ADDISON, Texas — Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry opened his second bid for the Republican presidential nomination Thursday, pledging to “end an era of failed leadership” and hoping this campaign will go better than his last one.
Perry announced his candidacy in a humid airport hangar in the company of fellow veterans and a hulking C-130 the cargo plane, like one he flew for the Air Force. He is one of the few veterans in a bustling Republican field short on military experience.
With Perry in the contest and confirmation earlier Thursday that former Florida Jeb Bush will run, 11 major candidates now are vying for the GOP and still more are expected to join.
For Perry, it’s a re-do of a 2012 effort that went poorly as he tumbled from flavor-of-the-month front-runner after some gaffes. He’s still trying to live down the “oops” he uttered in a brain-freeze moment during a debate in the 2012 race.
Perry brings a strong economic record in Texas to the contest, as he did four years ago, and his speech underscored the ability of governors past and present to point to achievements in office, not just votes and rhetoric of those in Congress.
“Leadership is not a speech on the Senate floor,” he said. “It’s not what you say. It’s what you do.”
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