2010: Newspaper Endorsements: SAEN for Kay

The San Antonio Express-News has endorsed Kay Bailey Hutchison in the Republican gubernatorial primary:

Hutchison has a distinguished record of public service in Austin and Washington. She served in the Texas House of Representatives, as state treasurer and for the past 17 years as U.S. senator. In between elected offices, Hutchison also has a record of accomplishment in the private sector.

Hutchison's leadership would bring a much needed wind of change to the Texas political landscape. She has strong conservative credentials. And she is a pragmatic leader more interested in improving the lives of ordinary Texans than in scoring ideological points.

She has properly identified public education as the state's most pressing priority, with the high school attrition rate — at 30 percent and higher by some measures — its most dire crisis. Hutchison has proposed an innovative reform plan that identifies best practices in successful schools and encourages low-performing schools to adopt them.

On transportation policy, Hutchison has laid out statutory changes that would bring more transparency and accountability to the Texas Transportation Commission. She is committed to ending legislative diversions from the highway fund and initiating a new era of truth in taxation for transportation infrastructure. She would allow fast-growing areas such as Bexar County the voter-approved option of raising local revenue for transportation projects.

On property rights, taxation and the state budget, Hutchison brings similar results-oriented policies to the table. Her clarity on the issues and her strong personal background make her the clear choice in the Republican gubernatorial contest.