Ron Paul in the presidential race, also said Perry is not alone in the “cronyism,” pointing to state lawmakers in the Republican-dominated legislature.

"They cannot champion limited government and then micromanage us," she said.

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