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Ed. note: See the update at the end of this post!
A new Rasmussen poll released today confirms what I have been saying for several weeks now: Kay Bailey Hutchison best resign now and return to Texas to build a whole new Texas Republican Party if she is truly serious about running for Governor of Texas this time.
In a head to head match, Rick Perry enjoys a secession motivated bounce from the far-Right at 42%, which catapults him over Kay Bailey Hutchison and her 38%. The spread is within the polls 4% margin of error with a 95% confidence interval, so technically it is a statistical dead heat.
These new poll results continue and demonstrate a steady climb for Governor Perry who has increasingly amended his platform and rhetoric to appeal to the extreme far-Right, Rush Limbaugh led, and Fox News motivated Texas GOP voter. Hutchison, on the other hand, has kept comfy in Washington DC, apparently not feeling the pressure at all to come back to Texas and campaign for a Republican gubernatorial primary.
As I have said before, Hutchison has sucked up to Republican politicos here in Texas before and given the impression in the past that she would run for governor only to back out at the last minute. Is Kay Bailey Hutchison doing it again? Is she once again basing her political decisions on which way the political winds are blowing? I mean, how else can we explain the fact that she doesn't feel the need to campaign for the very same voters that Rick Perry is pandering before at secession rallies.
The fact is, Kay, that if you are truly serious about running for governor against Rick Perry you have to make it through the Republican primary first. And because you consider yourself a "moderate" Republican, which hardly describes the average Texas GOP primary voter, than your job is to build a whole new Party. You need at a minimum 1/3rd of the Republican vote, 1/3rd of the Independent vote, and 1/3rd of the disenchanted Democrat vote if you stand a chance in a head to head match with Good Hair.
Frankly, I'm fine with you not taking on Rick Perry in the gubernatorial primary. That makes any potential Democratic candidates that much more likely to win if Good Hair is the GOP choice. The problem is, Kay, you can't perch yourself in Washington DC and expect that you can appeal to Republican primary voters in Texas, especially without building yourself a new Party to get out and vote for you. It takes more than a year to build a whole new Party.
I think it's high time that Kay Bailey Hutchison put up or shut up. Resign and come back to Texas and run in the Republican primary against Rick Perry or disappear till 2012. What say you, KBH?
7:20pm Update by Phillip
Todd Hill just e-mailed me this news from his mobile phone:
Was just at a Bill White meet and greet in Tarrant County. He said that Hutchison has assured him that she'll resign in a fashion that will lead to a May 2010 special election. She'll likely resign after Houston elections in November.
Why would Hutchison say that to White? Provided that it's true, of course...
Does she favor White? She's a moderate Republican -- maybe she would want to give him a heads up. (Glad to see White is sharing the information, then -- again, provided that this is true).
Has Hutchison finally recognized that Perry is slugging her to death (hence the catch up in the polls) and that she can't play footsy in D.C. any more?
Interesting.
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