Rick Perry may be the most successful Republican running for president. And that could be his Achilles heel.

The former Texas governor can generate consensus in the GOP, but the party might need something more

Rick Perry
(Image credit: REUTERS/Mike Stone)

If you subtract his last failed bid for the White House, Rick Perry has a lot to recommend himself as a presidential candidate for the Republican Party.

He led Texas to incredible growth before, during, and after the nationwide economic crash. His state is one of the few places whose cities are able to retain a growing middle class. As Matthew Yglesias helpfully pointed out, this is not just due to soaring energy revenues, but to the low-regulatory footprint that Perry helped to shape.

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Michael Brendan Dougherty

Michael Brendan Dougherty is senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is the founder and editor of The Slurve, a newsletter about baseball. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, ESPN Magazine, Slate and The American Conservative.