The Midday Brief: July 8, 2011

Your afternoon reading:

• "The Texas governor’s fundraising prowess will be tested as never before if he runs for president in 2012. While he’s raised more campaign cash than anybody not named Bush in Texas history, Rick Perry faces different rules and greater demands should he set his sights on 1600 Pennsylvania Ave." — Rick Perry is Texas’ $100 million man, but he still faces fund-raising challenges in presidential bid, Texas on the Potomac

• "The June jobs report released today shows how hard it is for the U.S. to shake free of persistently high unemployment. … It’s easy to be charmed by Texas, but it would be a mistake to think the state might serve as a national model." — Closer Look Proves the Texas Path to Job Growth Isn’t Best, Bloomberg

• "It appears the evolution of Gov. Rick Perry’s prayer event began even earlier than recently reported in TIME magazine, and is part of a wider strategy by influential conservative Christian figures to unseat President Barack Obama in 2012." — Perry’s prayer event part of a larger effort by conservative Christians to unseat Obama, The Texas Independent

• "The Texas Legislature won't be meeting again for 18 months but state Sen. Chris Harris already has a bill in mind.  Harris, an Arlington Republican, announced plans today to file a bill in honor of Caylee Anthony, a Florida child who died in 2008. A jury ruled earlier this week that her mother, Casey Anthony, was not guilty of murdering her daughter." — Arlington lawmaker proposes law named for Caylee Anthony, PoliTex

New in The Texas Tribune:

• Mark P. Jones, chairman of the political science department at Rice University, analyzed nearly 1,000 votes during the 2011 regular and special legislative sessions to rank members of the Texas House from most liberal to most conservative. Compare your state representative to the other 149 using our visualization. — Visualization: How Partisan are Texas House Members?

• "Now that the legislative session is over, Gov. Rick Perry can leave the state as much as he wants. We've created the PerryTracker map to follow his travels, but what's behind the demand for his appearances? We talk to event organizers to find out." — PerryTracker Map Shows Governor In Demand