On the Republican side, Texas Governor and presidential hopeful Rick Perry has responded to criticism of some his fiery comments at the outset of his less than week-old campaign. Among a series of controversial statements, Perry has suggested Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke is treasonous and would potentially face physical harm were he to visit Perry’s home state of Texas. Perry chided President Obama for cautioning him on his rhetoric.

Gov. Rick Perry: “The President said I needed to watch what I say. I just want to respond back, if I may. Mr. President, actions speak louder than words. And my actions as governor are helping create jobs in the country. The President’s actions are killing jobs in this country. It’s time to get America working again.”

Later in the day, Perry made another widely publicized statement when he declared global warming to be a hoax. Perry spoke at a news conference in New Hampshire.

Gov. Rick Perry: “The issue of global warming has been politicized. I think that there are a substantial number of scientists who have manipulated data so that they will have dollars rolling into their projects. And I think we’re seeing it almost weekly or even daily, scientists who are coming forward and questioning the original idea that man-made global warming is what is causing the climate to change. And I don’t think, from my perspective, that I want America to be engaged in spending that much money on still a scientific theory that has not been proven and, from my perspective, is more and more being put into question.”