Is Hutchison the Anti-Hillary?

Newspapers in other states are starting to talk about Kay Bailey Hutchison as the presumptive GOP VP nominee.

The article makes mention of KBH's "softer side," which Trish from the Pensito Review clearly defines:

Hutchison’s “softer side” includes support for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge after receiving more contributions from big oil and gas than anyone in Congress, overturning a ban on handguns in the nation’s capital, and receiving a rating of zero from the League of Women Voters for her environmental record.

On the other hand, she is a leading critic of immigration reform, and wanted to go Bush one better with her “No Amnesty Amendment.”

The humor is deft and ironic. It is easy to yuk it up about this sort of thing when you don't live in Texas, and Pensito comes from Florida. I'm not sure if KBH as VP is a real possibility.

That being said, if you, as a GOP strategist, have to start considering things like a VP nominee who will strengthen whatever mutant shuffles his way from the primary to the GOP nomination, KBH must look like an appealing option. I know that people like to muse about the possible "gender gap" if Hillary Clinton gets the Democratic nomination, but I'm not sure the GOP would go for that, or if women, as a gender, are guaranteed to vote for Clinton as a majority.

I can't say, though, that I have any ideas about who would make a better GOP VP nominee. George brought up a Thompson/Hutchison ticket a long time ago, and Huckabee had been mentioned around here as well before he went and disavowed evolution. I can't see a reason why Hutchison herself would ever accept the job in such an unfavorable-feeling cycle for the GOP when 2010 and a shot at the Governor's race is right around the corner, though.