Nothing official, and this has that vague feeling of Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown, but Republicans in Dallas and Houston are increasingly convinced Kay Bailey Hutchison will run for governor in 2010.
She considered doing it last year but held off and ran for a third term to the U.S. Senate. She did fine in November, but went from a nice perch in the majority party to a spot in the Senate minority because of political changes in other states. Now she's telling supporters to keep their powder dry. Here's another bone: Her supporters say she'd resign her Senate seat to make the race in a move that could provide some drama while convincing Republicans she really means to run this time. Note the non-timeliness of this: It's two election cycles away.
It's too early to talk seriously about what legislators will try to come back and which ones won't. Their feelings always change as they get further from a legislative session, and right now they're more familiar with the feeling of the hangover than of the party that led to it. Only one has publicly announced she won't be on the ballot: Rep. Anna Mowery, R-Fort Worth.
Still, you can find signs of political life out there. Democrat Joe Jaworski of Galveston is already knocking heads with Sen. Mike Jackson, R-La Porte, and got a rise out of the incumbent with a posting on his website. Jaworski swung at Jackson for voting in favor of a state budget that shortchanged indigent care at the University of Texas Medical Branch hospital in Galveston. Jackson swung back: He voted against the budget, several times, including the vote on final passage in the last hours of the legislative session. Jackson's volley came in the form of a reply to Jaworski's email list; he left the challenger with the phone number for the Senate office where you can find out who voted for what. Ouch.
The center of politics in Texas has moved to Dallas at the moment, where mayoral candidate Ed Oakley was offered — and accepted — an endorsement from the Dallas County Democratic Party at the same time some of the area's top Republicans are doing fundraisers and pulling for him. A friend cut us in on an email sent on Oakley's behalf that included Republicans like Mary Ceverha and Jeanne Phillips. Oakley's in a runoff with Tom Leppert.
• Texas lawmakers balked at moving up the presidential primaries next year — the elections will be in March, possibly after voters in other states have decided who'll get the major party nominations. But the Texas GOP will get a jump on other states, with a straw poll set up for the end of August in Fort Worth. They're taking reservations now from Republicans who want to participate. Their idea is to get as many of the candidates as possible and a mob of Republican voters to Cowtown for two days. They'll hang out on Day One, holding meetings and milling around and electioneering, and they'll have a non-binding vote on favorites on September 1 — the Saturday before Labor Day. It won't determine the winner, but if it comes off, it'll be a national story that the campaigns can't ignore. And it gives the candidates an excuse for a visit to one of the biggest donor states in politics. All but two are in, according to party folks: Rudolph Giuliani's not coming and John McCain hasn't decided.
• The boomlet over the only Texan in the 2008 presidential race is keeping bookies busy. Gamblers have cut the odds on Texas Republican Ron Paul, according to Gambling911.com. He was at 200-to-1 a couple of weeks ago, and they've got him at 15-to-1 now. That means, if this isn't your bag, that a $1 bet would now pay only (only?) $15 if the Texas congressman wins the GOP nomination. An earlier bet would pay $200. Before you blow the savings account, his improved odds still aren't great, at least in betting terms.
• Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards will drag the sack in Texas next week and plans a noontime stop at Scholz Garten, the beer garden and barbecue joint near the Capitol. It's a weekday lunch deal, but they'll have a cash bar. Beer has been used before to help separate money from political donors.
• Officially, now: San Antonio/Corpus Christi lawyer Mikal Watts is formally exploring a race for U.S. Senate against John Cornyn, who plans to seek a second term in next year's elections. Watts parked a page on the Internet, but doesn't have anything on it yet. His law firm's page is up and running, though. He started by putting $3.8 million into his own race, telling the Houston Chronicle he matched "to the penny" the amount of money Cornyn reported as his political bank balance.
• Friendswood Mayor Pro Tem Chris Peden will run in CD-14 for the congressional seat currently occupied by U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Surfside. Paul's running for president, but that doesn't prevent him from seeking another term for the spot he's held since 1997 (Paul also served in Congress for eight years ending in 1984). Peden bills himself as the conservative Republican in the race and says on his website that Paul, who runs and serves as a Republican, is a Libertarian and not a real Republican. Peden touts his votes to limit his city's power of eminent domain and his effort to make English the official language there.