Texas Gov. Rick Perry has had his share of mind-numbing moments. As the calendar closes in on the Iowa caucuses, the GOP presidential hopeful appears to be positioning his sense of humor to outshine those errors.
Three weeks ago, Perry wowed a national audience with his infamous "oops" moment. During CNBC's Republican debate, the governor proclaimed that he would eliminate three federal agencies. The only problem was, he could not name all three.
Now, Perry has turned that blunder into a new campaign spot for Iowa voters. The ad opens with footage of the Nov. 9 freeze: "Commerce, education and the -- what's the third one there?"
Enter the new Perry, ready with the sure answer: "Department of Energy." He attempts to humanize the miscue, explaining that "we've all lost our train of thought before, but not many have done it on national TV."
Perry goes on to sell voters on subjects he says are more important than debates. He admits that he's not a "slick debater," instead pointing to his ideas for a balanced-budget amendment, flat tax and part-time Congress.
Back in October, Perry knocked the debates as a process "set up for nothing more than to tear down the candidates." But hours ahead of his Thursday appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," he didn't hesitate to close the ad with one of his "finer" debate moments.
"I'm Rick Perry, ahh, what's that line again? I'm Rick Perry and I approve of this message."
Perry's gaffes have occurred outside of the debate sphere. On Wednesday, he slipped up in New Hampshire, referring to the state's primaries as "caucuses." One day earlier, Perry had a number flop with young voters, appealing to students who will be age 21 by Election Day. The United States voting age is 18.
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