Matt Lewis reports that well-placed sources are telling him that Texas Gov. Rick Perry is getting into the presidential race. Speculation about Perry is likely to reach a fever pitch after Newt Gingrich’s campaign team resigned yesterday, partly because it accentuates a void in the race and also because it frees up Perry people to work for the governor should he choose to run.

Lewis says a Perry campaign wouldn’t be a slam dunk:

If Perry does indeed jump in the race, GOP primary voters will likely be reminded of how conservatives were outraged when he signed an executive order in 2007, making Texas the first state in the nation to mandate Human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccinations for sixth-grade girls. They will be reminded that he endorsed Rudy Giuliani for president in 2008. And, of course, his controversial plans to create a Trans-Texas Corridor (which were finally dropped after a large public outcry) would come up. Perry would also have to find a way to extricate himself from his important duties as head of the Republican Governor’s Association (RGA).