Here is a look at the life of former Texas Governor Rick Perry.
Personal:
Birth date: March 4, 1950
Birth place: Paint Creek, Texas
Birth name: James Richard Perry
Father: Joseph Ray Perry, a farmer
Mother: Amelia (Holt) Perry
Marriage: Anita (Thigpen) Perry (November 6, 1982-present)
Children: Sydney; Griffin
Education: Texas A&M University, B.S., 1972
Military Service: US Air Force, 1972-1977
Religion: Methodist
Other Facts:
Is an Eagle Scout.
Met his wife, Anita, in elementary school.
Is the longest serving governor in Texas history.
Timeline:
1972-1977 – Serves in the US Air Force flying transport planes.
1977 – Returns to Prairie Creek, Texas, to live and work on his father’s farm.
1978 – Forms JR Perry Farms with his father.
1985-1991 – Member of the Texas House of Representatives as a Democrat from the 64th District.
1989 – Switches to the Republican Party.
1991-1999 – Commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture.
1999-2000 – Lieutenant Governor of Texas.
December 21, 2000 – Perry is sworn in as governor after George W. Bush resigns to become president of the United States.
November 5, 2002 – Perry is elected to a four-year term.
November 7, 2006 – Is re-elected governor.
2008 – Perry’s book “On My Honor: Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts Are Worth Fighting For” is published.
November 2, 2010 – Perry is elected for a third term in office.
August 13, 2011 – Declares his candidacy for president during a speech in South Carolina.
January 19, 2012 – Suspends his presidential campaign and endorses Newt Gingrich.
July 8, 2013 – Announces that he will not run for re-election as Texas governor in 2014.
August 15, 2014 – A grand jury indicts Rick Perry on charges of coercion of a public servant and abuse of his official capacity. He allegedly threatened to veto funding for a statewide public integrity unit run by Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg unless she resigned following her arrest on a drunk driving charge. She stayed in office, and he later vetoed the funding.
August 19, 2014 – Perry voluntarily appears at the Travis County Court house to be booked and fingerprinted and to have his mug shot taken. He pleads not guilty to charges of coercion of a public servant and abuse of official capacity. The next day he makes the first of six campaign style stops across New Hampshire.
November 18, 2014 – A state district judge in Texas denies a defense motion to have two felony charges dismissed against Perry.
January 15, 2015 – Delivers his farewell address as governor.
June 4, 2015 – Announces he is running for president at a rally in Addison, Texas.
July 24, 2015 – A Texas appeals court dismisses one of two criminal charges against Perry. The court agrees with the argument from Perry’s legal team that a Texas law concerning “coercion of a public servant” violates Perry’s First Amendment freedom of speech rights. The court is allowing a charge related to abuse of power to move forward.
September 11, 2015 – Suspends his campaign for the presidency.
January 25, 2016 – Perry endorses Ted Cruz.
February 24, 2016 – The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals drops charges against Perry alleging he abused his power while in office.
August 30, 2016 – Perry is revealed as one of the members of the upcoming 23rd season of reality television dance competition “Dancing with the Stars” on ABC.
September 27, 2016 – Is eliminated from “Dancing With The Stars.”
November 22, 2016 – Returns to “Dancing With The Stars” for the season finale. Perry dances with Vanilla Ice during a live performance of “Ice Ice Baby.”
December 13, 2016 – President-elect Donald Trump announces he has selected Perry to be his nominee for energy secretary.
January 19, 2017 – Perry says that he regrets recommending the elimination of the Department of Energy during a presidential debate in 2012.
March 2, 2017 – Perry is confirmed as energy secretary with a 62-37 vote in the Senate.
July 26, 2017 – Perry’s office acknowledges that he was the target of a prank call on July 19. During the 20-minute call from Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus, real names Vladimir Krasnov and Aleksey Stolyarov, respectively, one pretends to be Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman.