I have always been a big fan of Secretary of Energy and former Governor of Texas, Rick Perry. I think he would have made an excellent president, and if he could have administrated national policies half as effectively as he did for Texas, the country would be much better off. But with as solid of an administrator and leader as Perry was, he had a fatal political flaw – he wasn’t a polished speaker.

To be sure, others have been elected to the White House who haven’t been powerful communicators – there’s one who hailed from Perry’s home state that comes to mind. But perhaps because of that frustrating experience of having a leader on the right unable to articulate the superiority of conservative thought for eight years all but ended Perry’s chances of getting a pass for possessing that same weakness.  

And this past weekend, Secretary Perry demonstrated that very verbal limitation that curbed his presidential aspirations. Speaking at the conservative Resurgent Gathering in Texas, Perry made this stunning remark:

“The onslaught that goes at him, the forces of evil that are arrayed against him, it’s stunning,” Perry said. “And let me tell you, he is a happy warrior. We talk about Ronald Reagan being a happy warrior. Ronald Reagan ain’t got nothing on Donald Trump. This guy is fascinating. His stamina. Watch him on TV. He is amazing.”

First of all, it’s never the greatest idea at a conference of conservatives to suggest that Ronald Reagan "ain’t got nothing" on anyone. Secondly, it’s unquestionably going to raise eyebrows when the same guy who once dubbed Trump a “cancer on conservatism” is changing his tune so dramatically. But given that I was sitting right there at the conference listening to Perry when he made the remark that elicited some uncomfortable murmurs in the crowd, I can tell you that I know what Perry was attempting to say. He just, in unfortunate Perry fashion, didn’t say it correctly.

Perry was talking about President Trump's behavior behind closed doors - specifically, how he handled all the attacks, criticism, and the barrage of angry media that he incurs every day. Perry’s point was simple: it doesn’t appear to get to Trump nearly as much as it would get to an ordinary person. Trump jokes, laughs, mocks, and smiles through it all, and according to Perry’s description seems impervious to the relentless tsunami of negativity directed at him.

Perry attributes Trump's resilience to him being a “happy warrior,” the phrase that was often used to describe Reagan. But when applied to the Gipper, it was an acknowledgement that he was able to fiercely defend his positions while still maintaining a positive, friendly demeanor towards those who opposed him. That is certainly not the case with President Trump. It was hard to hate or even dislike Reagan personally. It is not hard with Trump.

The fact that Trump relishes the fight and enjoys trampling on the carcasses of his political rivals is not the hallmark of a “happy warrior.” It’s actually a characteristic of a petulant antagonist. You can be on the same political side of a petulant antagonist but that doesn’t change the accuracy of such a description.

Do I think this was one passing comment from Perry that had precious little to do with the thrust of his interview? Of course. Do I think the fact that we’re focusing on it is an indication of our political culture’s obsession with unrealistic demands of semantic perfection from our leaders? Yep.  

But since that’s regrettably the world we live in, here’s all I would say to Secretary Perry: Trump’s chiding of the media, his name-calling of critics, his harsh treatment of adversaries may entertain and even delight conservatives on the right who have suffered the same kind of mistreatment from liberals for years. But integrity demands that if we're going to praise him for it, we at least label the conduct honestly.