This one needs some explanation. So far, I haven’t heard one that makes sense.

Gov. Rick Perry vetoed a bill approved by the Texas Legislature in an overwhelming bipartisan fashion. It’s called the “Buy American Bill.” It passed the state Senate 23-7 and – are you ready for this one? – sailed through the state House by a 145-0 margin.

http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/Perry-Vetoes-Buy-American-Bill-209533671.html

Perry, though, put the veto stamp on it, contending that state law already requires government agencies to favor American-made products when making purchases and that the bill doesn’t change existing law.

Texas labor leaders called the bill “patriotic” and have urged the Legislature to override the governor’s veto. I have to concur with them on this one.

But here’s what has me scratching my head. Perry’s veto message said the following: “While I support and encourage our agencies to buy goods from Texas businesses, this bill simply does not change current law.”

Let’s apply that logic to, let’s say, a piece of social legislation the state approved some years back. This was an amendment to the Texas Constitution that banned same-sex marriage. Voters approved the amendment. But the state already had a law on the books that said it didn’t recognize the marriage between people of the same gender. The constitutional amendment did “not change current law,” correct?

Perry, though, supported that amendment on the grounds that he wanted to make extra-darn certain that the state wouldn’t allow same-sex marriage to occur … ever.

In the case involving a Buy American bill, he gets a heavily bipartisan piece of legislation and vetoes it? Go figure.