Add Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell to the list of Republicans raising an eyebrow at Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) recent “almost treasonous” line about Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke.
“Governor perry is a tough guy but a compassionate guy,” McDonnell, who just took over as chair of the Republican Governors Association after Perry left to run for president, told MSNBC this morning. “I thought the remarks probably were something that could have been said differently.”
The one term-limited McDonnell is often spoken of as a potential vice presidential nominee for whomever wins GOP nomination. It’s a gig McDonnell has said he’d be interested in if it came up. On MSNBC, he explained that what Perry meant to do was talk about his “frustration with both monetary and fiscal policies out of washington and no credible plan for the president to reduce the debts or the deficit.”
But if he were on the national stage, McDonnell told MSNBC he wouldn’t be saying the same things about Bernanke potential nominee Perry is.
“I understand his frustration, I would have said it differently,” McDonnell said, adding, “I’m just saying incendiary remarks against the fed chairman don’t add to the national debate.”
Evan McMorris-Santoro
Evan McMorris-Santoro has covered politics for TPM since 2009. Before that, he was a reporter at National Journal’s Hotline covering election 2008. He started his career covering local politics at newspapers in TN and his native NC.
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