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June 07, 2005
I Double Dog Dare You!
Sounding more like a Democrat than a GOP candidate for Governor, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison has challenged Governor Rick Perry to call a special legislative session on school finance.
Perry has been talking out of both sides of his mouth on this issue over the last several days, saying both that he expected lawmakers to be back in session by the end of the month, and that he won't call a special session unless there is already an agreement on public school finance. Well, it's clear there's no agreement, and Speaker Craddick seems content to wait for the Texas Supreme Court to take up this issue next month. So which is it, Governor Perry?
Hutchison's strategy is interesting if she does plan to run against Perry -- interesting, but not without risk.
In the short-term it is effective for her to put pressure on Perry to solve this enormously important issue -- highlighting his inaction does little to improve his already low standing with most Texans.
On the other hand, standing up for teacher pay raises is not likely to help her much in a GOP primary. (Note to the Senator: most hardcore conservatives think teachers are blood-sucking leeches and the root of the problem with public education -- hardcore conservatives make up the bulk of the GOP primary electorate.)
Many Hutchison backers tout her ability to woo Independents and some Democrats to vote in the Republican primary -- we are dubious. In November 2004, George W. Bush received 4.5 million votes in Texas. How many voted in the GOP primary of March 2004 -- a primary where, thanks to redistricting, there were numerous contested Congressional races across the state? Fewer than 700,000 people.
The simple, sad truth is that no one but hardcore partisans votes in primaries anymore. And since right now the GOP primary is the de-facto general election for statewide offices in Texas, that means the far right runs the show. This explains state leadership that is far more conservative than most Texans.
It's also bad news for Senator Hutchison, but offers Democrats a glimmer of hope. As we have written, the Dems' only chance of winning the governorship next year is a weakened Rick Perry as the GOP nominee. Senator Hutchison is the state's most popular politician and would easily win the general election in 2006. Perry, however, has enough stink on him that a credible Democratic nominee would have a shot at him. A shot these days is all Texas Democrats can ask.
So, should the much anticipated Perry-Hutchison showdown materialize next Spring, Democrats considering crossing over to vote in the GOP primary may want to rethink their choice of candidate. How does Democrats for Perry sound?
Posted by houtopia at June 7, 2005 08:22 AM