Texas Governor Perry indicted on two felony counts

Some Texans are calling for the resignation of Governor Rick Perry, after he was indicted on Friday on two felony counts.

Gilbert Hinojosa, Texas Democratic Party Chairman, said in a statement, "We call on Governor Perry to immediately step down from office. [...] Texans deserve real leadership and this is unbecoming of our governor.” On Saturday, the executive director of the state's Democratic party, Will Hailer, voiced his belief that Perry should resign, shortly after the Governor spoke at a news conference at the Texas capitol.

Also on Saturday, Republican Governor Perry released a public statement which read in full, "As governor, I took an oath to faithfully uphold the constitution of Texas, a pledge that I have kept every day as I've worked on behalf of Texans for the last 14 years. This same constitution clearly outlines the authority of any governor to veto items at his or her discretion. Just as I have following every legislative session during my service as governor, I exercised this authority to veto funding for an office whose leadership had lost the public's confidence by acting inappropriately and unethically."

Specifically, a grand jury indicted Perry on Friday on one count of abuse of official capacity and one count of coercion of a public servant. The indictment stems from a series of events sparked by the arrest and ultimate conviction of the Travis County District Attorney (DA) in 2013 for drunk driving. Afterward, Perry called for the DA's resignation, and when she did not resign, cut funding to a state program she ran.