Politico:

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday positioned himself as a pragmatic, pro-compromise presidential candidate, dismissing 2016 rivals whom he said merely seek to be “critic-in-chief.”

Perry in recent weeks has sought to portray himself as a more moderate, thoughtful contender than he was during his 2012 campaign, when he entered the race as a firebrand conservative. In an appearance before the socially conservative group American Principles Project in Washington, Perry argued that Republicans should nominate someone with a message that goes beyond merely opposing the other side, an apparent swipe at fellow Texan Ted Cruz, a conservative hard-liner.

Guess one subject on which he has “moderated” his views?  That’s right.  Guns.

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) said Thursday he was skeptical of open carry gun laws, as conservatives in his home state are attempting to push such measures through the legislature …

In an interview with the The Texas Tribune and The Washington Post, Perry said he was “not necessarily all that fond of this open carry concept.” His concerns, however, seemed to be more practical than philosophical.

“I don’t want the bad guys to know if I’m carrying,” he said. “I don’t want to be the first person shot if something’s going down.”

A Perry spokesman didn’t immediately return a request for clarification on whether Perry would sign open carry legislation if he were still governor.

In his interview Thursday, Perry also said gun owners should be “appropriately backgrounded, appropriately vetted, appropriately trained.”

“We license people to drive on our highways,” he said. “We give them that privilege. The same is true with our concealed handguns.”

The most important revelation about Perry’s views isn’t his opposition to open carry, although he wouldn’t advocate that LEOs conceal rather than open carry (and thus his view here is hypocritical).  The most significant revelation pertains to his view of licensing carriers, noting that it is a “privilege.”

Privilege it isn’t, as God has not only granted the right of self defense, he has stipulated that men will be prepared to protect their families at all times if they want to honor His laws.  It is more than a privilege.  It is a duty before God.  In attempting to track towards the middle, Perry won’t gain a single vote in his corner, but this will come back to haunt him with gun owners.  Another one bites the dust.  His political career is dead.

The GOP is so corrupt and wasted that it can only think about fielding men like Perry (a gun control moderate), Christie (who made his fame in gun control in the great collectivist Northeast), Rand Paul (an open borders freak), and Jeb Bush (wrong on everything under the sun).