A new development in the will-he-or-won’t-he guessing game over Rick Perry’s possible presidential run: the Texas governor has started to call Iowa Republican donors, according to Politico.
Apparently a number of donors in the state are unhappy with the current crop of Republicans vying for the Republican nomination, and plan to convene a meeting of national donors in Austin in late July. The meeting, which Perry may not even attend, is a meeting of his political allies, hoping to determine what kind of funding would be available for a presidential run. “This isn’t the first or last meeting,” a source told Politico. (Rick Perry may have tough time swaying Latino voters)
One activist, a prominent Iowa Republican named Joni Scotter, said Perry called her and asked if he should run. He was undecided, but she told him “of course” he should.
Scotter wouldn’t say more about the conversation, but Perry’s spokesman Dave Carney confirmed that the governor had been reaching out, “calling some folks, returning some calls and listening to what folks have to say.”
Meanwhile, a group not officially affiliated with Perry hired former Newt Gingrich staffer Craig Schoenfeld to gather support for the governor in Iowa’s Ames Straw Poll. Schoenfeld is a key player in Iowa politics, and the group hopes to raise both Perry’s Iowa and national profiles.