Greg Abbott and Daniel Perry: Brothers in Harms
Greg Abbott’s newfound bromance with Daniel Perry tells us everything that is wrong with his leadership of Texas.
Welcome to another installment of Life Its Ownself. If you enjoy reading it, please 1) hitt the Like button at the bottom, 2) subscribe to this newsletter, and 3) share it with others. Also, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
This week, we bring you an excerpt from the diary of the Texas First Lady, Cecilia Abbott. Of course, I cannot compromise sources and methods to explain how I got access to this very personal document. Let’s just say I got it from a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman.
Sunday, April 16, 2023
Dear Diary,
Yesterday it was warm and sunny in Austin, a perfect day to be outside. I was hoping Greg and I could have a little picnic on the grounds of the Governor’s Mansion.
This is a very stressful time for him. Legislative sessions are always hard on him, especially toward their end when he has to break all the promises he’d made at the beginning. Plus, Greg is exhausted from his trips around the state to sell his voucher plan – oops, I mean “education savings account” plan. He’s been out meeting real Texans, by which I mean parents whose kids are already enrolled in private schools. I wanted him to relax and enjoy a beautiful day with me.
I was surprised to find out, though, that Greg had made plans to “hang out” with his new friend, Daniel Perry. After all, they do not have much in common: Greg is the Governor of a major state, while Daniel is a convicted murderer. Greg harbors hopes of becoming president, while Daniel can only look forward to years of imprisonment and a dishonorable discharge.
Politics makes strange bedfellows, I guess.
(My husband is so handsome. Daniel Perry, on the other hand … )
It has all happened so fast. Back in 2020 during the George Floyd protests, this guy Daniel Perry drove his car into a crowd of protesters and, in the ensuing confusion, shot an Air Force veteran named Garrett Foster, killing him. Perry then fled the scene, turning himself into police several hours later.
Foster had been openly carrying an AK-47 which, as we all know, is legal in Texas – heck, it’s almost expected! Perry claimed he’d killed Foster in self-defense because he was afraid Foster might use the AK-47 against him. I read all the news stories about the trial, and I knew Perry was claiming self-defense, but I worried that his defense would be complicated by some things he’d said. As reported by one blog:
— In one Facebook comment responding to a post about protesters in another state, Perry wrote, “send them to Texas. We will show them why we say don’t mess with Texas.”
— A friend of Perry’s also testified that a month before the incident, Perry had texted him to ask about other incidents in which someone had shot at protesters, and inquired if those shootings were legal.
— In the weeks leading up to the incident, Perry had conducted internet searches on the phrases “protest tonight”, “protesters in Seattle gets shot,” “riot shootouts,” and “protests in Dallas live.”
— After that latter search, Perry texted to a friend, “I might go to Dallas to shoot looters.”
— Among the other messages and comments he had recently sent or left online: “I might have to kill a few people on my way to work they are rioting outside my apartment complex,” and “No protesters go near me or my car.”
Well, that all sounded bad to me. Of course, I do not understand the ins and outs of Texas “Stand Your Ground” laws like my husband does, but Greg’s been busy with legislative matters and barely paid attention to the case.
Then the verdict came down and, I gotta tell you, all heck broke loose. The verdict was announced at about 4:30 p.m. and by 7:00 p.m. that evening Tucker Carlson was telling Greg to pardon the guy. He asked Greg to come on his show and say what he was going to do and, when Greg said he was busy with state business and could not make it, Tucker said, “So that is Greg Abbott’s position: there is no right of self-defense in Texas.” Well, that’s a complete lie and a cheap shot. You’d almost think Tucker was secretly supporting one of the other 2024 presidential candidates. Or just stirring up discord for discord’s sake. I don’t get it.
To make matters worse, that little snotnose (excuse my language) Kyle Rittenhouse got in on the action, tweeting that the conviction was “very disappointing.” Well, if there’s anybody my Greg does not need to take legal advice from, it’s Kyle Rittenhouse. That made me furious, and Greg too. I can always tell he’s angry because his voice goes up into a higher register.
He called a couple of his political advisors to get their advice. Then he did what any successful governor of our nation’s second-biggest state would do (I am so proud of him!): He announced that he would ask the Board of Pardons and Paroles to immediately recommend a pardon for poor Daniel Perry.
Greg explained to me that although it was premature to call for a pardon – Daniel had not even been sentenced, and there would be motions for new trial, appeals, and the like – he still thought it was important for him as Governor to take a stand.
Or course, some silly people think he did it just to please Tucker Carlson and his audience. Nothing could be further from the truth. Greg made his decision after speaking with some of the most respected legal minds in the state, including Matt Rinaldi.
As you can imagine, Greg’s announcement set off an uproar. Some state and even national newspapers wrote columns and editorials criticizing Greg’s decision – even in Fort Worth and Texarkana! They did not accuse Greg of cowardice – how could they? Instead, they accused him of rank cynicism and political opportunism.
And then, things got worse last Wednesday, when the judge in the case unsealed a trove of information that the jury had not seen. The prosecutors introduced it all as part of the punishment phase of the trial. Apparently, they withheld releasing it during the guilt phase because they thought it would show Perry in too unfavorable a light. Imagine that, the prosecutors thinking it was too damaging for the defendant!
I can understand their caution. Clearly, Daniel Perry is a potty mouth, something I most certainly don’t approve of. As the Austin American-Statesman reported:
· On a Facebook post on June 1, 2020, Perry wrote that “now it is my turn to get banned (from Facebook) by comparing the black lives matter movement to a zoo full of monkeys that are freaking out flinging their s--t.”
· Perry also posted on June 1, 2020, "It is official I am a racist because I do not agree with people acting like animals at the zoo."
· He also said, "My parents own a 4 bedroom house and the BLM movement believes that my parents should give their house to a poor black family and pretty much live in a one bedroom house that they should buy with money they don't have."
You can imagine why people might think he was a racist after reading some of those things. I told Greg I was worried about him hanging out with Daniel Perry. Decent people are talking, I said. But Greg told me that, to his “base,” what Daniel Perry says is “all good.”
I swear, sometimes I just don’t understand politics at all.
Anyway, they “hung out” yesterday afternoon. It was quite the production: they met in a park between the Governor’s Mansion and the Travis County jail. Between Greg’s protective detail and the jail guards watching Perry, that park was the safest place in Austin, which, as you know, has become a hellhole of crime and violence ever since they elected that Soros-backed district attorney a few years ago. Gosh, you wouldn’t think the world could change that quickly just by electing one person!
When Greg got back to the mansion, I asked how it went and what he thought of Daniel Perry after meeting him. He looked at me very seriously and said, “Cecilia, Daniel Perry is the future of the Republican Party.”
I did not understand exactly what he meant by that, but for some reason it frightened me.
Just a reminder that, as a subscriber, you’re invited to join Substack Notes! Notes is a new space on Substack for us to share links, short posts, quotes, photos, and more. I plan to use it for things that don’t fit in the newsletter, like updates on reported stories, work-in-progress or quick questions.
How to join
Head to substack.com/notes or find the “Notes” tab in the Substack app. As a subscriber to Life Its Ownself, you’ll automatically see my notes. Feel free to like, reply, or share them around!
You can also share notes of your own. I hope this becomes a space where every reader of Life Its Ownself can share thoughts, ideas, and interesting quotes from the things we're reading on Substack and beyond.
If you encounter any issues, you can always refer to the Notes FAQ for assistance. Looking forward to seeing you there!