George Will seems high on Rick Perry (h/t to Peter Schramm for the link.) I dunno.  Perry is, in one sense perfectly positioned for the Republican primary race.  He is much more of a small government guy than George W. Bush and he is a social conservative with long executive experience in a state with strong recent job creation.  That is pretty much the sweet spot. 

But I don't have strong feelings either pro or anti-Perry.  It isn't just that Texas has a higher unemployment rate than the supposedly Obamneycare-afflicted state of Massachusetts or Tim Pawlenty's Minnesota.  Assigning praise and blame according to state by state unemployment and job creation statistics is difficult.  Perry is having budget issues.   Depending on how he and the Texas state legislature solve them, he might have a strong case to run as a candidate of fiscal consolidation. 

I hope he runs, but I'm keeping my expectations modest.