Free Republic

This was broadcast as breaking news on WOAI at about 12:07 pm 10/28/2009. There's not yet a link to this story at their site.

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas — Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison went to a shooting range Friday to remind voters of her support for gun rights by pointing out her plans to weigh in on an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case. With gunfire popping in the background, Hutchison said she will help lead a bipartisan group from Congress in filing a legal brief urging the court to rule gun ownership is an individual right that applies at the state and local levels, in addition to the federal level. Both Hutchison and Gov. Rick Perry, who are squaring off in the March Republican primary, say...

Kay Bailey Hutchison is running for governor here in Texas. Face it, she has not been a part of the solution in Washington, she has been a part of the problem. She has done nothing to control run away spending. She has supported and even offered bills that added to the deficit. Hutchison is no conservative. She is part of the problem here in America.

State GOP chair resigns to work for Perry By Jason Embry | Saturday, September 26, 2009, 01:35 PM Tina Benkiser will leave her post as chairwoman of the Texas Republican Party next month so she can join Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign as a senior adviser. In announcing her move, Benkiser called Perry the “only true conservative” in the race — a clear shot at U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, who is challenging Perry for the Republican nomination. While the move was unexpected, it makes sense that Benkiser would back Perry. She comes straight from the social conservative base that...

Weekend highlights and the day ahead Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison aren’t doing a very good job of hiding their personal displeasure that the other is running for governor. A race between two well-funded — I mean, really well-funded — politicians for an office this big would be heated no matter the personal relationship of the candidates. And yet it can’t help matters that, if you listen closely, it’s clear that Perry and Hutchison each feel that the other has no business running. You could say that each has expressed a certain entitlement to the...

The volatile 2010 Republican Primary race for governor in Texas has become a toss-up, with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison currently inching ahead of incumbent Rick Perry by two points – 40% to 38%. A new Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 telephone survey of Texas GOP Primary voters finds just three percent (3%) support Debra Medina, a tea party activist who joined the GOP race this month. But 19% are not sure who they favor.

There seems to be some confusion in the Debra Medina for governor campaign on the definition of "support." An earlier version of this story reported that Medina's campaign announced Wednesday that Rep. Ron Paul is backing her. The campaign plugged a letter written by Paul in which he calls Medina a "real defender of liberty." But I just got a call from Jesse Benton, who said he's media director for Paul's congressional reelection campaign and the political director to Paul's political action committee, Liberty PAC. He said the letter is not an endorsement for Medina's campaign at all. Paul has...

· Yes · No · Both will loose Currently 42% Yes 45% No and 11% Both will loose.

A sign hangs outside the gate of the scorched Texas Governor’s Mansion, “Wanted… Conservative Texas Governor”. The 2010 Republican Primary Election is just around the corner and Texas needs a strong Conservative to lead her and our nation in the fight against sweeping waves of the socialism that are rolling in from Washington DC. Where do we find this Conservative candidate for Governor? Currently two political powerhouses are slugging it out to try and win your vote; incumbent Governor Rick Perry and US Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison. Both have statewide name recognition and well funded campaign juggernauts. But are they...

LA MARQUE — U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison will return to her hometown of La Marque next week to formally announce she will run for governor. The announcement is not a surprise but will set in motion what promises to be battle royale in the Republican primary as Hutchison challenges incumbent Gov. Rick Perry........... WHAT: Kay Bailey Hutchison gubernatorial campaign kickoff. WHEN: 8 a.m. Monday, Aug. 17; Doors open at 7:30 a.m. WHERE: La Marque High School competition gym, 397 Duroux in La Marque. INFO: Open to the public, but RSVPs requested at ryan(at)texansforkay.com or 713-471-3336. End snips from...

Perry has reversed her early lead in the polls By R.G. RATCLIFFE AUSTIN BUREAU Aug. 2, 2009, 9:29PM AUSTIN — U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison began this year as “Kay the Invincible.” But as she prepares to officially launch her bid for governor later this month, that aura is gone. Hutchison entered the year with the ability to make other politicians quake. She had two re-election victories under her belt with more than 60 percent of the vote in each. Her popularity ratings in polls put her at the top among Texas politicians. And public polls showed her leading...

