DALLAS -- U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said John McCain's choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate is a bold move designed to sway independent women voters.

The seasoned senator said by choosing the little-known 44-year-old governor, McCain is making it clear that he wants an "up-and-comer," a vice president who represents "the next generation" of leadership.

"This reinforces that Senator McCain wants to be the independent reformer change ticket -- he's not ceding that to Senator Obama," Hutchison said, adding that being an outside-the-Beltway governor may work in her favor.

Hutchison said Friday at her Dallas home that she wasn't disappointed at not being McCain's pick. There had been speculation that she was a possible choice for the No. 2 spot on the ticket.

Hutchison, who has hinted that she might run for Texas governor in 2010, said she didn't "want to spend four more years in Washington."

"My hopes and dreams are here in Texas," she stressed.

Hutchison, the only woman in the Senate Republican leadership, called McCain's choice of Palin a "bold and exciting opportunity."

She said that by choosing a woman, McCain has an opportunity to capture undecided voters eager for a change.

"The fact that the women's vote is up for grabs did make a strong woman a plus on the ticket," she said.

Hutchison added that every working mother in America can relate to the challenges of a women with five children and a career.

In an interview with CNN, the senator said the fact that Palin chose to go forward with the birth of her youngest son who has Down syndrome, shows she is very principled, referring to her stand on abortion.

Hutchison supports Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that gave women the right to abortion, but she has voted for many abortion restrictions since she was elected to the Senate in 1993.

Hutchison has not met Palin but was impressed that Palin defeated the incumbent governor of Alaska on a strong reform agenda.

Palin put forth an ethics bill in Alaska and is "a hunter and a fisherwoman," Hutchison said.

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said he was "a little bit surprised" by the Palin pick, "but the more I learn about Governor Palin, the more I can understand the choice."

"From a political standpoint there's bound to be some Democrats who look at what happened to Hillary Clinton and think, hey I really like the idea that there's a woman on the ticket, a qualified woman on the ticket, running for vice president."

Gov. Rick Perry issued a statement saying that as governor of a large energy-producing state, Palin "knows we can and must lessen our dependence on foreign oil through increased exploration and diversification of our energy portfolio."

"Like Senator McCain, Sarah knows the best way to grow our economy is by cutting taxes and controlling spending in Washington," Perry said.

Palin is a former mayor of Wasilla who became governor of her state in December 2006.

Asked about criticism that Palin is too inexperienced, Hutchison noted that only two of the four people at the top of the two major party tickets are veteran politicians: McCain and Sen. Joe Biden, Obama's running mate.

Hutchison has said that Palin will likely counter Biden's foreign policy expertise with a freshness that will appeal to regular people.

She said McCain must be confident that Palin "could take the reins of the presidency in an emergency."

"I think that in the balance here, Senator McCain is going for a younger vote that is the 35- to-50 vote, and that is, I think a very different dynamic," she said. "I think he factored everything in."

Hutchison said McCain easily could have taken a different direction, certainly a safer and more accepted one, because several good choices were available. But Palin's selection proves that "John McCain is his own man," she said, and one who wants to take the country in a different direction.

"I look forward to getting to know her, as everyone in America will," she said.

Hutchison is scheduled to address the convention Wednesday night to talk about a national energy plan.

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