[Lamplighter]

The political news over the past days has been lackluster.
The media seems to be drying up on GOP tax plan proposals,
leaving Gov Rick Perry as 'foil dejour' .

With another GOP debate coming in just two weeks,
Polls are the fun and games for the news media
... in the North, Romney leads Cain
... in the South, Romney and Cain are tied
but in all the country but Texas,
it may be unanimous... Perry is at the bottom of the heap.
And maybe wants to stay there.

Christian Science Monitor
Does Rick Perry really want to be president?
Texas Gov. Rick Perry's debate performance, and other clues,
indicate to DCDecoder that Rick Perry may not be 'in it to win it.'
The Christian Science Monitor
By Liz Marlantes
October 13, 2011

Watching Rick Perry’s debate performance Tuesday night,
Decoder (along with many observers in the press) was struck by how
itching-to-get-out-of-there uncomfortable he looked.
It was like watching someone’s half-hearted attempt to engage in polite conversation
at a dinner party he was only attending as a favor to his wife.

And almost by definition, a candidate who jumps in only after some
arm twisting by supporters - as Perry did and Christie did not -
probably doesn’t want it that bad.

Even Perry's campaign staff and are admitting problems
with Perry's performance in debates, and the media are speaking openly about it.
The Atlantic
Oct 27 2011, 9:14 AM ET

Rick Perry Ponders Staying Home for Future Debates

In Michigan on November 9, Gov. Rick Perry is confirmed to be
on the debate stage beside his rivals for the GOP nomination.
But after that? "We are going to evaluate each debate as it comes
and take each one on its own merits," his campaign spokesman told the Wall Street Journal.
"The primaries are right around the corner and there is simply more to do than there is time to do it."

Conn Carroll recommended this strategy a couple weeks back:
"Perry has performed poorly in all four of the GOP debates in which he has participated.
Even the candidate himself seems to acknowledge that debates can only hurt his campaign.
So why show up?" he asked.

This announcement is an admission that the Texas governor doesn'teven expect he can improve over time.
Of course, it isn't actually essential that a president be a good debater,
but it is essential that he has a deep grasp of numerous issues,is a quick study,
and can use the bully pulpit to good effect.
As it happens, these are the very things at which Perry is failing miserably.

With nothing good to say, the news media is focusing
on Perry's role in State government, which also seems to be haphazard.

LA Times
October 26, 2011

Perry opposes Confederate Texas license plate proposal

Perry said he opposed the plan to offer the Texas license plates
with the emblem, which includes the Confederate flag.

"We don't need to be scraping old wounds," Perry said.

Afterward, a spokeswoman clarified the governor's position.
"While the governor believes this is a decision for the DMV board,
he personally does not support the Confederate plate,"
spokeswoman Lucy Nashed said via email.

And besides all that:
Perry is not despairing.
He is not the only GOP candidate whose remarks need to be clarified.
Perry has a role model in Mitt Romney:

Mitt Romney Questions Obama Troop Withdrawal, Says He’d Vote for Rick Perry

MANCHESTER, N.H., — At a campaign stop in the Granite State today,
former Mass. Governor Mitt Romney questioned whether President Barack Obama’s decision
to withdraw troops from Iraq entirely by the end of the year was “due to politics or ineptitude.”
<snip>
Having avoided mentioning any of his GOP rivals by name during brief remarks
delivered to the volunteers making calls for his campaign,
Romney was asked by a member of the press if he believes
Texas Gov. Rick Perry has the “intelligence” to be president.
“I do,” quipped Romney. “I believe every single person on the stage
in that last debate would do a better job than President Obama.
If Rick Perry were the nominee I’d be voting for him.
I, of course believe he’s qualified, as are the other people on the stage."