AUSTIN, TX (AP) - A website for U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison contained hidden phrases including "rick perry gay." Hutchison's campaign officials said they bought a tool that generates phrases to find out the most frequent web searches using Hutchison's and Gov. Rick Perry's names. Hutchison spokesman Jeff Sadosky said Hutchison's campaign was not condoning those words and did not know thousands of people would be searching for them. He said they would be removed from the site. Perry's campaign is accusing the Hutchison team of being slanderous and of setting a negative and divisive tone. The two Republicans are...

A day after defending hidden phrases placed on a campaign Web site, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's gubernatorial campaign severed ties Friday to the consulting firm credited with the "hidden phrases" strategy and removed the 2,200-plus phrases.

“We’ve got to be better at judging people by the fruit of their lives, rather than the rhetoric of their words.” - Debra Medina, Republican candidate for Governor of Texas. The political landscape is currently inhabited by a strong-willed female conservative who is ready to buck the system, dropkick conventional wisdom, and stand up against the tired old status quo in politics even if that means taking on her own Republican Party. No, it’s not “Sarah Barracuda”. That candidate is Texan Debra Medina whose "take no prisoners" attitude in wanting to serve the people of Texas just might earn her...

U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison sent out this transcript of her interview with WBAP talk show host Mark Davis. Hutchison said she will give up her Senate seat in October or November. That would set off the special election for May 2010, unless Gov. Rick Perry declared an emergency and set it for an earlier date. The transcript: (snip) Mark Davis: "So you'll be coming out at some point. When do you think its decision time for you? When would you like, when might we know?" Kay Bailey Hutchison: "Well I'm going to announce in August. Formal announcement: I am...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Ranking Member on the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, today during a Commerce Committee hearing pushed to allow prisons to block calls from smuggled inmate cellular phones. Senator Hutchison earlier this year introduced bipartisan legislation, the Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009 (S. 251), that would prevent prison inmates from using smuggled cellular phones by allowing states to petition to operate wireless jamming devices in particular correctional facilities. "We are seeing a dramatic rise in the number of ongoing criminal enterprises orchestrated from prison via cell phones including drug trafficking, credit...

I am starting some ping lists for the 2010 Texas Governor's Race. The ping lists will expire when the election is over. Freepmail me to get on/off the lists. keyword: txgov2010 This ping list will cover all articles related to the governor's race regardless of candidate. keyword: rickperry This list will cover articles related to Governor Rick Perry, positive or negative. keyword: kbh This list will cover articles related to Senator Hutchison, positive or negative. I'll do my best not to send duplicate pings. Regards, BuckeyeTexan

Incumbent Governor Rick Perry has jumped to a 10-point lead over Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in an early look at next year’s Republican Primary gubernatorial contest in Texas. A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely GOP Primary voters in the state finds Perry ahead of Hutchison 46% to 36%. Five percent (5%) prefer some other candidate, and 14% remain undecided.

AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Rick Perry holds a 12-point lead over probable challenger Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in next year's Republican primary, though more than one-third of likely voters are still undecided or would choose someone else, according to a poll conducted last month by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin. The statewide poll, coordinated by members of the Department of Government and the Texas Politics Project, also found that Perry and President Barack Obama have nearly identical statewide approval ratings—42 and 43 percent, respectively. Obama's disapproval ratings (46 percent), however, are much higher than Perry's (32 percent)....

posted by paulburka at 9:52 AM Perry’s twelve-point lead is the same as his advantage in last month’s Texas Lyceum poll, which was conducted by the same pollsters — Perry 33, Hutchison 21. Both that poll and this one showed that a large number of voters were undecided or preferred someone else. The Democratic primary results, which show Kinky Friedman ahead of Tom Schieffer, are irrelevant until the field grows. Favorability Perry 42% favorable, 32% unfavorable Obama 43% favorable, 46% unfavorable The Lyceum poll had Obama’s favorability rating in the state as a hard-to-believe 68%, and Perry’s favorable/unfavorable was 57/30....

...Palin's nod is indeed an asset for Perry, helping him cement his appeal to social conservatives in the Lone Star State. But his boast also may be intended as a dig at his Republican opponent, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison -- who herself was a potential 2008 veep choice before Palin got the job. Hutchison is said by some to still be miffed at having been eclipsed by a female governor with much less experience.....

One of the best Governors in America-- Sarah Palin of Alaska-- has officially endorsed another of America's best Governors-- Rick Perry-- in Texas' 2010 primary race. The news underscores the appeal Governor Perry has among both social and fiscal conservatives in the GOP. Sarah Palin is a true rock star of the Republican Party and has earned high praise for her fiscal discipline and her commitment to transparency and government reform.

