Earlier this month, just days after he jumped into the presidential race, Rick Perry told an Iowa crowd why he liked their caucus process. There’s going to be “a lot of probin’ and lot of feelin’ and touchin’ and talkin’ and vetting the candidates and asking questions,” Perry predicted at a county GOP event in Cedar Rapids on Aug. 16. The Texas governor was back in Iowa over the weekend and it was apparent the vetting was well underway. Continue reading

It seems nobody is safe from Hurricane Irene -- not even Mitt Romney. Continue reading

After months of speculation -- and a week when rumors swirled that former New York Gov. George Pataki might, just might enter the presidential race -- turns out he's decided against a bid. Continue reading

Even as many establishment Republicans in the New York-Washington corridor continue to pine for a “white knight,” GOP voters are beginning to get comfortable with the choices they've got, according to the results of a new Associated Press-GfK poll out today. Continue reading

What the polls giveth, the polls taketh away. And just like that, after months of referring to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, that title -- at least for the moment -- got passed on to Texas Gov. Rick Perry yesterday. Continue reading

The former vice president had a secret resignation letter drafted, signed and locked away since March 2001 just in case he became incapacitated, he writes in his forthcoming memoir. Continue reading

Most of the 2012 presidential candidates are using the last weeks of August to regroup and raise money before the campaign kicks into high gear after Labor Day with a busy schedule of appearances and debates. Continue reading

When asked in an interview on Tuesday whether there was any pent up hostility between the two big Texas political families -- the Perrys and the Bushes -- former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush insisted that there was not. Continue reading

A New York Daily News story published on Sunday set off a flurry of speculation about former New York Gov. George Pataki’s possible 2012 ambitions, and tonight there are reports from Iowa that Pataki may be poised to enter the race on Saturday. Continue reading

In a Republican primary that seems to be a battle for the conservative heart of the GOP electorate, Jon Huntsman and now, potentially, former New York Gov. George Pataki seem to believe there’s room for someone who appeals to the center. Continue reading

Despite the splash he made on the campaign trail last week, Rick Perry's entrance into the 2012 presidential race has done nothing to stop the speculation -- even longing -- among many Republicans that the field of candidates will continue to expand. Continue reading

Ever since Rick Perry jumped into the presidential race less than one week ago, it seems like he’s been running a campaign on fast-forward. Continue reading

When Rick Perry arrived in New Hampshire one day ago, he repeated the state’s “live free or die” motto, telling an audience, “You’ve got to love that. What Perry may not have loved, however, is the treatment he received just 24-hours later at a meet-and-greet stop in this picturesque Seacoast town where he encountered about two-dozen protesters who shouted at him, held signs with slogans like “Another Texas idiot for sale,” and followed him into a cafe to yell some more. Continue reading

The traveling economic road shows of Barack Obama and Rick Perry have been dominating the media narrative all week. And while they each took shots at the other, the past few days have been just as noticeable for the friendly fire aimed at both men. Continue reading

Rick Perry got into an intense exchange this afternoon about his views on border security and illegal immigration with an invited member of the audience at a business roundtable here. Continue reading

At one point during their dueling bus trips in Iowa yesterday, the vehicles carrying President Obama and Texas Gov. Perry came within seven miles of each other. But, only one man dominated the media narrative on Tuesday -- and it wasn't the president. Continue reading

By MICHAEL FALCONE (@michaelpfalcone) and AMY WALTER (@amyewalter) BEDFORD, N.H. -- At one point during their dueling bus trips in Iowa yesterday, the vehicles carrying President Obama and Texas Gov. Perry came within secen miles of each other. But, only... Continue reading

Speaking to a group of business leaders here on his second stop of the day, presidential candidate Rick Perry cast his Iowa campaign swing as a direct challenge to President Obama’s own bus tour of several Midwestern states. Continue reading

In the space of less than 24 hours, the 2012 presidential race’s newest candidate -- Rick Perry -- managed to call President Obama the “greatest threat to our country,” raise questions about rival Mitt Romney’s record as governor of Massachusetts and suggest that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke might be close to committing a “treasonous” act. Continue reading

Just hours after presidential candidate Rick Perry said that he would be the kind of president who would be “passionate” about America, the Texas governor suggested that President Obama may not share the sentiment. Continue reading

Texas Gov. Rick Perry capped off his first full day of campaigning in Iowa on Monday by suggesting that if the Federal Reserve prints more money between now and November 2012 it would be akin to an act of treason. Continue reading

He came, he saw, he shook a whole lot of hands. Less than 24 hours after making his presidential ambitions official, Texas Gov. Rick Perry swept into Iowa on Sunday for his debut visit to this early nominating state where his folksy manner and retail politicking skills were on full display. Continue reading

In his remarks to audience in Waterloo, Iowa, Texas Gov. Rick Perry acknowledged that “it takes me a while to get into something,” but “when I’m in, I’m in all the way.” Continue reading

On his second day as a presidential contender, Rick Perry arrived in Iowa saying that his “prayer” was that another Republican would emerge as the clear front-runner for the Republican nomination, but he decided to run when that didn’t happen. Continue reading