President Obama saves Texas from Perry’s shortsighted budget cuts.

In a state where more than 3.6 million acres have been scorched since December by some of the worst wildfires in state history, Texas’ volunteer fire departments saw their state funding slashed this year to a third of 2010 levels.

In a state strapped with a large budget shortfall, Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed off on a budget that cut the volunteer fire department grant program from $23 million to $7 million for the fiscal year beginning Sept. 1. But as the fires raged on, Perry insisted that the Obama administration declare Texas a disaster area so the Lone Star State could receive federal emergency funds.

“I full well expect the federal government to come in to do their part,” Perry said last week after surveying the central Texas wildfires via helicopter.

Perry, the current GOP presidential front-runner, urged the Texas Legislature not to dip into the state’s rainy-day fund and instead cut back on appropriations during the 2012-2013 budget debates. Those cutbacks included the $16 million cut to the state’s fire department grants.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency heeded Perry’s request for federal funds last week and announced it will cover 75 percent of the wildfire-fighting costs after President Obama declared 52 Texas counties as disaster areas.

As Texas was experiencing its worst drought ever he told Texans to pray for rain while he slashed the firefighters’ budgets. Now that the state is experiencing massive fires of course he goes crawling to the feds to help fix his mistake.

This is the a guy who openly mused about secession and talks about states rights and too much big government from DC. What a hypocrite! No wonder the Bush people say this guy is an idiot.