What will Carole do?

I've noticed a common theme in the coverage of Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn's hot dog party this weekend. See if you can see what it is.

Chron:

Strayhorn's chief political spokesman didn't return telephone calls Wednesday, but two sources close to the comptroller, who didn't want to be identified, said she plans to run for governor. There has been speculation she also is interested in the lieutenant governor's race should Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst seek another office, but the sources said she has decided to run for governor.

Morning News:

[O]ne veteran Republican operative said he expected her to announce a bid for governor. But others with close ties to the GOP said she could use the festive event Saturday to declare her candidacy for lieutenant governor.

Statesman:

A Strayhorn confidante and two political consultants in contact with advisers to Strayhorn said she intends to chase Perry in the March 7 Republican primary. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they didn't want retribution from Perry or Strayhorn for talking out of turn.

And the confidante said Strayhorn could still shift her sights.

"It's no secret what she wants to say," he said. "She could change her mind 15 minutes before she stands up there."

Express News:

A consultant close to state Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn’s campaign said she intends to announce Saturday that she’s running for governor, making official her long-rumored challenge to incumbent Republican Gov. Rick Perry.

The consultant, who is not in the campaign business and spoke on condition of being unnamed, said that based on what’s been conveyed by Strayhorn’s campaign, "I can say she’s going to announce for governor on Saturday."

Asked if there’s any doubt, the consultant said, "This might be a trial balloon. There is a remote possibility that this is a bait and switch, but that is not her style. There’s no coyness to what they do."

Yes, there sure are a lot of anonymous sources running around Austin these days. All I'm saying is would it kill them to compare notes before they go skulking off to leak to the press?

Well, I can speculate baselessly in print, too. And I say that regardless of her odds in the actual contest, there's no way Strayhorn announces for anything but Governor on Saturday. To do anything else, especially to announce for Lieutenant Governor, would be a major anti-climax, as in "We gave up an hour of our lives on a summer Saturday for that?" CKS hasn't been bashing Rick Perry for two years so she can run against David Dewhurst, or whatever second-tier Republicans jump in when Dewhurst announces he's running for KBH's open Senate seat. She thinks she's gonna win, and I think there's a small part of her that doesn't care if she doesn't. This is the race she wants, and it's the race she's gonna run. Period.

Of course, I could be totally wrong. That's the problem with baseless speculation. If everything I've just written turns out to be wrong, please pretend that it actually all came from an unnamed political consultant, OK?

(Idly amusing thought: Wouldn't it be funny if CKS announces that she's running for Senate?)

Posted by Charles Kuffner on June 16, 2005 to Election 2006 | TrackBack