Amarillo Globe-News | Perry touts job growth, blasts Obama
http://amarillo.com/news/local-news/2011-08-11/perry-touts-job-growth-blasts-obama 
Excerpt:
Political scientist Mark Jones, who has followed Perry’s career and analyzes the voting of Texas state legislators, said it looks like Perry will run for president because “everything has fallen into place for him.”
The job-creation theme is helping Perry position himself well against Obama, said Jones, chairman of the political science department at Rice University in Houston.
“He will automatically become one of the front- runners, along with (former Massachusetts Gov.) Mitt Romney,” Jones predicted. “In the mind of many voters, he offers himself as an alternative to President Obama.”
For Perry, winning the Republican nomination for president may be easier than winning the general election, mainly because of the so-called Texas fatigue after eight years of former President George W. Bush, Jones said.
“We in Texas know that he is distinct from Bush,” Jones said. “But the rest of the country doesn’t and he needs to work on defining himself, because if he is the Republican candidate, the Obama people will try to portray him as another Bush.”
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal | Perry touts state, mum on future
http://lubbockonline.com/local-news/2011-08-10/perry-touts-state-mum-future
KIAH-TV | ‘Rick’s Run’
http://www.39online.com/newsfix/kiah-newsfix-ricks-run-story,0,4388954.story