Texas Gov. Rick Perry fired up an anti-tax "tea party" with his stance against the federal government and for states' rights as some in his U.S. flag-waving audience shouted, "Secede!"
Perry suggested Texans might at some point get so fed up they would want to secede from the union, though he said he sees no reason why Texas should do that.
"There's a lot of different scenarios," Perry said. "We've got a great union. There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that. But Texas is a very unique place, and we're a pretty independent lot to boot."
He said he believes he could be at the center of a national movement that is coordinated and focused in its opposition to the actions of the federal government. "It's a very organic thing," he said. "It is a very powerful moment, I think, in American history."
Mike Smart, a 51-year-old oil field worker from West Texas, held up a white handwritten sign that said, "I'll keep my freedom, my money and my guns. You keep the change."
"I just want the government to stay out of my way. I won't get in their way if they don't get in mine," said Smart.
The writer goes on to talk about a poll that shows three out of four Texans favor staying in the Union, meaning that “one out of every four Texans is some weirdo you better keep an eye on.”
