Perry's Political Playground

It's a sad twist on a famous song:

This land was your land,
But now it’s my land.
Half a million acres,
‘bout the size of Rhode Island.
And I’m gonna give it,
To a foreign com..pa…ny.
Your land is now the TTC!

Rick Perry talks a lot about limiting government and protecting private property.  But actions speak louder than words.  Just look at Perry’s Trans Texas Corridor, his plan to seize nearly 600,000 acres of private property and turn it over to a foreign company to build toll roads.

You have to ask yourself: If the government can just TAKE 600,000 acres of private property and turn it over to foreign control, what else is at risk?

Here are the facts:

“Texans never bought into Perry's idea for the $200 billion Trans-Texas Corridor tollway. It was too expensive, too expansive, ate up too much private land, split family farms and ranches, and was to be built and owned in part by a foreign company that would reap the toll revenues.” – Austin American-Statesman, 1/9/09

“But the Trans-Texas Corridor has come to stand for a threatened land grab, a tin-eared highway bureaucracy and private toll roads as the only answer to all transportation problems.” – Corpus Christi Caller-Times, 1/11/09

“All too real, on the other hand, are the effects the corridor itself will have on Texas. Bisected communities, carved-up farmland and devastated wildlife habitats are some of the provable results the corridor will leave in its wake.” – Houston Chronicle, 8/21/07

In 2002, Rick Perry Introduced The "Trans-Texas Corridor".

• In January 2002, Perry Proposed A Massive Road And Rail Plan Called The “Trans-Texas Corridor” (TTC). “Gov. Rick Perry proposed Monday a sweeping road and rail plan - with thousands of miles of new highways and high-speed trains - that would be built using public and private money and cost up to $175 billion over 50 years. Most of the system would be toll roads. Called the Trans Texas Corridor, Perry's proposal would broaden the state's traditional pay-as-you-go road-building system to include new financing tools available to the state.” (The Associated Press, 1/28/02)

Rick Perry’s Trans-Texas Corridor Required The Eminent Domain Seizure Of Nearly 600,000 Acres Of Private Property.

• Perry’s TTC Could Have Required Texas To Acquire Nearly 600,000 Acres Of Private Land, “Much From Farmers And Ranchers.” “TTC also could require the state to acquire nearly 600,000 acres of private land, much from farmers and ranchers. … Some people fearful of losing property worried if appeals that are part of the acquisition procedure failed, the state would just take the land it wanted. ‘I wouldn't get too focused on (that),’ [assistant executive director of the transportation agency Phil] Russell said, referring to what's commonly known as eminent domain. ‘We've never used it and I don't think we ever will.’” (The Associated Press, 1/17/08)

• Lands Seized Could Have Included “Homes, Churches, Schools, Businesses, Ranchland, And Farmlands.” “Conservative Republicans are opposed to the idea that a foreign company will be given carte blanche to raze homes, churches, schools, businesses, ranchland, and farmlands for private toll roads that will be cash cows for the next 50 years or so.” (Texas Observer, 9/8/06)

To Build The First Leg Of The Trans-Texas Corridor, Rick Perry’s Transportation Commission Selected The Foreign Company “Cintra” – Leading To Questions Of Cronyism.

• In December 2004, Texas Transportation Commission Selected A Consortium Led By Spanish-Based Cintra To Build First Leg Of TTC. “The group, led by Cintra of Spain, will build and operate the corridor's first segment of toll roads from Dallas to San Antonio.” (San Antonio Express-News, 12/17/04)

• Dan Shelley – A Key Perry Aide – Worked For Spanish-Owned Cintra Before And After It Was Awarded Trans-Texas Corridor Contracts.  “Once again, Gov. Rick Perry's former liaison to the Legislature is working for the Spanish company that won the rights to develop the $7 billion Trans-Texas Corridor. Lobbyist Dan Shelley worked for the firm as a consultant just before he went to the governor's office, a connection first revealed in 2004. State officials denied any connection between that circumstance and the decision, three months later, to award Cintra the huge highway contract. Now, Mr. Shelley has left the governor's office, and he and his daughter have large contracts to lobby for the road builder.” (The Dallas Morning News, 8/18/06)

The Trans-Texas Corridor Was Seen As “Double Taxation” On Texans.

• The Trans-Texas Corridor Was Called “Double Taxation” For Forcing Drivers To Pay For Roads That Should Be Built With Federal And State Gasoline Taxes. “Since drivers already pay federal and state gasoline taxes - supposedly to build and maintain the state's increasingly creaky highway system - the growing army of detractors asked, why should they then have to pay to use roads? Isn't that, in fact, double taxation?” (Carlos Guerra, Op-Ed, San Antonio Express-News, 1/8/09)

• Many Texans Opposed Idea Of Paying Tolls To Cintra, A Foreign Company. “Opposition grew even more intense when it became apparent that the tolls would be paid to foreign-owned private contractors - the only investors that stepped forward.” (Carlos Guerra, Op-Ed, San Antonio Express-News, 1/8/09)

Trans-Texas Corridor Was A Betrayal Of Agricultural Community.

