From the film "All the President's Men":

Deep Throat: The people behind all of this were frightened of Muskey and that's what got him destroyed. They wanted to run against McGovern. Look who they're running against. The bugged offices, they followed people, false press leaks, passed fake letters... they canceled Democratic campaign rallies, they investigated Democratic private lives, they planted spies, they stole documents... and now don't tell me that all of this was the work of one Donald Segretti.

The source was talking about the Republican party of Richard Nixon. Yesterday, the third major candidate for the GOP presidential nomination was smeared by a fake scandal.

First, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and the ginned up outrage at a bridge closing. Then, Democrats went after Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker And now Rick Perry, who ran afoul of the Travis County political machine by threatening to veto an appropriation for the Public Integrity Unit, is the target of a trumped up indictment.

They were terrified of Christie, and Christie has been severely damaged. They were worried about Scott Walker and now Walker has been tainted. They watched as Rick Perry began to rise from the ashes of 2012 and have now tried to strike him down.

This is the Democratic party of Barack Obama.

Politico:

Perry, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, is accused of trying to coerce a Democratic official who oversees an agency that investigates public corruption to resign after she was arrested on a drunken driving charge. He threatened to veto millions from her public integrity unit if she didn’t, leading to criticism he had overstepped his authority.

One charge Perry was indicted on, abuse of official capacity, is a first-degree felony that could carry from five to 99 years in prison; a second charge, coercion of a public servant, is a third-degree felony that carries a punishment of two to 10 years, according to The Associated Press.

The indictment is a blow to Perry just as he’s trying to rehabilitate his image after a disastrous 2012 presidential run. But he also is the third major potential White House candidate on the Republican side — the others being Govs. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Scott Walker of Wisconsin — to face legal problems at a time when no clear GOP standard-bearer has appeared in the run-up to 2016.

How much support Perry — who is considered a long shot for the White House — gets from fellow Republicans in the long run may depend on whether he’s convicted, and it’s unclear when a trial would be held. And privately, several Republican strategists predicted a rough road for a presidential candidate under indictment.

Still, the quick defense of Perry from some conservatives suggests the blow might be more of a blessing for the governor in corners of the Republican Party that could be helpful to him in a primary run.

“Breaking: Travis County prosecutor indicts Rick Perry for trying to cut the prosecutor’s budget,” conservative writer Eric Erickson posted on Twitter.

Republican strategist Bruce Haynes of Purple Strategies said Democrats who try to use this against Perry should “beware.”

“GOP state level activists love nothing more right now than a leader with the guts to stand up against a system they believe is failing the people and protecting the elites,” he wrote in an email. “Ultimately this may not be a threat to Perry as much as it is a gift.”

Here's a video of Travis County DA Rosemary Lehmberg's arrest for drunk driving. This is the person Democrats want to head up the public integrity unit in Travis County.

"Texans deserve real leadership and this is unbecoming of our governor," Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement. As opposed to being an abusive drunk and disrespecting the police? Mkay, run with it.

What's remarkable about this "crime" is that Perry announced it to the world. He stated in public that he would veto the appropriation unless Lehmberg stepped down. Political strong arm tactic? Well, sure. But when a liberal "watchdog" group files an ethics complaint, how politicized is the Travis County DA office to go ahead and indict?

No one disputes that Perry is allowed to veto measures approved by the Legislature. But the left-leaning Texans for Public Justice government watchdog group filed an ethics complaint accusing the governor of coercion because he threatened to use his veto before actually doing so in an attempt to pressure Lehmberg to quit.

"We're pleased that the grand jury determined that the governor's bullying crossed the line into illegal behavior," said Craig McDonald, executive director of Texans for Public Justice. "The complaint had merit, serious laws were potentially broken."

Note: It is now illegal for a governor of Texas to threaten "to use his veto before actually doing so." Half the power of the veto is the threat to use it. Democrats want to emasculate the powers of the governor by tying his hands and forcing him to look over his shoulder every time there's a potential veto.

This gives a boost to Democratic candidate for governor Wendy Davis -- fallout that was no doubt eagerly anticipated by Travis County Democrats who engineered this ham sandwich indictment. It's even problematic if Perry can continue to run simply because of the time involved in prepping for his trial.

As for his presidential ambitions, the future is clouded. If, as expected, Perry is acquitted or the charges dropped, he will suffer minimal damage with Republicans. As for the rest of America? It will depend how well Perry does in convincing the country that his indictment was the Democratic party dirty trick it certainly is.