The Midday Brief: Aug. 12, 2011

Your afternoon reading:

• "Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has splashed into the middle of an internal power struggle on the State Board of Education with an opinion on whether a lobbyist may serve on the board." — AG opinion: Lobbyist may serve on SBOE, Postcards

• "The former Alaska governor and veep nominee spent an hour or more at the fair, barely visible through a scrum of cameras and fairgoers as she dropped hints and dished on, among others, Gov. Rick Perry. 'I was quite sure that he wasn't going to run, because he was adamant until about four months ago that he wasn't going to run,' she said. But she was quick to add that Perry's change of heart was fine. 'I was surprised that he had changed his position on that, but I'm glad that he's going to be in there.'" — Palin: Perry flipflopped about running, but that's OK, Trail Blazers

• "When Gov. Rick Perry of Texas arrives in South Carolina on Saturday to begin his presidential campaign, he might claim any number of credentials for the country’s top office: Creator of jobs. Cutter of taxes. Defender of gun rights. But it is a credential Mr. Perry is unlikely to highlight that could make him the most formidable entrant into the Republican primary so far: he is among the top political fund-raisers in the country, with a vast network of wealthy supporters eager to bankroll his presidential ambitions, and he has the potential to energize a Republican donor class that has shown only limited enthusiasm for the candidates already in the race." — Enter Rick Perry, Formidable Fund-Raiser, The New York Times

• "If you had to pick a winner last night, it was probably Perry. You got a palpable sense that everybody is waiting for him to get into the race, and all of the candidates know they are going to have to react to this Texan who will walk in with boots on and bravado in hand." — Dowd: Get Ready for a GOP Roller-Coaster Ride, National Journal

• "It's not just the other Republican primary contenders who are targeting Gov. Rick Perry — he's on President Barack Obama's radar too.  In a possible preview of what could be to come if Perry wins the Republican nomination, David Axelrod, Obama's top political strategist, took the opportunity on ABC's Good Morning America to attack the governor for 'a record of decimation.'" — On Obama's radar: Axelrod says Perry just lucky, has "record of decimation," Trail Blazers

• "Tom DeLay's appellate lawyer tapped a movie musical and Shakespeare in a wide-ranging appeal that argues the former U.S. House majority leader was wrongly convicted of conspiring to launder corporate dollars into campaign donations." — DeLay files wide appeal on money laundering conviction, Austin American-Statesman

New in The Texas Tribune:

• "DAY 12 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: applicants for driver's licenses and IDs must furnish proof of legal status." — 31 Days, 31 Ways: Driver's License Policy Becomes Law

• "When Texas voters are asked to show a photo ID at the polls in January, they will join voters in 29 other states that have adopted voter identification requirements — but only six of which require photo identification." — How Does Voter ID Law Compare to Other States?