Rick Perry — accompanied by his wife, the Luttrell twins, novelist Brad Thor, and a number of combat veterans, including Medal of Honor winner Mike Thornton — met with a handful of New Hampshire residents this afternoon in Meredith. These backyard meet-and-greets are well familiar in campaign coverage, and many N.H. residents take them calmly, even soberly, in stride. Been-around-the-block political reporters may cast a skeptical eye on them.
As a new resident of the state, I found the whole event extraordinary, nearly mythic. Perry walked through the crowd, making an effort to shake the hand of every single guest. He exchanged pleasantries, answered questions, posed for pictures. Of one little girl standing next to him for a photo, he said, “This one here likes rattlesnakes!” She giggled and looked shy.
He greeted the military veterans in the crowd with particular warmth and respect. No guest was vetted; no questions were pre-planned; as far as I could tell, security was minimal. People ate burgers, dogs barked, the pink roses nodded in the heat. After Perry’s speech (seamlessly and warmly delivered), one attendee asked Perry to lead the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance. He did, and thanked the man for the suggestion.
Another guest said, “I’ll ask you the kind of question reporters like to ask Hillary: What’s your wife’s favorite color?” (Answer: “The same color as her eyes, blue.”) Other guests asked substantive multi-part questions about border security and immigration, to which he had fluid multi-part answers, mentioning drone surveillance, strategically placed fences, a newly private-sector oil industry in Mexico, since Mexico changed its constitution two years ago, that will spur some illegal immigrants to return to Mexico as its economy improves. I don’t know yet which candidate I will support in 2016; it’s too early for that. But Perry is an impressive man, no doubt about it in this voter’s eyes. Leaving the event, I thought, I love this country! Not a bad feeling for a candidate to inspire.