King of Texas, is he the victim of mistakes or bad judgment?

By Cynthia A. Janak

I really, really wanted to stay out of the political arena but when the "King of Texas" Gov. Perry said it was a "mistake" to mandate the HPV vaccine in Texas back in February of 2007 I could not keep silent.

The article goes on to give this quote. "I'm one of the first to say we didn't approach this issue right at all," Perry said Monday in an interview with Des Moines- based WHO radio. "We shouldn't have done it with an executive order. We should have worked with the legislature." (1)

Then there is this choice piece from the same article. "There was a break in Gov. Rick Perry's Texas swagger this week as he dialed back his previously unwavering support for the vaccine Gardasil, which protects against the human papillomavirus, or HPV." (1)

"The legislature quickly overturned order, preventing it from being enacted, but prior to this week Perry had defended his decision. Perry said he "didn't do [his] research well enough" on the before signing the executive order and that he has learned his lesson." (1)

There is one more fact that is not being mentioned and that is the lawsuit that was filed. "Texas Families File Lawsuit to Block Governor Perry's HPV Vaccine Order" Excerpt: "It also upset many state lawmakers in his own party and a bill to override the order is working its way through the state House of Representatives." (3)

His own party was upset over the actions that he took and was doing their due diligence to stop this travesty of his executive order.

Let us look at the facts here.

It is my opinion that we have a presidential hopeful here who now says he made a mistake by overstepping his executive authority right after announcing his candidacy for president. He also stated that he "didn't do his research well enough." Until this point he unwaveringly supported all girls and boys getting the HPV vaccination. (1)

I am sorry but I find this a bit odd so I wanted to see what else he mandated.

Well, well, well, look at what we have here. He rescinded several executive orders while he was debating his candidacy.

RP74 — Relating to Rescinding Certain Previous Executive Orders. (2)

Thursday, February 17, 2011 • Austin, Texas • Executive Order

GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

Executive Department

Austin, Texas — February 10, 2011

Relating to Rescinding Certain Previous Executive Orders

WHEREAS, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas, I have previously issued Executive Orders Nos. RP 19, RP 24, RP 61, RP 63, RP 65, and RP 66; and

WHEREAS, each of these executive orders, by virtue of its own terms, remains in effect and in full force until modified, amended, rescinded, or superseded by me or by a succeeding Governor; and

WHEREAS, I have now determined that these executive orders are no longer essential to the organization or operation of the executive branch of government; now

THEREFORE, I, RICK PERRY, Governor of Texas, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas do hereby rescind Executive Orders Nos. RP 19, RP 24, RP 61, RP 63, RP 65, and RP 66.

Given under my hand this the 10th day of February, 2011.

RICK PERRY (Signature)

Governor

Attested by:

ESPERANZA "HOPE" ANDRADE (Signature)

Secretary of State

Let's see what they were.

RP 19 — Relating to the current appeal for blood donations in Texas, "Each state agency in Texas is encouraged to allow their employees to take one hour of compensatory or vacation time to donate blood to address this current shortage." (4)

RP24 — Relating to the creation of a study committee to advise the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on issues related to the regulation and permitting of rock crushers and quarries. "WHEREASit is in the interest of all citizens of this state that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality be authorized to consider an appropriate range of issues concerning authorizations for rock crushers, including rock crushers operating in association with quarries;" (5)

2. Composition. The joint committee shall consist of members appointed by the governor. The committee shall be made up of three members of the senate, three members of the house, and three members of the public. The governor may designate a member to serve as chair of the committee.

3. Support. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality shall provide staff support for the study.

RP61 — Relating to the creation, composition, and operation of the Governor's Health System Integrity Partnership for the State of Texas. (6)

"do hereby issue the following order: Creation of Partnership. The Texas Health Care System Integrity Partnership ("Partnership")" "The Partnership shall consist of 11 members appointed by the Governor and include representatives of employers, physicians, hospitals, health plans, pharmacies, clinical laboratories, pharmacy benefit managers, and consumers." "All appointees serve at the pleasure of the Governor." "Administrative Support. The staff of the Texas Health Care Policy Council within the Office of the Governor and state agencies may provide staff to assist the Partnership as necessary"

RP63 — Relating to the creation of the Texas Southern University Advisory Committee. (7)

Creation.The Texas Southern University Advisory Committee ("Committee")

Composition and Organization.The Committee shall consist of members appointed by the governor. All appointees serve at the pleasure of the governor.

Administrative Support.The Office of the Governor, Texas Southern University, the Higher Education Coordinating Board, and other state agencies may provide staff and funding to assist the Committee as necessary.

RP65 — Relating to the immunization of young women from the cancer-causing Human Papillomavirus. (8)

Vaccine.The Department of State Health Services shall make the HPV vaccine available through the Texas Vaccines for Children program for eligible young females up to age 18, and the Health and Human Services Commission shall make the vaccine available to Medicaid-eligible young females from age 19 to 21.

Rules.The Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner shall adopt rules that mandate the age appropriate vaccination of all female children for HPV prior to admission to the sixth grade.

RP67 — Relating to the Task Force on Higher Education Incentive Funding. (9)

WHEREAS, it is imperative that the State of Texas increase the number and quality of graduates, especially those in critical fields; and increase the number of community college students who transfer to universities and then earn baccalaureate degrees; and

WHEREAS, establishing an innovative incentive-based performance funding system is essential to furthering the goal of having institutions of higher education prepare students for the 21st century marketplace; and

Out of all these that Perry rescinded I think the first and last one were appropriate. The only problem I see is that all this should have gone through the legislature for a vote because of funding and/or the additional personnel required for each.

Each one of these bills takes the hard earned money out of the pockets of the Texas citizen and those citizens are not being represented by their elected officials.

Is this what I want my president to do? I think not. I want my president to put the power back into the hands of the states and the people of this great nation.

Now, I wonder if these executive orders were all a mistake or just bad judgment.

The interesting thing here is that only recently did Gov. Perry rescind the order on HPV mandates. Why now and not back in early 2007? I wonder what else might be going on in the back room with his presidential campaign advisors.

I want all to know that ABC News has more about this and other topics with regards to Gov. Perry listed on the web link that I provided. I suggest that you check those stories out also.

Here is a list.

More from ABC News

• Big-Money Perry Has Record to Bank On
  
  
• Truth About Rick Perry's 'Texas Miracle'
  
  
• Rick Perry Decries Washington Spending But Lobbied For Funds
  
  
• Rick Perry Leads Those Who Appoint Campaign Donors
  
  

(1) ABC News/Politics, Rick Perry Changes Tune on HPV Vaccine After Announcing White House Bid, http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/rick-perry-walks-back-support-mandating-hpv-vaccine/story?id=14333931

(2) Office of the Governor, Rick Perry, Governor's Executive Orders, http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order

(3) Fox News, Texas Families File Lawsuit to Block Governor Perry's HPV Vaccine Order, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,255242,00.html

(4) RP 19 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/4422

(5) RP 24 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/4414

(6) RP 61 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/3595

(7) RP 63 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/3468

(8) RP 65 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/3455

(9) RP 67 — http://governor.state.tx.us/news/executive-order/3454

© Cynthia A. Janak