Campaign Academy Helps Crash Rick Perry Press Event

Perry spokesperson Mark Miner came to the Bill White headquarters with the intent of holding a press conference. It did not turn out the way he expected.

From Tim Eaton at the Austin-American Statesman:

If there was a political lesson to be learned today, it was this: Don’t hold a press availability at your opponent’s headquarters.

While Gov. Rick Perry was in China, his campaign spokesman called a curbside press event in front of the office of Travis County Democrats’ coordinated campaign, which serves as the local campaign office for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White and all other Democrats running for office in Travis County.

Mark Miner, Perry’s mouthpiece, stood in the early afternoon’s sweltering heat - in a dark suit nonetheless - to try to talk to members of the Capitol press corps.

But unless you were standing inches from the sweaty Miner, you couldn’t hear anything but the chants of Democratic campaign workers, one of whom donned a chicken outfit.

“Rick Chicken Perry,” they squawked. “Debate Bill now.”

As Miner tried to address the handful of reporters in attendance, the Democratic campaign workers waved Bill White signs and tried to bait Perry into a debate.

Presumably Miner was speaking about the same topic that was on a press release handed out by his campaign companion. It said that White continues to refuse to release tax returns from his days as the deputy secretary of energy and chairman of the Texas Democratic Party.

Last week, White provided tax returns from his time as Houston mayor after much haranguing from the Perry campaign.

Watch a video of the brouhaha.