Perry works to show he's strongest GOP contender (AP)

By PHILIP ELLIOTT and KASIE HUNT, Associated Press Philip Elliott And Kasie Hunt, Associated Press – Sun Sep 25, 3:30 am ET

ORLANDO, Fla. – Texas Gov. Rick Perry worked to convince Florida Republicans Saturday that he is the strongest contender for the GOP nomination despite a shaky debate performance earlier this week that has sparked jitters about his bid.

Perry lost a key test vote in Florida to businessman Herman Cain on Saturday after making a strong effort to win. Perry's second-place finish in the straw poll came just days after he faltered in a debate in Orlando, Fla.

Perry's recent troubles have sparked another round of angst among Republicans about their slate of presidential candidates.

In an interview with the Associated Press Saturday after he had left Florida for a lunchtime speech in Michigan, Perry addressed speculation that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie might reconsider running for president in 2012.

"I see anybody that gets in the race that believes in America and is a small government but efficient government individual, I would welcome into the race. It just strengthens the point that the Republican Party's all about getting our country working again. Whoever that is," Perry said of Christie. "And I'm also a big believer in these governors being freed up to be able to compete against each other. Chris Christie is a great competitor — and I'll be up there, you know, in Jersey, looking for some businesses to move to Texas."

Christie insisted just this Thursday that he does not plan to run for president in 2012. Bill Palatucci, Christie's longtime friend and political adviser, told the AP on Saturday night, "Nothing has changed."

But the more intense discussions of a Christie candidacy are further evidence that Perry's bid could be in trouble.

Activists at the Florida test vote kept bringing Christie up as a possible contender. Merick Lewin, who owns a marketing company in Davie, Fla., said he believes it's a two-person race — unless Christie runs.

"He's tough. He's strong. He could really shake this up, especially if Rick Perry implodes," Lewin said.

Perry, a late entrant into the Republican primary who quickly led national polls, stumbled in recent weeks.

His defense of in-state tuition rates for illegal immigrants put him on the wrong side of the GOP's conservative base. His rivals worked to exploit his opposition to a fence along the U.S.-Mexican border and his support of a mandatory vaccine for girls against a sexually transmitted disease.

Perry left Florida to speak to GOP activists at a gathering on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Romney, the son of a former Michigan governor, also was attending that event.

Cain captured 37.1 percent of the vote at Saturday's Presidency 5 straw poll in Orlando, with Perry coming in second with 15.4 percent. Mitt Romney came in third with14 percent and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania followed with 10.88 percent.

While all declared candidates were on the ballot, the first-tier candidates did not compete. Perry bought hundreds of activists' breakfasts on the sidelines before heading to Michigan. Romney skipped and didn't send representatives to the forum. Romney and U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota both left Florida before the voting began and their campaigns discounted the straw poll's role in the campaign. Bachmann finished eighth with 1.51 percent in the straw poll.

The results were unlikely to shuffle the campaign's standings. Instead, they were mostly a popularity contest among the delegates selected by local party organizations.

Ahead of the test vote, Perry's campaign bought breakfast for hundreds of the party faithful assembled for a three-day conference and debate. Perry said skipping the straw poll was a blunder.

"I think that's a big mistake. I think it's very important," Perry said, citing its history.

Previous straw polls have predicted the GOP nominee.

Ronald Reagan won in 1979, George H.W. Bush in 1987 and Kansas Sen. Bob Dole in 1995. The Republican Party of Florida, however, has not organized the test vote in recent years.

After the vote, Perry released a statement congratulating Cain. His spokesman, Mark Miner, acknowledged his debate performance played a role in the straw poll vote, but insisted the campaign would not change strategy.

"He's the commander in chief, not the debater in chief," Miner said.

Cain's speech Saturday energized the attending activists. "Let's send Washington a message: We the people are still in charge of this country. Not we, the bureaucrats. Not we, the government," Cain told the conference.

Santorum said delegates should stand with "someone who can win the election, someone who is a consistent, authentic conservative ... who has proved they can win in states that we have to win."

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich said he was the one who could best take on Obama.

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Hunt reported from Mackinac Island, Mich. Associated Press reporter Beth DeFalco contributed to this story from New Jersey.

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Texas Gov. Rick Perry Could Be Strong GOP Presidential Contender (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | The recent mass resignations of Gingrich campaign staffers have stoked speculation about a Rick Perry presidential run. Perry, the governor of Texas, once employed Gingrich's now ex-campaign manager, Rob Johnson, and now will again, reports the Blaze.

Despite being wooed by groups like a group of California legislators, Perry's official stance is that he is still "thinking about it," according to Pajamas Media, and is now busy with the special session of the Texas legislature.

If Perry should decide to run, he would enjoy certain bragging rights that few other candidates can have in this era of economic malaise. He has not only balanced a state budget while making painful cuts in the face of opposition from special interest groups, he has presided over a state that has actually increased jobs and fostered economic growth.

According to a Wall Street Journal story, Perry's Texas has added 37 percent of all net jobs in the United States since June 2009 in an era of fitful, 1.8 percent growth. Perry can point to a business-friendly regime of low taxes, low spending, and light regulation as reasons. He might even suggest that Texas' economic growth would have been even greater had it not been for President Obama's war on the oil and gas industry.

That narrative of a Perry campaign practically writes itself: "Let me do for America, what I have done for Texas." It would be a campaign based on a record of executive competence as much as it would be on conservative ideology.

Mitt Romney, still bedeviled by the disaster that is Romneycare, would be hard pressed to offer a reason why he would get the nomination and not Perry. Perry's main rivals would be Tim Pawlenty and, if she decides to get in, Sarah Palin, both of whom have sterling records as governors of their states.

If Perry were to get the nomination, he would provide a conundrum for President Obama and his people. Obama, whose failures in economic policy are manifest, will not be able to contest Perry on that field. The only recourse would be for Obama to go on the attack, accusing Perry of balancing his state budget on the backs of school children, sick people, and the elderly. That strategy has been part of the Democratic playbook for generations and there is no reason for Obama not to use it.

The problem is that a reelection campaign is generally a referendum on the record of the sitting president seeking four more years. If Obama cannot make the case that he deserves four more years to give the country the same medicine that he has given it the first four years, he will be defeated. Jimmy Carter found that out in 1980. George H. W. Bush found that out in 1992. Obama would have to convince people that he would do a better job than a President Perry (or a President Palin, President Pawlenty, or even a President Romney.) If he cannot, he is as done as a Thanksgiving turkey.

Texas resident Mark Whittington writes about state issues for the Yahoo! Contributor Network.

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