Kay Bailey Hutchison facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kay Bailey Hutchison
|
|
|---|---|
Hutchison in 2017
|
|
| 24th United States Ambassador to NATO | |
| In office August 28, 2017 – January 20, 2021 |
|
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Douglas Lute |
| Succeeded by | Julianne Smith |
| United States Senator from Texas |
|
| In office June 14, 1993 – January 3, 2013 |
|
| Preceded by | Bob Krueger |
| Succeeded by | Ted Cruz |
| Treasurer of Texas | |
| In office January 15, 1991 – June 14, 1993 |
|
| Governor | Ann Richards |
| Preceded by | Ann Richards |
| Succeeded by | Martha Whitehead |
| Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 90th district |
|
| In office January 9, 1973 – July 9, 1976 |
|
| Preceded by | Tom Bass |
| Succeeded by | Brad Wright |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Kathryn Ann Bailey
July 22, 1943 Galveston, Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses |
John Parks
(m. 1967; div. 1969)Ray Hutchison
(m. 1978; died 2014) |
| Children | 4 |
| Residences | Virginia, U.S. Nacogdoches, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | University of Texas at Austin (BA, JD) |
Kay Bailey Hutchison (born Kathryn Ann Bailey on July 22, 1943) is an American lawyer, TV reporter, politician, and diplomat. She served as the United States Ambassador to NATO from 2017 to 2021. Before that, she was a U.S. Senator for Texas from 1993 to 2013. She is a member of the Republican Party.
Born in Galveston, Texas, Hutchison went to the University of Texas at Austin. Before becoming a politician, she worked as a lawyer and a legal reporter for KPRC-TV in Houston. She was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1972 to 1976. After working in business for a short time, she returned to politics in 1990. She was elected as the Texas State Treasurer. In 1993, she won a special election to become a U.S. Senator. She defeated Bob Krueger and became the first woman senator in Texas history.
Hutchison was re-elected to the Senate in 1994, 2000, and 2006. She tried to become Governor of Texas in 2010 but lost the Republican primary to Rick Perry. By the end of her time in the Senate in 2013, she was the most senior Republican woman senator. In 2013, she joined a law firm. On June 29, 2017, President Donald Trump chose her to be the U.S. Ambassador to NATO. The U.S. Senate approved her for this role on August 3, 2017.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Kay Bailey Hutchison was born Kathryn Ann Bailey in Galveston, Texas. Her parents were Kathryn Ella and Allan Abner Bailey, Jr., who was an insurance agent. She has two brothers, Allan and Frank. Hutchison grew up in La Marque, Texas.
She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1962 when she was 19. She was also part of the Pi Beta Phi sorority. She then earned her law degree (J.D.) from the University of Texas School of Law in 1967 at age 24. After law school, she worked as a legal and political reporter for KPRC-TV in Houston. She was one of the first women to report news on TV in Texas.
Early Career in Politics
.jpg)
In 1972, when she was 29, Hutchison was elected to the Texas House of Representatives. She represented a district in Houston and served until 1976. From 1976 to 1978, she was the vice-chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. In 1982, she ran for the United States House of Representatives in Dallas but did not win. After this, she left politics for a while to work as a bank executive and businesswoman.
Serving as a U.S. Senator
A U.S. Senator helps make laws for the entire country. They represent their state in the U.S. Congress.
Becoming a Senator for Texas
Hutchison was elected Texas State Treasurer in 1990. She served in that role until June 1993. Then, she ran for the U.S. Senate in a special election. She was running to finish the term of Senator Lloyd Bentsen, who had resigned.
In May 1993, 24 candidates ran for the Senate seat. Hutchison and Bob Krueger received the most votes. Hutchison then won the run-off election with 67.3 percent of the votes. This made her the first woman to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate. After her election, Texas had two Republican U.S. Senators for the first time since the Reconstruction era.
Hutchison was re-elected for her first full term in 1994. She won with 60.8 percent of the votes against Democrat Richard W. Fisher. In 2000, she won again, defeating Gene Kelly with 65 percent of the votes. More than four million Texans voted for her that year, which was a record for a non-presidential candidate in Texas.
Re-election in 2006
In 2004, people thought Hutchison might run for Governor of Texas in 2006. However, in June 2005, she announced she would seek re-election to the Senate instead. She won re-election in November 2006 with 61.7% of the votes. Her opponent, Barbara Ann Radnofsky, received 36.04%. Hutchison won in most of Texas's counties.
Key Issues and Stances
During her time in the Senate, Hutchison was a strong supporter of NASA. She also served on important Senate committees, including Appropriations and Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
From 2001 to 2007, Hutchison was the Vice-Chairwoman of the Senate Republican Conference. This made her a high-ranking Republican leader in the Senate. In 2007, she became the Policy Chair for Senate Republicans.
Hutchison generally held conservative views. However, she sometimes worked with Democrats on certain issues. For example, she voted in favor of federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research in 2006. She also supported tax cuts.
On health care, Hutchison voted against the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). But she did vote with Democrats to pass the Children's Health Insurance Program.
Regarding the environment, she supported oil drilling in places like Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She also supported developing alternative energy sources.
For LGBT rights, she voted for the Hate Crimes Enhancement Act, which included sexual orientation. She also voted for the Violence Against Women Act, which protects people from discrimination based on sexual orientation. However, she voted against same-sex marriage.
Hutchison wrote two books: Nine and Counting: The Women of the Senate (2000) with other women senators, and American Heroines: The Spirited Women Who Shaped Our Country (2004).
Leaving the Senate
In 2009, Hutchison announced she would challenge Rick Perry for Governor of Texas. She said she would resign from the Senate. However, she later decided to finish her third term in the Senate. On January 13, 2011, she announced she would not seek re-election in 2012.
2010 Texas Governor Election
On August 17, 2009, Hutchison officially announced she was running for Governor of Texas. She was seen as a more moderate choice compared to Governor Rick Perry. Many important people supported her, including former U.S. President George H. W. Bush and former Vice President Dick Cheney. However, Hutchison lost the primary election to Rick Perry.
United States Ambassador to NATO
.jpg)
On June 29, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Hutchison to be the United States Permanent Representative to NATO. NATO is a group of countries that work together for defense and security. The U.S. Senate approved her nomination on August 3. She started her role on August 28, 2017, and served until 2021.
Honors
In 2013, a part of the tax code was renamed the "Kay Bailey Hutchison Spousal IRA" in her honor. Also in 2013, the Dallas Convention Center was renamed the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.
Personal Life
Kay Bailey Hutchison married her first husband, John Pierce Parks, in 1967. They divorced in 1969.
She married her second husband, Ray Hutchison, in 1978. Ray Hutchison was also a politician who served in the Texas House of Representatives. They adopted a son and a daughter in 2001. Ray Hutchison passed away in 2014.
As of 2009, Hutchison and her family lived in Dallas. She also had a home in Virginia while she was a Senator. She is a member of the Episcopal Church.
Images for kids
-
Hutchison with President George H. W. Bush in 1991
-
Hutchison's final official portrait in the Senate
-
Hutchison speaking
-
Hutchison walks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at NATO Headquarters in Brussels
See also
In Spanish: Kay Bailey Hutchison para niños
