Why Wall Street Is Bullish on Texas

Home state paid for food and lodging for bodyguards

(NEWSER) - Gov. Rick Perry's ill-fated presidential run cost the taxpayers of Texas nearly $800,000, spent on travel fees for the security detail that followed Perry around on his campaign from September through November, a state report reveals. Perry took 48 trips across state lines, mostly to primary battlegrounds Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. One trip in September from South Carolina to Iowa and back racked up $45,122 in charges, including $10,834 for hotels and $7,526 for food, reports the Austin American-Statesman . More»

Tea Party favorite not always on Norquist's good side

(NEWSER) - He may be an anti-tax champion now, but Rick Perry has supported billions of dollars in tax hikes throughout his political career—among them the biggest increase that ever occurred in Texas history, the Texas Tribune reports. Just weeks ago, the governor signed an online sales tax provision aimed at raising $60 million over five years. Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform slapped the move with a “new tax” label. And Perry voted for more than 12 tax increases during his six-year stint in the Texas House. More»

There will be future bailouts, so make banks pay their share

(NEWSER) - The recent financial crisis wasn't the first time banks needed a taxpayer bailout, and it won't be the last. That's why a bank tax is the best way to protect taxpayers from the cost of future crises, David Leonhardt writes in the New York Times —better than the current Senate financial regulation bill. "A bank tax is akin to an insurance policy that taxpayers would require Wall Street to hold," Leonhardt argues. "The premiums on that policy would keep Wall Street from making big profits in good times while foisting its losses on society in bad." More»

Thievery soars in Wild West as recession-hit cowboys go bad

(NEWSER) - A crime of the Old West is becoming a serious problem in 21st-century Texas, the Los Angeles Times reports. Cases of cattle rustling have more than tripled over the last couple of years, a trend investigators blame on the recession and on city-dwelling ranch owners who don't take the time to check on their cattle. A good young animal can easily fetch up to $700 at auction and thieves are finding more sophisticated ways to hide brands. More»

(NEWSER) - Texas Gov. Rick Perry thinks this union of states we call America is a pretty good thing, but he warned that Washington better not take it for granted, the Dallas Morning News reports. "There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it," he told reporters after addressing the anti-tax, anti-big-government tea party in Austin. "But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that." More»