The Washington Post reports that a camp leased by Rick Perry and/or his family had “[N-word]head” written on a rock:
As recently as this summer, the slablike rock — lying flat, the name still faintly visible beneath a coat of white paint — remained by the gated entrance to the camp.
When asked last week, Perry said the word on the rock is an “offensive name that has no place in the modern world.”
In his responses to two rounds of detailed, written questions, Perry said his father first leased the property in 1983. Rick Perry said he added his own name to the lease from 1997 to 1998, when he was state agriculture commissioner, and again from 2004 to 2007, when he was governor. …
“My mother and father went to the lease and painted the rock in either 1983 or 1984,” Perry wrote. “This occurred after I paid a visit to the property with a friend and saw the rock with the offensive word. After my visit I called my folks and mentioned it to them, and they painted it over during their next visit.”
“Ever since, any time I ever saw the rock it was painted over,” Perry said.
Perry’s version of events differs in many respects from the recollections of seven people, interviewed by The Washington Post, who spoke in detail of their memories of seeing the rock with the name at various points during the years that Perry was associated with the property through his father, partners or his signature on a lease.
Full piece here. The statement from Perry campaign communications director Ray Sullivan in response to the piece:
A number of claims made in the story are incorrect, inconsistent, and anonymous, including the implication that Rick Perry brought groups to the lease when the word on the rock was still visible. The one consistent fact in the story is that the word on a rock was painted over and obscured many years ago.
Gov. Perry and his family never owned, controlled or managed the property referenced in the Washington Post story. The 42,000-acre ranch is owned by the Hendricks Home for Children, a West Texas charity. http://www.hendrickhome.com/
Perry’s father painted over offensive language on a rock soon after leasing the 1,000-acre parcel in the early 1980s. When Gov. Perry was party to the hunting lease from 1997 to 2007, the property was described as northern pasture. He has not been to the property since 2006.
In 1991, the Texas Legislature passed a bill to rename old, offensive place names.
And Katrina, never missing a chance to create doubt about Rick Perry will report on Romney's hiring of illegals, even after he was told about it by the Boston Globe, will come in 3.....2.....
Tell us, Katrina, just because the Washington Compost bashes Perry using "anonymous" sources, does that mean you have to get in the gutter with them?
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse*an “offensive name that has no place in the modern world.”*
Unless a black person chooses to use that word, e.g., on every rap record released--then it's just a-ok!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbusePerry has turned out to be a pandering dunce, but this is a non story designed to fit the 'conservatives are racists' meme.
They lease the property. As soon as they started leasing, they painted over the rock. I don't think most land leases allow destruction and removal of parts of the property.
The charity owns the property and the rock. Why isn't the post going after the charity?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI suppose virtually the entire Texas legislature is made up of pandering dunces, and that Marco Rubio is one too. Maybe Perry understands conditions in his state a lot better than the out=of-staters.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe pandering and dunce parts are for separate accomplishments.
The pandering is for the in state tuition for illegal aliens - so yes, all of those did pander to that audience.
'Dunce' is a special award that goes to governor box-o-rocks and his debate performances that make GWB look like a rhodes scholar.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI respect your right to think of Gov. Perry as a dunce since this is the USA and you have a right to your opinion and a right to express your opinion.
I do wish you would quit saying Perry was pandering regarding the in-state tuition. Perry could either sign the law passed by all the legislators except for four but also inform yourself the law was veto proof and it would have passed without his signature.
Everyone can have an opinion and are free to post their opinion but when misstating the facts, it does show your 'dunce-ness'.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"Perry could either sign the law passed by all the legislators except for four but also inform yourself the law was veto proof and it would have passed without his signature."
Did that fact force him to call people who disagreed with him heartless?
"but when misstating the facts,"
What facts did I misstate? Perry shot to the top of the polls when he announced and his own idiotic actions and statements caused him to drop like a rock. There's no conspiracy or misstatements - it's all perry being perry's own worst enemy.
I'm just glad he imploded so quickly. I shudder to think of what would happen if the blockhead went head to head with obama in a debate.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWell someone keep painting the N word on the rock until at least this last year. It's Texas after all. I once has a neighbor that had a swatitza painted by some punks on the side of their barn. I demanded they remove it and it wasn't even on my property!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIs this the first time the media has literally turned over rocks
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuselooking for dirt on a Republican ?
The WaPo is trying out the Macaca Maneuver again.
Could it be back in the day when the offensive name was displayed, Perry and/or his family were Democrats? As was, say, Bull Connor?
Cordially...
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe bigger question is why is Katrina giving this WaPo hit piece of trash any more attention than it deserves, which is none?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbusePerry is an outrageous RINO clown who has absolutely no clue what American Sovereignty is and that will cost him the nomination all by itself BUT, this race card playing has to stop;
"The term was once widely used for all sorts of things, including products such as soap and chewing..." External Link
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAnd the point is that he's a liar?
What did you expect him to do - throw his campaign away on trivial nonsense?
If this is the extent of his mendacity, it puts him ahead of everyone in public office beginning with the current POTUS.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWhy in the world did Cain embrace this story? It was a perfect opportunity to attack the Washington Post for peddling tabloids and yet he attacks Perry? Not a very good idea from Cain.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe Post hit piece was a 3,000-word colossus of an article published this morning. I doubt the campaign had a chance read or fact-check the article before Cain was asked about it by Amampour.
Kind of devious the way this played out. Now the left can hide behind Cain's denouncement to cover the ridiculousness of this story.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseBecause he's a dope? Or maybe playing the race card is just reflexive with him.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThis is beyond pathetic and disgusting that the Washington Post actually wasted ink on this slur of a Republican. One of the reasons we are in such deep trouble in this country is the MSM has no moral compass nor interest in factual, truthful reporting of what is actually important. I am not surprised that the WaPo has stooped this low though. I imagine this will be headlined on CNN; CBS; ABC; NBC and of course MSNBC.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIf you can't discern whom the Left fears facing the most in the 2012 election, then you are just not paying attention to who is most in their crosshairs.
The media treatment of Perry smacks of a new strain of Palen Derangement Syndrome, only this is the Perry PDS mutation.
What's next? Perry's head Photoshopped on the Times Square Naked Cowboy like was circulated mocking Palin?
Disgusting! and frankly I thought Herman Cain was better than taking cheap pot shots at Perry in a racially-charged story that is so clearly a media mud slinging invention.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHerman Cain says whatever pops into his head. Which often includes cheap shots and stupid statements.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI agree, Rook.
Cain's only excuse for his knee jerk response
must be that he was brainwashed
by the Washington Post.
Cain's intemperate remarks have
given this pathetic story life.
USA Today and HuffPo both have false and inflammatory headlines about Perry ,
courtesy of Cain's words.
Cain on FOX News
- " and for him to leave it there as long as they did is just plain insensitive
to a lot of black people in this country,"
Cain on ABC 's This Week
"Since Gov. Perry has been going there
for years to hunt, I think that it shows a lack of sensitivity
for a long time of not taking that word off of that rock and renaming the place,"
Al Sharpton could have used and probably will,
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abusethe same shoddy race card
hyperbole as Cain.
Cain owes Governor Perry an apology.