February 1, 2010

Rick Perry Considers Own Mortality

Photo used under a Creatives Commons license by Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/scobleizer/3366628529/" target="_blank">Robert Scoble</a>

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At Friday’s final Texas GOP Gubernatorial primary debate, incumbent Gov. Rick Perry, whose name has been floated as a possible presidential candidate in 2012, was asked the standard question of whether he’d promise to finish out his term, if re-re-elected in November. Normally, this is where the candidate issues a bland non-denial, something like “Right now I’m just focusing on fighting for the good people of this state.” Perry’s answer? He can’t make any guarantees because he could just die, and then what, right?

“That’s kind of up to the good Lord from that standpoint. I have no idea what my future holds for me four years down the road. I have a lot of faith in the Lord I hope he’s gonna let me live for four years and if he does I’m gonna serve out my governorship.”

What does Rick Perry know that we don’t?


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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

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