Perry's a "birther"!

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In wide-ranging interview with Parade, Perry talks birtherism, secession

Aman Batheja, OCTOBER 24, 2011

Parade, the well-read magazine inserted in hundreds of Sunday newspapers including the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, put Gov. Rick Perry on the cover of its latest issue and featured a lengthy interview with the presidential candidate.

Yet some of the most interesting parts of the interview were only available online and left out of the print publication.

The most newsworthy portion of the interview was likely Perry's response to whether President Barack Obama was born is eligible to be president.

Governor, do you believe that President Barack Obama was born in the United States?
I have no reason to think otherwise.

That’s not a definitive, “Yes, I believe he”—
Well, I don’t have a definitive answer, because he’s never seen my birth certificate.

But you’ve seen his.
I don’t know. Have I?

You don’t believe what’s been released?
I don’t know. I had dinner with Donald Trump the other night.

And?
That came up.

And he said?
He doesn’t think it’s real.

And you said?
I don’t have any idea. It doesn’t matter. He’s the President of the United States. He’s elected. It’s a distractive issue.

Also in the interview, Perry defended his comments on secession:

In 2010, you hinted at the possibility of Texas seceding, although you never said that word.
Actually, I didn’t. Let’s not misrepresent it.

Okay, let’s say you become president and the state of Massachusetts says the same thing, what would you say to them?
You’re going to have to be more specific. Let’s say somebody stands up at an event and says, “Secede.” My response would be that we have a great country. I see no reason that we would ever want to dissolve it, but I do understand why people get frustrated when government does not work the way our Founding Fathers meant for it to. I totally understand why people would shout that out. Do I think it’s a realistic thing? No.

Perry also refuted allegations that he made up a much-reported incident that he shot a coyote while jogging:

Governor, you made the news last year when you said you were out jogging in Austin with your daughter’s puppy, and you came across a coyote that was threatening your dog. Did you really shoot it like you said you did?
Yes, ma’am. One shot right in the shoulder.

You saw him drop, but did he die?
Yeah, right there.

So how come there’s been so much controversy over it? For example, some people have said it’s simply not possible to jog and carry a gun at the same time.
One guy from upstate New York said [it couldn’t have happened because] “coyotes would run away.” Come to Austin. I’ll show you coyotes that will come and get in your backyard and eat your little puppy.

All three of these fascinating exchanges are sure to draw more attention.

However, none of them made it into the portions of the interview that Parade included in their Sunday magazine.

To read the whole Parade interview, click Here.
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