More Evidence that Rick Perry Didn't Care that He Let an Innocent Man Die

He might be a murderer, but he has such nice hair.
So did Ted Bundy.

So, we are now seeing evidence that Texas Governor Rick Perry allowed a man to be executed without consideration of his likely innocence.

It's Texas, which means that a governor blithely signing off about putting a needle in someone's arm with no more than a cursory examination, typically less than 15 minutes, of the record is the standard for Texas, and it is one that Perry's two predecessors, George W. Bush and Ann Richards hewed to pretty closely.

What is different is that there is now an investigation of the execution of Cameron Todd Willingham, where it is now pretty clear that there was no murder, the accusation was of murder by arson, because the fire was not arson.

This is the strongest case seen in some time for actual innocence of a man who has been executed, and the Texas Forensic Science Commission was looking into the case, when Rick Perry's staff first pressured the panel chairman not to investigate this issue, and then fired half the commission to prevent public testimony by one of the foremost arson experts in the nation.

Meanwhile, it appears that the governor's office is now in full stonewall mode, refusing to turn over documents showing what evidence he reviewed before denying clemency, and how long he reviewed it.

Let's be clear, this is Texas. Rick Perry did not review the material in any serious way, because that is part of the social contract down there: You don't let innocence get in the way of a good execution.

On a purely political note, Rick Perry is getting a serious primary challenge from Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, who is criticizing him on his firing the panel, and his actions are stupid.

His real challenge is in the Republican primary, and the Texas Republican Party is about the most antediluvian Republican party in the nation.

From a purely political perspective, as immoral as it sounds, he should not be covering this up. He should be proclaiming from the high heavens that when a Texas jury wants a man dead, he will go to the wall to kill that man.

That would immediately make him the "it girl" of the Texas Republican party.

He already has the hair to be an "it girl".

Here is a vid of Alison Stewart, who subbing on Rachel Maddow's show, going over the basics.