• The Associated Press: “Farmers Furious At Governor Over Proposed Superhighway.” (The Associated Press, 7/20/06)

• In 2007, One Texas Farmer Said Between TTC And Refusal To Stand Up For Property Rights, Perry Had Turned His Back On Agriculture Community. “One Central Texas farmer said Monday he was ‘dumbfounded’ by Gov. Rick Perry’s veto of an eminent domain bill designed to protect landowners when the state wants to take their property. Robert Fleming is not alone in an area worried about the massive Trans Texas Corridor proposal. The planned route cuts through Fleming's Bell County farms. He's bewildered by Perry's veto. … Fleming took aim at Perry, saying he has turned his back on agriculture and his veto makes that clear. ‘I feel like he's let us down a little bit,’ Fleming said. ‘He's got big ag background but since he's become a politician, he's kind of left ag out.’” (The Associated Press, 6/19/07)

• Houston Chronicle Editorial: Perry “Appeared Strangely Tone-Deaf” To Texans’ Concerns About TTC. “Perry, a son of that robust tradition, has appeared strangely tone-deaf to this noisy appeal. Farm folks said the Trans-Texas Corridor was too intrusive, took too much private land and threatened to change their way of life - and they came out in great numbers to say it.” (Editorial, Houston Chronicle, 1/12/09)

Texans Across The State Protested The Trans-Texas Corridor.

• 2008 Republican Party Platform Declared That The Party Was “Emphatically Opposed” To TTC. “We emphatically oppose the Trans-Texas Corridor in any form or manner. We call for full investigation of any public officials authorizing any form of eminent domain for the Trans-Texas Corridor and foreign funding.” (“2008 State Republican Platform,” Republican Party of Texas)

• In 2006, More Than 14,000 Texans Showed Up To Public Hearings To Make Their Displeasure Known. "More than 14,000 Texans - almost all opposed to the Trans-Texas Corridor - turned out at Texas Department of Transportation public hearings this summer to express their displeasure with the highway and the governor." (Houston Chronicle, 8/23/06)

Rick Perry Is Misleading Voters When He Claims That The Trans-Texas Corridor No Longer Exists.

• In August 2009, Perry Claimed “The Trans-Texas Corridor Is Gone Away. The Name, The Concept, The Legislature Decided To Do Away With That Last Year.” (Victoria Advocate Website, www.victoriaadvocate.com, Accessed 8/7/09)

• VIDEO OF RICK PERRY STATEMENT ON TTC

• However, Rick Perry Previously Indicated The TTC Announcement “Was Mostly A Name Change.” “Gov. Rick Perry, talking from Iraq to reporters, suggested that the Texas Department of Transportation's decision to pull the plug on one of his biggest initiatives -- the Trans Texas Corridor -- was mostly a name change, and that public-private partnerships on toll roads would continue. ‘The name 'Trans Texas Corridor' is over with. We're going to continue to build roads in the state of Texas,’ Perry said. He said toll roads will continue to play a major role in highway planning because there are limited ways to get infrastructure funding.” (The Dallas Morning News, 1/6/09)

• TxDOT Plans To Move Forward With TTC Projects Under The Name “Innovative Connectivity In Texas.” “The state will move forward with a series of individual projects that had been considered part of the Trans-Texas Corridor plan, [TxDOT Executive Director Amadeo Saenz Jr.] said. … The renewed effort now will operate under the name ‘Innovative Connectivity in Texas’ to usher in a new method of operation, Saenz said.” (Houston Chronicle, 1/7/09)

• The Trans-Texas Corridor Still Exists By Name In Statute. “The Trans-Texas Corridor, Perry's 4,000-mile dream of tollways and rail lines cross-hatching the state, has been pronounced dead several times, but is still officially alive in statute. It was scheduled to be scuttled in the TxDOT sunset bill, but the bill died instead.” (Austin American-Statesman, 6/8/09)

Making Matters Worst, In 2007, Rick Perry Vetoed Eminent Domain Reform Package That Had Widespread Support.

• In 2007, Bill Providing Eminent Domain Reform Passed Senate Unanimously, Passed House With 125 Of 150 Votes. (San Antonio Express-News, 11/24/08)

• Despite Widespread Support For Measure Among Conservatives, Perry Vetoed The Bill. “At the conclusion of the legislative session, Perry came under fire again for his veto of an eminent domain bill that would have given more protections to private property owners in government condemnation hearings. Once more, many conservative activists were caught off guard.” (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2/3/08)

• Texas Farm Bureau President Kenneth Dierschke: “The Property Owners Of Texas Are Dumbfounded That A Governor From Paint Creek, Texas Could Veto The Most Important Property Rights Legislation In More Than A Decade.” (Texas Farm Bureau, Press Release, 6/18/07)

• Texas Public Policy Foundation Spokesman Bill Peacock: “Unfortunately, This Veto Exposes Property Owners From Freeport To El Paso To The Very Real Threat Of Eminent Domain.” (The Dallas Morning News, 6/16/07)