Rick Perry hints at 2016: ‘I know to be prepared this time’

Texas Gov. Rick Perry hinted at a presidential run in 2016 on Friday, saying he knows to be prepared this time.

“I will make that decision probably next year sometime, so I know to be prepared this time — that preparation is a great deal of what this is all about,” Mr. Perry told Fox Business Network.

During a tour in China last week, Mr. Perry said he had been preparing for 20 months for another presidential campaign, and blamed his poor performance in 2012 on a back surgery he was recovering from.

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Mr. Perry blasted the Obama administration on Friday for failing to secure the southern border and blamed the federal government for saddling Texas citizens with the expensive task.

“When it became abundantly clear that the federal government was not going to address this issue, not going to do their constitutional duty, frankly, then we moved Department of Public Safety, law enforcement and Texas Ranger recon teams, along with our Parks and Wildlife wardens, into a very forward-leaning position … to send the clear message that you cannot just cross the border at will. … That was about a $12 million a week effort there. … So, a substantial cost to the people of the state of Texas that is being carried because we realize that this is a federal government’s responsibility, but we realized that they’re not going to do their job,” Mr. Perry said.

He urged the Federal Aviation Administration to use drones to monitor the border, stressing the security threats posed by a poorly monitored southern border.

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“So if the federal government will not secure the border of Mexico, Texas will. And I think it’s that important for people all across this country. It’s not just a Texas issue, and this isn’t a Republican or a Democrat issue, this is an American issue of security for this country,” Mr. Perry said.

“Anyone who has a sense of what’s going on in the world, seeing what’s happening in the Middle East, hearing ISIS promise that they’re going to come to America and they’re going to create jihad here, we need to be secure in our borders,” he said.