Rick Perry’s no-frills airline

Cowboy swagger can be a great look—until the strutting hero trips and falls flat on his face. Governor Rick Perry of Texas learned that in 2011. For a heady moment he led the field of Republicans seeking the presidential nomination. Then came the fall. An ill-prepared Mr. Perry was stunned when rivals attacked him from the right, denouncing his (admirable) policy of offering subsidized university places to Texas residents, regardless of immigration status, in the interests of a skilled workforce.

The end came with an “Oops” heard around the world, uttered during a TV debate in which—flustered and battling severe back-pain—Mr. Perry forgot which federal departments he wanted to abolish. He has talked geopolitics in London and Warsaw and debated energy policy with Communist bosses in China. On December 2nd he invited donors to lunch. Wisely, he offered more than happy-talk. When voters handed Republicans big wins in the mid-term elections it was no declaration of love for the Right, he told guests.

Theirs was a vote of no-confidence in Barack Obama, and a cry of despair at Washington dysfunction and the lack of respect enjoyed by America abroad. Voters are offering Republicans one more chance to govern, with the message: “Don’t blow it.” Not blowing a fresh White House bid is Mr. Perry’s own mission. Last time he was “a bit arrogant,” he admits in an interview at his mansion, reclining in an armchair flanked by busts of Reagan and Churchill. The difference from 2011 is “night and day”, says one. His indictment (which even some liberal jurists think looks like the hounding of a governor for doing his job) will either go away or stop him dead. Millions in Texas lack health insurance.

The state tolerates horrible inequalities. Sceptics charge that an extremist lurks behind the governor’s charm, whether he is attacking the federal government for leaving a lethally “porous” border between Mexico and Texas, or displaying a serene confidence as he signed off on 279 executions as governor. If people move to Texas—such critics murmur— it’s because they are happy with crappy. Americans don’t move to crappy places, retorts Mr. Perry. He reels off statistics about the Texan quality of life: the number of well-paid new jobs, the 35,000 doctors who arrived once dodgy lawsuits were curtailed, even the number of theatre seats in Houston (only New York has more, he says). The Texan way is a choice, he says: the state offers people as much government as they want, rather than what Washington thinks is good for them.

Too many Democrats seem to think that the solution is to pluck more money out of a magician’s hat. Some suggest that new taxes can painlessly fund more government largesse, or insist that firms can easily afford to pay higher wages. Mr. Perry stands out for tackling, squarely, the fact that Americans are used to services that increasingly cost more than they (or any government) can afford. Rather often, the Texan solution involves basic services that aim to be cheap but good enough.

Call it the low-cost airline model: offering a minimal service that is safe and reliable, then letting consumers pay for frills and extras if they like. Mr. Perry grumbles at the idea that Texas is a discount model for anything. But competition is certainly at the heart of his pitch. He has pressed Texan colleges to offer degrees for only $10,000, for example. He has rejected Obamacare’s calls to expand health coverage on Washington’s terms. He thinks that Texas should be allowed to cover the poor as it sees fit (with an emphasis on creating jobs that make health care affordable, rather than safety nets). As president, he would be delighted to let other states offer onerous taxes and lavish services. Some people want such things, he agrees: they are “free to live in California”. Not everyone wants to live in Texas. But Mr. Perry’s pitch is worth debating. Forget that “Oops,” and hope that he runs.

DECEMBER 6TH–12TH 2014

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