The Midday Brief: Aug. 25, 2011

Your afternoon reading:

• "Gov. Rick Perry said today that Mitt Romney, one of his chief rivals for the Republican nomination, has a 'huge problem' on his hands in the form of the state health-care law that Romney passed when he was governor of Massachusetts. 'Mitt is finally recognizing that the Massachusetts health care plan that he passed is a huge problem for him,' Perry told conservative radio host Laura Ingraham.'" — Perry says health care a ‘huge problem’ for Romney, Postcards

• "The Obamacare money just keeps rolling into Texas, protestations that it's evil seed notwithstanding. On Thursday, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the nationwide distribution of another $137 million from the Affordable Care Act. Nearly $1 million of the grant funds will flow to Texas, for support of smoking cessation and immunization programs." — Federal health care law keeps sending more $ into Texas, Trail Blazers

• "Perry is going to be the Republican nominee. His coalition is pretty obvious from these numbers. It’s the South, the evangelicals, and the tea party geezers. What’s more, these elements of his constituency appear to be fiercely loyal. We’ve all seen this before. The only way he can lose in the primary is to make a huge mistake — but he doesn’t make huge mistakes — or be brought down by a major scandal — but he has never been implicated in a major scandal. We might as well skip the primary and go straight to the general election." — The Gallup poll, BurkaBlog

New in The Texas Tribune:

• "At this morning's meeting of the University of Texas System Board of Regents, Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa won unanimous approval for a plan addressing hot-button higher ed issues of the moment like productivity, efficiency and accountability." — UT Regents Bless Cigarroa Plan

• "In an interview with the Fox Business Network last night, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison again stopped short of endorsing Gov. Rick Perry in his bid for the White House, but she pledged to support whichever of the Republican candidates wins the nomination." — Video: KBH on Perry and 2012

• "A new reporting requirement for firearms dealers in four border states, including Texas, intended to curb the flow of weapons into Mexico has prompted a veteran San Antonio gun dealer to file suit against the federal government." — Texas Gun Dealer Sues Feds Over New Reporting Requirement

• "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is warning that the worst one-year drought on record is causing black bears to change their behavior, roaming further from traditional habitats and potentially becoming more aggressive toward people." — Drought Pushing Thirsty, Hungry Black Bears Further From Home