Rick Perry: Texas Governor Hates All Those Fancy Coastal Elitists, But Really Wants Them to Move to His State

Texas Governor Rick Perry has been traveling the country, trying to poach jobs for his home state, and his latest target is New York.

In the past, Perry has gone to California and Illinois, both Democratic states where he doesn't have any political friends, urging businesses to relocate or branch out to Texas, which he says is "wide open for business." During these trips, Perry often travels with an assortment of business leaders and meets with private development investors in the state. He also launches a media campaign advertising Texas business benefits.

This kind of business marketing isn't an original idea, but Perry takes it to new levels. Californians, in particular, were pretty ticked off at Perry's $24,000 TV ads that told them that "building a business is tough" but "in California, [it] is next to impossible." Governor Jerry Brown wrote the spots off as "barely a fart," and that must have urged Perry to greater heights in Illinois. There, he boldly aired ads in which he stated that the state's business structure was "designed for you to fail," comparing companies operating in the state to a "burning building on the verge of collapse." His ads often end with Perry standing next to an emergency exit door.

These confrontational messages have been praised by some and reviled by others, but even Republicans have noted that it "breaks all the rules of interstate diplomacy and protocol." Still, Perry seems determined to continue.  

After targeting some of the biggest markets in the nation, New York may seem like the logical next step for Perry, with its vast amount of business and the fact that New York has been ranked one of the worst states in tax climate. Politically, however, Perry's move to the Empire State could step on friendly toes. Rudy Guiliani, former mayor of New York City, is a strong political ally of Perry's and could be instrumental if Perry decides to run in the 2016 presidential race. However, if Perry is also bad-mouthing his home state, it's likely that this could cause some tension between the two. 

Regardless, Perry plans to begin his New York visit Sunday. This is easily his most expansive campaign yet, spanning four days (with a stopover in Connecticut) and costing over $1 million for the media campaign alone. Ads have already begun airing in New York, preceding Perry's arrival with the slogan, "Texas is calling. Your opportunity awaits."

If the easygoing Californians were that riled up after Perry's visit, there's no saying what our fierce New Yorkers will have to say about it.