Rick Perry, a hypocritical rotten bastard

Calling Rick Perry a hypocrite is an insult to the real hypocrites of the world. From the Houston Chronicle:

AUSTIN — Unbeknownst to most Texans, Gov. Rick Perry officially retired in January so he could draw early pension benefits worth $7,699 a month, in addition to his annual governor’s salary of $150,000.

The responses have been predictable:

“If there’s a Hall of Fame for hypocrites, he’s in it,” said Democratic consultant Paul Begala.

“Regular employees who retire and return to work get their pension frozen and don’t accrue additional years of service — and those people are strongly criticized as being double-dippers and trying to exploit a unique situation,” he said. [Mike Gross, head of the 12,000-member Texas State Employees Union]

Steven E. Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College, said the revelation “will damage Perry’s appeal among conservatives and Republicans.” “Just like Newt’s big consulting fees with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, it’s an example of a politician taking a payoff from the public sector while mercilessly criticizing government,” Schier said.

“Rick Perry is using tax money to pad his pockets, while he is taking money from the classrooms, money that is needed to educate our children. I think most schoolteachers are going to wonder about a governor who is using government to improve his income while asking everyone else to make sacrifices,” said Clay Robison, spokesman for the Texas State Teachers Association.

And here is my favorite:

Rick Perry is a rotten bastard.

Yep. That is me.