Word is Kay Bailey Hutchison will announce this morning down in San Antonio that she's staying in the Senate -- so say NBC News and The Washington Post, anyhow. Which would explain Mayor Tom Leppert's acknowledgment yesterday that, sure 'nuff, he's mulling a second term.
And it would explain State Sen. Florence Shapiro's press release this morning, in which the Republican from Plano (and the boss's sister) says that she's no longer gunning for Kay's seat, which she announced way back in July 2008. Explains Shapiro, "The political landscape of American government has dramatically shifted since I announced my US Senate candidacy almost 21 months ago. State government is now the last back stop to an over-reaching federal government." (Update: A source, who's most definitely not related to Shapiro, tells Unfair Park Shapiro began circulating word of her withdrawal late yesterday, before Hutchison called this morning's press conference.)
Update at 10:30 a.m.: Here's Hutchison's press release explaining why she's finishing her term in the Senate. An excerpt:
"For family reasons, I had planned to begin making a transition home to Texas this spring," Hutchison said. "But it is clear to me that the stakes in our nation's capitol have never been higher. President Obama's victory on health care legislation has emboldened those who want an even bigger and more intrusive federal government."
