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Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas)

U.S. Senator (since 1993)

(Melina Mara/TWP)

Why She Matters

The great-great granddaughter of one of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, Hutchison has worked in Texas politics for decades, often breaking barriers along the way. She was the first woman to serve in the Texas House and is currently the first and only woman from Texas to serve in the U.S. Senate. She is also the highest-ranking Republican woman in the Senate.

In August 2009, Hutchison announced a 2010 bid for Texas governor. She challenged incumbent Gov. Rick Perry (R), running for a third term, who she argued overstayed his welcome and has made "irresponsible" and "arrogant" decisions.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Senate Republican Policy Committee Chair (January 2007 to 2009); Republican Conference Vice Chairwoman (January 2001 to January 2007); Texas Treasurer (1990 to 1992)
Birthday: July 22, 1943
Hometown: Dallas, Texas
Alma Mater: University of Texas, B.A., 1962; University of Texas, J.D, 1967
Spouse: Ray
Religion: Episcopalian
DC Office: 284 Russell Senate Office Building, 202-224-5922

State/District Office: Austin, 512-916-5834; Dallas, 214-361-3500; Houston, 713-653-3456; San Antonio, 210-340-2885; Abilene, 325-676-2839; Harlingen, 956-425-2253
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Path to Power

Hutchison was raised in La Marque, Texas, by a family with deep political roots. Her father was an insurance agent, but her great-great grandfather signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and was friends with Sen. Thomas Jefferson Rusk (D-Texas), the first man to be elected Senator from Texas.

Hutchison is a natural campaigner, winning elections for every office and honor she ran for, including prom queen, according to her mother.

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Hutchison went to undergraduate and law school at the University of Texas, and when she couldn't get a job at a law firm, she went into television journalism, becoming one of the first female TV reporters in Texas.

After a few years of reporting, she decided to run for the Texas House and in 1972 she became that body's first female member. Ray Hutchison was in the same freshman class, and the two became very close. After Kay Bailey spent two years on the National Transportation Board from 1976 to 1978, they got married. Ray ran for governor later that year and lost. "I ran for governor in 1978 and it's obvious we ran the wrong [Hutchison] candidate," he said. "That's painfully clear."

Kay Bailey Hutchison lost an election for the U.S. House in 1982, and in 1990, she was elected state treasurer, an office that put her in good stead to run for Senate when Lloyd Bentsen (D-Texas) resigned after 22 years. Gov. Ann Richards (D) appointed Bob Krueger (D) to the seat, and there was a four-way election to fill it permanently. Krueger and Hutchison advanced to a runoff, where Hutchison won in a landslide.

Shortly after being elected the first female senator from Texas, Hutchison was investigated for allegedly having staff do personal and political work for her while she was state treasurer. She was acquitted of all charges shortly after being sworn-in, but some thought the charges would mar her 1994 reelection campaign. They didn't. She won easily with more than 60 percent of the vote, and in 2000, she became one of five senators in U.S. history to be elected with more than four million votes.

2010 Gubernatorial Candidate

Hutchison pondered running for governor in both 2002 and 2006, but ultimately declined to challenge incumbent Gov. Perry. But she reversed course in August 2009, throwing her hat into the ring and attacking Perry for wanting a third term, which would mean 14 years in office.

"We can't afford 14 years of one person appointing every state board, agency and commission," Hutchison said. "It invites patronage. It tempts cronyism. And it has to stop - now."

Hutchison said Perry's decision to refuse $550 million in federal stimulus money was "irresponsible," and called the Texas Department of Public Transportation, which has built many state roads under Perry's tenure, the "most arrogant, unaccountable state agency in the history of Texas."

But Hutchison's political timing was off. 2010 started off as a terrible year for Washington incumbents, and Perry successfully capitalized on the anti-incumbent mood, beating Hutchison by over 20 points, even avoiding a runoff.

Retirement Announcement

Hutchison, who was not up for reelection until 2012, returned to the Senate after dropping out of the governor's race.

But in January 2011, she announced she would not seek reelection to her seat the next year.

The Issues

Hutchison is fiscally conservative and socially moderate. She has opposed outlawing abortion rights and favors stem-cell research. She has been a strong supporter of President George W. Bush's energy plans, including drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Hutchison has been a consistent supporter of the war in Iraq, supporting the President's plan for a troop surge and opposing a timeline for redeployment, though she expressed support for then-Sen. Joseph R. Biden's (D-Del.) plan to divide Iraq into autonomous states. She voted with the Republican Party 89.8 percent of the time during the 110th Congress.

Taxes

Hutchison has backed all of the Bush tax cuts, pushing for lower taxes across the board. In 2001, she was a key sponsor of a portion of the Bush tax cuts that would have repealed the "marriage penalty," the part of the tax code that requires some couples to pay more together than they would if they filed taxes separately, by 2005. And in 2003, she co-sponsored a bill to change the "marriage penalty" immediately.

NASA and Amtrak

Though a fiscal conservative, Hutchison has pushed for increased spending in two very specific areas: NASA and Amtrak. She grew up near what is now Johnson Space Center and has long been a strong advocate for increased NASA spending, arguing that it is imperative for a strong national defense. Even when she moved up to ranking member on the Senate Commerce Committee, she was reluctant to give up her position on the Space subcommittee that oversees NASA. Hutchison also supports fully funding Amtrak to make it a national train system, joining Democrats in 2002 to support a $200 million rescue package for the rail system. In 2003, she proposed giving Amtrak $60 billion over six years to fix tracks and cars, increase schedules and see if it would survive. "This means a whole system," she said. "It doesn't just mean the Northeast Corridor. We must acknowledge once and for all this is going to be a national system; we're all going to be in this together."

The Economy

Hutchison reluctantly voted for the $700 billion Wall Street bailout in the fall of 2008, but she said she tried to make sure ordinary citizens would benefit. "In my 15 years in the United States Senate, I have never seen a more bipartisan effort in Congress to sit down and come to a real conclusion for the good of our country, putting Republican and Democratic labels aside to say we know that it is our responsibility to save the financial integrity of our country," she said.

The Network

A native Texan, Hutchison is close to many of the power players in Texas. She is a family friend of the Bushes and the Armstrongs. The late Anne Armstrong, who was the first female U.S. ambassador to Britain, was considered Hutchison's best friend. Also very close to the senator are former White House counsel and brief U.S. Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers and Justice Priscilla Owens, who was a member of the Texas Supreme Court before being appointed to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Hutchison was respectful enough of the Bushes and the Texas power structure not to run for governor against George W. Bush's lieutenant governor, Rick Perry, in 2002 or 2006. Instead, she challenged Perry in 2010.

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