Earlier today, I had the chance to do a quick phone interview with Texas governor Rick Perry. During the call, Perry had harsh words for Republicans in Washington, projected confidence that Republicans can make a comeback in 2010, questioned why Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison would challenge him in the primary race for governor, and talked about Sarah Palin's endorsement of his campaign. Clearly, Governor Perry is proud of his record as governor, and his talking points reflect that. [....] As Perry noted, ... Washington, DC has been an abject failure -- even back under Republican leadership. They spent too much...

"But after that, certainly I was very pro-Reagan," Hutchison said last week. "Loved Ronald Reagan. Supported him, was chairman of his Women for Reagan committee in Texas [in 1980]. I've got a lot of Reagan supporters supporting me for governor right now.

"Because I speak in civil tones, some want to try to label me a moderate," she said. "My voting record is one of the most conservative in the U.S. Senate. ... We can't expect to remain the majority party in Texas if we drive out voters that support Republican principles but might not agree on every single issue."

This week GOP leaders in Congress, including Texas' Sen. John Cornyn, launched a rebuilding effort this week, called the National Council for a New America. It's supposed be a grassroots conversation with citizens, including non-Republicans. Texas' senior Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison joined the effort Friday. "We as Republicans need to show the nation that we have better alternatives to Democratic proposals, and that we understand the very real challenges families are facing during these tough economic times," Hutchison said in a statement. Her joining also reaffirms her GOP credentials.

Gov. Rick Perry is playing politics behind closed doors this week but the message is clear: He's doing all he can to wrap up religious, conservative voters in his face-off with Kay Bailey Hutchison, the senator who plans to come back and run for governor. On Wednesday, Perry attended a fundraiser for Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal in Austin, strengthening ties with one of the Republican Party's conservative stars. The event, closed to the public, was designed to give Republican money-types a chance to spend private time with Jindal and Perry. The Louisiana governor is a favorite of the party's social...

Texas Secession - Washington continues to ignore the 10th amendment. Until Texas independence, Washington's mandates on transportation, education, housing, health care and family issues will continue. Texas GOP Platform page 8 and 20:"We support state sovereignty reserved under the Tenth Amendment and oppose mandates beyond the scope of federal authority. We support downsizing of the federal government in order to re-establish states’ rights." Economy - Washington requires Texans to pay for their corporate welfare bailout schemes. The debt is equal to $175,000 per person. For every dollar sent to Washington from Texans, we get back 94%; while New Mexico gets...

I don't know why this came as a surprise, just one more turn of the knife from our pathetic and paranoid president. For the last decade, Senators Cornyn and Hutchison have nominated and screened potential candidates for lifetime spots on the Federal Bench in Texas and U.S. Attorney positions. Over the last two months, however, Liberal Democratic Congressmen, such as Lloyd Doggett, have been meeting with Obama’s top lawyer, Greg Craig, to urge the President to write out our Texas Senators from the process of selecting Texas judges. To Texans’ dismay, the White House granted the Democrats’ request this week....

Perry, Hutchison spar early and often in '10 matchup As campaign for governor gets going, GOP worried that rivals may hurt party in Texas, beyond. By W. Gardner SelbyAMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Sunday, March 29, 2009 U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison was already chatting up guests at a Round Rock reception when professional fundraiser Susan Lilly arrived.Still, it was Lilly's appearance at the March 20 gathering that underscored how the expected showdown for governor between Hutchison and Republican Gov. Rick Perry has quickly taken shape more than 11 months out from the March 2010 GOP primary. Harry Cabluck/ASSOCIATED PRESS (enlarge photo) Rick...

During an emotional moment at the Dallas Women's Museum, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison praised Hillary Rodham Clinton for "keeping a confident face" during the 2008 presidential campaign when "you were getting so many disappointments." "You were completely devastated and you never let it show on your face," Hutchison said during the forum. "That character is why you are secretary of state today."

The battle lines for the Republican primary next year in the race for Texas governor are becoming a bit clearer. As most of us thought, current Gov. Perry is trending further to the right as he fights to reduce spending, keep taxes where they are or lower and continues his tradition of fighting against abortion. Some of us weren’t quite so clear on his almost officially announced challenger, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.A few of the moves she has made lately indicate that she will try and pick up the left side of the Republican vote, as well as try...

