In a painful moment during Wednesday's GOP presidential debate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry could not remember the third federal agency he has vowed to eliminate. Transcript via CBS News:
Perry was discussing his jobs plan and his flat tax plan when he said: "And I will tell you, it is three agencies of government when I get there that are gone. Commerce, Education, and the … what's the third one there? Let's see."
Perry then paused and there was audible laughter in the room. Texas Rep. Ron Paul then chimed in, "You need five," to which Perry responded, "Oh, five, OK. So Commerce, Education, and the … "
Romney then suggested, "EPA?" to which Perry responded, "EPA, there you go, no … " with laughter from the candidate and the audience.
Moderator John Harwood from CNBC then asked, "Seriously, is the EPA the one you were talking about?"
"No, sir, no, sir. We were talking about the agencies of government — the EPA needs to be rebuilt. There's no doubt about that," Perry responded.
"But you can't name the third one?" Harwood asked.
"The third agency of government I would, I would do away with, the Education, the … Commerce and, let's see," Perry said.
Perry has discussed the possibility of not participating in future debates. That sounds like a good plan.
Read more at CBS News.
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