The Hill News

A government watchdog group in Texas ripped GOP presidential hopeful Rick Perry’s plan to cut back on the size of government by instituting a part-time Congress, calling it a “wrecking ball approach” that would proffer “extreme conflicts of interest” and “weave a welcome mat for corruption” in Washington.
 
On Tuesday in Iowa, Perry looked to resuscitate his campaign by unveiling an “Uproot and Overhaul” plan that would refashion the U.S. Congress in the mold of the Texas legislature. In Texas, lawmakers meet every other year and make only $7,500 annually.
 
Craig McDonald, the director of the liberal nonprofit watchdog group Texans for Public Justice, says this idea doesn’t work in Texas and it won’t work in Washington.
 
“The way we operate just weaves a welcome mat for corruption,” McDonald said. “The looseness of our campaign finance laws, the conflicts of interest in the legislature and executive branch â€"! a lot happens behind the scenes here that the public never sees, and just to generally imply that reshaping Washington to look like Texas â€" that’s not a model for good government.”

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