Rick Perry endorses Ted Cruz for president, at least versus Donald Trump

Rick Perry is endorsing Ted Cruz for president

(Image credit: Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images)

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R), who dropped out of the GOP presidential race in September, is throwing his support behind fellow a Texan, Sen. Ted Cruz. The endorsement isn't without qualifications, the first being that Perry views the only alternative to be Donald Trump. "Of those individuals who have a chance to win the Republican primary, at this juncture, from my perspective, Ted Cruz is by far the most consistent conservative in that crowd," Perry told Politico. "And that appears to be down to two people."

Perry has long been a critic of Trump, but he hasn't had a warm relationship with Cruz, either. What changed his mind on Cruz, he said, was meeting him one-on-one last month. "I wanted to talk about him, who he was, see if I could get a handle on Ted Cruz the man, not Cruz the caricature I'd seen through the political lens," he told Politico. "What I found was a very different person than what I had been led to believe." Perry might prefer a more experienced GOP nominee, probably a governor, "but the electorate doesn't want that," Perry said. "That’s why we have elections, why we democratically select leaders."

Would President Cruz be ready to lead? Yes, said Perry, but again, there were some caveats: "He knows he's going to surround himself with people who do have that experience, and I’m very satisfied that on Day 1, he will be ready to be commander-in-chief.... Partly because of the time he's going to spend in learning what he doesn't know, but he's also surrounding himself with people who are extraordinarily capable and wise." Reservations or not, Perry will campaign with Cruz through Iowa on Tuesday and Wednesday. You can read more about Perry's complicated endorsement at Politico.

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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.