WASHINGTON — Rep. Ron Paul vehemently denounced the $410 billion catch-all spending bill approved last week by the House of Representatives. But although the libertarian-leaning Republican from Lake Jackson cast a vote against the massive spending measure, his fingerprints were on some of the earmarks that helped inflate its cost. Paul played a role in obtaining 22 earmarks worth $96.1 million, which led the Houston congressional delegation, according to a Houston Chronicle analysis of more than 8,500 congressionally mandated projects inserted into the bill. His earmarks included repair projects to the Galveston Seawall damaged by Hurricane Ike and the Gulf...

A Democratic pollster based in North Carolina says his poll of Texas Republicans shows U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison with a big lead on Gov Rick Perry for governor—the primary battle they stand to have next year. “If the Republican primary were held today, Rick Perry’s tenure… would be coming to an end,” Raleigh-based Public Policy Polling said online today. Its survey suggests Perry trails Hutchison 56-31 percent among likely GOP primary voters. The group polled 797 likely Republican primary voters from February 18-20. The survey’s margin of error is +/-3.5%. Other factors, such as refusal to be interviewed...

...The Galveston officials also sought congressional support Thursday for more than $25 million in the massive economic stimulus package working its way through Congress. The money, officials said, would go toward "shovel-ready" construction projects. Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison promised to continue to help the city recover from Hurricane Ike. ...Republican U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said he believed that lawmakers could persuade Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano to waive a requirement that the community must pay a share of recovery costs, just as the Bush administration forgave Louisiana communities' share following Hurricane Katrina. ...Tom Lizardo, chief of staff for...

Sarah Palin, heart-throb of the GOP rightwing, has endorsed Rick Perry for reelection. The endorsement is in a letter -- actually a piece of direct mail distributed by the Perry campaign -- to 10,500 members of the Texas Federation of Republican Women. We reported it first here.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has endorsed Rick Perry for re-election, calling him the "true conservative" in a primary election showdown with fellow Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison. Palin, who electrified the GOP base as the party's vice presidential nominee last year, has strong support among the party's social conservatives. Her endorsement appeared aimed at undercutting Hutchison's appeal with GOP women. Both groups will be important in picking the party's nominee in next year's Republican primary. In a letter to "Texas Republican women" distributed by the Perry campaign, Palin touts the Texas governor's conservative credentials. "He walks the walk of a true...

Larry Kolvoord AMERICAN-STATESMAN Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, left, speaks during a press conference at the Downtown Courtyard Marriott Saturday, January 24, 2009. Next to her is John Carter of Round Rock. Bailey was meeting with members of an exploratory committee that will guide her potential run for the Texas governor's office. By W. Gardner Selby | Saturday, January 24, 2009 Several hundred Texans filled a hotel conference room in downtown Austin today in anticipation of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, challenging Gov. Rick Perry in the March 2010 GOP primary. Fetch her latest list of supporters here. Her campaign...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) today renewed their push to enact legislation to reduce drug-related violence in the border region by cracking down on organizations smuggling weapons illegally from the United States into Mexico.  Senators Richard Durbin, Dianne Feinstein, Jon Kyl, and John McCain are also cosponsors of the legislation. Ongoing violence in Mexico is having a devastating impact on Mexico and is raising concerns for border communities on both sides of the border.  In 2008, more than 5,300 people were killed in Mexico -- double the number in the previous year.  More...

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) is reconsidering a plan to resign from the Senate this year, a huge relief to Republicans who fear that a special election — even in deeply red Texas — could give Democrats a 60-seat, filibuster-resistant majority in the Senate. Hutchison, who plans to run for governor in 2010, has been under pressure from Republican colleagues to stay in her Senate seat as long as she can. “She’s a great lady, and I don’t blame her if she wants to run for governor, but the fact is we’d like her not to,” said Sen. Orrin G....

I’m running for the U.S. Senate� From: Chairman Michael Williams (MichaelWilliams@secureixs.com) Sent: Tue 12/16/08 7:24 PM To: Dear Friend, With much encouragement from my fellow Texans, with the support of my wife Donna, and with firm resolve to make the America of tomorrow more prosperous and free than the nation we know today, I am announcing my candidacy for the United States Senate. We are at a critical juncture in time, and the likelihood of a special election to replace Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison provides an historic opportunity for Texans to rekindle our can-do spirit and offer forward-looking solutions...

