Monday, November 23, 2009

Opinion

Kay Bailey Hutchinson to Run for Texas Governor, Leaving Few Republican Moderates

July 29, 2009 03:10 PM ET | Bonnie Erbe | Permanent Link | Print

By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog

Kay Bailey, we'll miss you! Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson has made public her plans to leave Washington, D.C. and return to her home state of Texas to campaign for governor:

In an interview Wednesday on WBAP-AM of Fort Worth and Dallas, Hutchison said she wants to stay in the Senate long enough to fight President Barack Obama's healthcare plan. She said her departure will be some time in "October, November, in that time frame."

Sen. Hutchison represents a vanishing breed of moderate Republicans whose disappearance is turning the GOP into the Party of No. She's seen by right-wing conservatives as pro-choice, even though she has a more nuanced opinion on abortion rights. She's seen by liberals as anti-choice. That places her squarely in the murky middle occupied by the vast majority of mainstream voters:

Hutchison can be a moderate on some social issues such as abortion and stem cell research, but is a hard-line fiscal conservative who supported all of President George W. Bush's tax cuts and more. One of her biggest issues in the Senate has been trying to overturn the "marriage penalty," which causes some married couples to pay more taxes when filing jointly than they would if each person filed seperately [sic].

She'll need to spend a lot of time building up a muscled campaign warchest. As a moderate, she's going to have to convince a lot of Texas GOP primary voters NOT to vote for Gov. Rick Perry, a social conservative. Best of luck, Kay Bailey!

Tags: Texas

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Reader Comments

jezzzzee

she did nothing more than lick the sandles of liberals to get her votes

Kay Bailey Hutchinson's plan to run for governor of TX

Let Ms. Hutchinson loss HER job. She has piled enought tax burdens on the rest of us to last generations. She is as liberal as most of her fellow democrates in the Senate. She is the "PORK" queen. We do not need her as governor in Texas.

Kay Bailey Hutchinson Cares for Texas

She cares for Texas. I know for a fact because my son Hank Alan Johnson was murdered in Hearne she stepped up and said she would try to help me a mother in horrible grief over my 27 year old son with 2 children. I will tell anyone who will listen to know for a fact she really cares about the people and the corruption in Hearne Texas. All I got from Rick Perry's office was contact an attorney. Yea Right. You know he has got to know about John Paschall in Hearne and he is in Austin and has done nothing about this for years in office. It was at the Executive Inn #125. My son was everything to me and after fighting for justice with this man I began to fear for my life. Her office stepped in and I did feel much safer that someone listened that someone really cared. Vote for her because if you want someone in Texas who really cares it is Kay Bailey Hutchinson!

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About Bonnie Erbe

Bonnie Erbe is a contributing editor at U.S. News & World Report and hosts PBS's weekly news analysis program, To the Contrary with Bonnie Erbe. She also writes a weekly syndicated newspaper column for Scripps Howard News Service.

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