Posted 11:54 pm Sunday, December 02, 2012
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Senator Hutchison's graceful dignity
Just a few more weeks remain in Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison’s tenure, and as she steps down to return to Texas and to private life, we must commend her for the grace and dignity she has always shown in office.
Sen. Hutchison grew up in Lamar, graduated from The University of Texas and UT School of Law, was twice elected to the Texas House of Representatives, served as State Treasurer and in 1993, was the first and only woman to represent Texas as U.S. senator. In her 2000 re-election to the Senate, she received 4 million votes, the most anyone had ever received in a statewide election.
She remains an immensely popular political figure. But she’s more than that.
She was a trailblazer for women in the GOP, at a time when Ann Richards was filling a similar role in the Democratic Party. The two women provided a stark contrast — Sen. Hutchison’s appeal was her genteel steeliness, Gov. Richards’ was her acerbic wit. That’s a contrast inherent in Texas itself, yet it was Sen. Hutchison who proved to be the statesman.
Politics was often not always kind to her. In 1993, during her tenure as state treasurer, runaway jurist Ronnie Earle, the Travis County district attorney — who hoped to be appointed to the Senate seat Ms. Hutchison later won — raided her offices. He didn’t have a warrant and he didn’t have a case, as a judge later ruled.
The 2010 gubernatorial primary, in which she faced Gov. Rick Perry, was also brutal. Despite her lengthy service to (and in) the state, Perry sought to portray Sen. Hutchison as a Washington insider, inadequately committed to the interests of the state over the country.
The irony of that charge was made abundantly clear a year later, when Perry himself ran for president.
She acknowledged the toll that race had taken on her.
She was a trailblazer for women in the GOP, at a time when Ann Richards was filling a similar role in the Democratic Party. The two women provided a stark contrast — Sen. Hutchison’s appeal was her genteel steeliness, Gov. Richards’ was her acerbic wit. That’s a contrast inherent in Texas itself, yet it was Sen. Hutchison who proved to be the statesman.
Politics was often not always kind to her. In 1993, during her tenure as state treasurer, runaway jurist Ronnie Earle, the Travis County district attorney — who hoped to be appointed to the Senate seat Ms. Hutchison later won — raided her offices. He didn’t have a warrant and he didn’t have a case, as a judge later ruled.
The 2010 gubernatorial primary, in which she faced Gov. Rick Perry, was also brutal. Despite her lengthy service to (and in) the state, Perry sought to portray Sen. Hutchison as a Washington insider, inadequately committed to the interests of the state over the country.
The irony of that charge was made abundantly clear a year later, when Perry himself ran for president.
She acknowledged the toll that race had taken on her.
“The last two years have been particularly difficult, especially for my family, but I felt it would be wrong to leave the Senate during such a critical period,” Hutchison said as she announced her decision not to run for reelection. “Instead of putting my seat into a special election, I felt it was my duty to use my experience to fight the massive spending that has increased our national debt; the government takeover of the our health care system; and the growth of the federal bureaucracy, which threatens our economy.”
Sen. Hutchison will also be missed because she always treated the media well. She provided consistent access, and often reached out to the Tyler Paper on her own initiative. That proved a benefit not only to the newspaper, but to its readers. Sadly, that kind of transparency is becoming more and more rare, especially at the higher levels of government.
Sen. Hutchison says she’s not going away —except home to Texas.
“I may be back,” she said at a Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon in April. “In a volunteer capacity of course … I will be back in Texas.”
And the state of Texas will be all the better for it.
Sen. Hutchison will also be missed because she always treated the media well. She provided consistent access, and often reached out to the Tyler Paper on her own initiative. That proved a benefit not only to the newspaper, but to its readers. Sadly, that kind of transparency is becoming more and more rare, especially at the higher levels of government.
Sen. Hutchison says she’s not going away —except home to Texas.
“I may be back,” she said at a Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon in April. “In a volunteer capacity of course … I will be back in Texas.”
And the state of Texas will be all the better for it.
