The Midday Brief: Oct. 20, 2011

Your afternoon reading:

• “A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Iowa caucus-goers shows that Cain is in front with 28% followed by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney at 21%. Congressman Ron Paul is a distant third at 10% followed by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at 9%, Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann at 8%, and Texas Governor Rick Perry at 7%.” — Perry now polling 6th in Iowa, Rasmussen Reports

• “In a sense, Perry is the anti-Herman. Cain is funny, witty and optimistic. Perry’s demeanor in these debates varies from sleepy to hostile. Perry can’t and shouldn’t change who he is. Voters can spot a phony a mile away. But it wouldn’t hurt for him to be sunnier, more magnanimous and a whole lot less angry.” — Perry’s biggest problem: Voters don’t like him, The Washington Post

• “While he campaigns around the country, Texas is suffering from an historic drought which is likely to be one of the ten costliest natural disasters in recent U.S. history. The losses are mounting into the billions just as the economy in Texas is slumping, with an unemployment rate that’s now nearly equal the national average.” — Rick Perry, Please Come Home: Why Texas Needs Its Governor Back, The New Republic
• “Some cities have come up with specific targets for efficiency. In San Antonio, the municipally owned power provider, CPS Energy, has plans to cut its consumption by 771 megawatts through energy efficiency by 2020, using various incentives and nudges.” — Clean Power: Back to Basics, The Economist
• “Texas Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman has been on the job less than three months, but it appears she already has an affinity for the pay-to-play political culture of Gov. Rick Perry’s administration.” — Texas Insurance Commissioner Raises Campaign Money From Insurance Industry, The Texas Observer

New in The Texas Tribune:

• “Mike Davis, one of the original prosecutors who worked on the murder case against Michael Morton in 1987, said in court filings today that he is a victim of a media and political war between the exonerated man's lawyers and Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley.” —Morton Prosecutor Says He is Victim of a Media War
• “While already-sodden northern regions of the United States can expect above-average rains this winter, the worst one-year drought in Texas history looks set to persist in the coming months, federal forecasters said today.” — New Federal Forecast Says Drought to Worsen Over Winter
• “At this morning's TribLive conversation, Comptroller Susan Combs talked about the data breach on her agency's web site that inadvertently exposed the personal information of 3.5 million state employees and retirees.” —TribLive: Combs on the Data Breach