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison today launched a committee to explore a run for governor in 2010. Hutchison’s paperwork, filed at the Texas Ethics Commission, names Allan “Bud” Shivers Jr. of Austin as her campaign treasurer. Fetch the one-pager here. Although the paperwork doesn’t mean Hutchison has officially declared she’s running, it allows her to raise money in anticipation of challenging Gov. Rick Perry, a fellow Republican. Early chatter: She’ll endeavor to raise millions of dollars by the end of the 2009 legislative session so that her state kitty looks as strong as the one held by Perry. The unconfirmed word...

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty is in the Mile High City making stops on behalf of his friend and Republican presidential candidate John McCain. But most of the questions from the media involved what he's heard from Senator John McCain on whether he'll be joining the Republican ticket. The speculation reached a fevered pitch Thursday afternoon when Pawlenty cancelled all of his afternoon appearances in Denver, including an interview with KARE's sister station KUSA which had been slated for 4pm. Not Ready talking points He appeared at a news conference called by "Citizens for McCain" at a TV studio in an...

With John McCain to name his vice president on Friday, the smoke signals from the Republican Party are spelling out the name of Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison. Could Kay Bailey Hutchison pick up women's votes for McCain? Once a long shot, she is apparently getting a boost from conservatives who see an opening to hoover up the women's vote after Barack Obama left Hillary Clinton and Kathleen Sebelius on the shelf. Hutchison, 66, who is due to address the Republican convention in the Twin Cities next Wednesday, is seen as both a safe and a bold move for Mr...

With John McCain to name his vice president on Friday, the smoke signals from the Republican Party are spelling out the name of Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison. Could Kay Bailey Hutchison pick up women's votes for McCain? Once a long shot, she is apparently getting a boost from conservatives who see an opening to hoover up the women's vote after Barack Obama left Hillary Clinton and Kathleen Sebelius on the shelf. Hutchison, 66, who is due to address the Republican convention in the Twin Cities next Wednesday, is seen as both a safe and a bold move for Mr...

CRAWFORD — Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's long-shot prospect for vice president is getting a push from conservative and other pundits in the lead-up to next week's Republican National Convention. The latest flurry of speculation online and on cable television constitutes at least a third or fourth wave of chatter about Hutchison, whose name surfaces occasionally as a possible Republican vice-presidential candidate. Hutchison, a delegate to next week's convention, will address the gathering in Minneapolis-St. Paul on the subject of energy independence on Sept. 3, her office announced Tuesday. The speaker slot would seem to douse the veep-talk, but no...

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 108th Congress - 1st Session as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate Vote Summary Question: On the Amendment (Harkin Amdt. No. 260 ) Vote Number: 48 Vote Date: March 12, 2003, 04:03 PM Required For Majority: 1/2 Vote Result: Amendment Agreed to Amendment Number: S.Amdt. 260 to S. 3 Statement of Purpose: To express the sense of the Senate concerning the decision of the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade. Vote Counts: YEAs 52 NAYs 46 Not Voting 2 ~ snip ~ Hutchison...

Kay believes in a woman's right to choose. She openly favors abortion rights. She believes that Roe was rightly decided. She believes the Constitution guarantees a woman's right to have an abortion. Kay Bailey Hutchinson is Pro-Choice, and OPENLY so. DO NOT LET HER SUPPORTERS TRY AND SLIP THIS ONE BY YOU: KBH is Pro-Choice, she is PRO-CHOICE She is PRO-CHOICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Acknowledging that a NASA authorization bill is unlikely to be enacted this year, three Republican senators – including presidential candidate John McCain (R-Ariz.) – have written President George W. Bush imploring him to direct NASA to hold off for at least a year taking any action that would preclude the agency from flying space shuttles beyond 2010. McCain, joined by Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and David Vitter (R-La.), also cited Russia's recent military incursion into neighboring Georgia earlier this month as evidence that Russia's continued cooperation on the international space station program should not be taken for granted. Once...

Monday, August 25, 2008 GOP VEEP CHOICE: RECONSIDERING KAY Posted by: Michael Medved at 2:28 AM Most importantly, her conservative credentials are solid – and far more consistent than either Romney’s or Pawlenty’s. The American Conservative Union gives her a lifetime rating of 90.27, and a 2007 rating of 88—placing her among the more conservative Republicans in the Senate. On abortion, she’s always called herself “Pro Life” and NARAL Pro-Choice America—the leading pro-abortion lobbying group – has given her ratings of mostly 0% (like McCain) and never higher than 20%. She worked for a while as a legal correspondent for...