An investigative report by the Dallas Morning News showed that Rick Perry coordinated with two business partners to flip land he purchased and sold in order to profit more than $500,000. Perry covered-up this scandal by refusing to release the public listing agreement, attempting to hide the identity of the land buyer and hiding the fact that the buyer was a business partner with the original seller.
The Dallas Morning News found evidence that Perry's investment was enhanced by a series of professional courtesies and personal favors from friends, campaign donors and the head of a Texas family with a rich history of political power-brokering. Together they may have enriched Perry by almost $500,000, according to an independent real estate appraisal commissioned by The News.
When it is all added up, Perry made at least $573,238 in profit from the land deal.
Rick Perry's land deal has put Texas' Governor into criminally dangerous legal territory, jeopardizing his campaign and thrusting the 10-year incumbent into a political scandal we haven't seen in Texas since the days of Sharpstown.
Rick Perry made $572,238 off of a land deal thanks to his political buddies. From the DMN:
The Dallas Morning News found evidence that Perry's investment was enhanced by a series of professional courtesies and personal favors from friends, campaign donors and the head of a Texas family with a rich history of political power-brokering.
Perry spokesman Mark Miner refuses to answer media questions about the land deal. Perry himself has brushed off the charge, but rumors are that top advisors in his campaign team have gone into lockdown to figure out how to handle the allegations. It may only be a matter of time before law enforcement agencies are brought in to investigate the charges themselves -- much like they've done with political criminals across the country.
What exactly did Perry do? Here's Part One: a recap of the land deal, focusing on exactly how Perry profited $572,238 on this scandal. Tomorrow, I'll post Part Two, which looks more closely at some of the friends in high places Perry got involved to help him make a profit.
The following news sources were used for the summary, which you can find below the fold:
