Are Democrats Scared of Hutchison?

An article from the San Antonio Express-News suggests that high-profile Democrats like Bill White are avoiding the Governor's race because they do not want to run against Hutchison.

Houston Mayor Bill White, whose associates were once spreading the word that he would be a gubernatorial candidate, and former state Comptroller John Sharp, whose interest once was state government, have moved toward the Senate race.

They are angling for the seat that Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, who is running for governor, will vacate.

If Gov. Rick Perry were the lone Republican contender, the top Texas Democrats would be rushing to challenge him. Perry only netted 39 percent of the vote in his last race. But Hutchison’s presence makes their odds a whole lot slimmer.

Hutchison has successfully worked the turf that the late Sen. Lloyd Bentsen so succcessfully mastered – business-oriented conservatism – instead of the far-right terrain that Perry claims.

Comparing Hutchison to Lloyd Bensten? That one I had not heard before.