Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry dismissed newly-minted 2016 candidate Donald Trump’s Tuesday claim that he will build a “great wall” at the border if elected and get Mexico to pay for it in an interview Tuesday.
Appearing on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom,” Perry took issue with Trump’s Tuesday boast, telling the host Bill Hemmer that he’ll “let him run on that.” Perry added further that Americans are “not looking for rhetoric” but rather “actual experience,” pointing to his fourteen years at the helm of the Lone Star State.
“I’ll let him run on that,” Perry told Hemmer. “I’m going to run on actual experience of dealing with this, and we’ve been successful with it, and I think we can take that experience to Washington D.C.
“That’s what Americans are looking for. They’re not looking for rhetoric,” Perry explained. “They are looking for somebody who has been in the field of battle, if you will. Who’s performed, who’s gotten results. Whether it is job creation or whether it’s dealing with the border, we’ve got real results that backup our actions.”
Hemmer then asked the former governor about Trump’s statement that Mexico is “ripping America off,” which Perry pushed back on, saying that Mexico is Texas’ number one trading partner.
“Well, again, I think you have to have diplomatic relationships with a lot of different countries. Mexico happens to be the number one trading partner with the state of Texas,” Perry said. “We may disagree on a number of things, but, again, I’m not going to get distracted on what is important to the people of this country.”
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