Despite poll results, Rick Perry continues on to South Carolina
After drawing a less-than-expected 10% from the Iowa Caucus, Texas Governor Rick Perry announced that he would reassess his campaign bid for president.
However, less than 12 hours later, Perry announced that his campaign would continue into South Carolina.
“And the next leg of the marathon is the Palmetto State…Here we come South Carolina!!!” Perry tweeted.
Although he will remain on the ballot in New Hampshire, the next primary state, he will be campaigning primarily in South Carolina, whose primary is on January 21.
Recently, because of debate stumbles and his now-infamous “Strong” ad comparing President Obama’s repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy to a war on religion, Perry has come under criticism from national pundits and voters alike.
Senior Richard Lyne, who will be voting in the next election, says it is time for Perry to bow down.
“This is Bush part two,” Lyne said. “Everyone’s going to make fun of Texas for years to come because of him.”
Citing Perry’s strong ad as well, Lyne noted Perry’s poor debate performance.
“He can’t even remember one of the departments he was going to cut once he become President,” Lyne said.
“I think he needs to rethink his candidacy and give it a little more time to see where things are going to go,” front office worker Jane Schiller said. “I think he’s tried to use what he did in Texas and use it nationally, which I think has been a mistake, and I hope he figures that out.”
“I think that Perry should keep going,” cafeteria worker Sue Morris said. “You never know- everybody else has come up from behind, and he has a good chance himself.”
Nationally, Perry has come under fire from fellow conservatives for policies he has supported or enacted while governor, such as allowing children of illegal immigrants to pay for in-state tuition at Texas colleges and requiring the HPV vaccine for all twelve-year-old girls enrolled in public schools.
Many political experts agree that if Perry polls poorly in South Carolina, he will drop out of the race. Even if Perry drops out, the results from Iowa indicate that Republicans are far from decided on whom their candidate should be; Rick Santorum, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul all nearly won a quarter of the vote each.
