Rick Perry jumps into GOP presidential field with campaign website


Former Gov. Rick Perry is making an announcement outside Dallas on Thursday, and if you had any doubts about whether he's joining the increasingly crowded 2016 Republican presidential field, the answer is yes, according to his official campaign website, which went live Thursday morning. The site touts Perry's "tested leadership" and "proven results" on jobs, especially.
This will be Perry's second run for the White House. "All the work he has done to atone for his disastrous 2012 bid will finally be put to the test, and the margin for error could not be thinner, says Patrick Svitek at The Texas Tribune. He has deep-pocketed donors, but "Perry, a master of political fortune, will need all the luck he can get, faced with no shortage of disadvantages out of the gate."
"It's going to be hard to make a first impression a second time," GOP strategist Ford O'Connell tells The Associated Press. "He's going to have to be great, but a lot of people are going to have to trip and fall along the way." There are already nine declared Republican candidates, and some of the biggest names have yet to formally jump in — notably Jeb Bush, who is tipped to join the race on June 15.
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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