Texas' Republican Comptroller Tough, Ticked Off and Proud of It

AUSTIN (AP) — A needlepoint decoration hanging in the office of state Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn hints at her tough reputation — "One Ticked Off Grandma."

That line from a title of a magazine article on Strayhorn plays off the political slogan "one tough grandma" that she uses to describe her efforts to improve the health and education of Texas children.

The large ax hanging on another wall, a gift from timber growers, and the plentiful family photographs show the contrasts of a woman who's gone from Austin's first female mayor to a possible 2006 gubernatorial candidate.

"People are very directly asking me to run for governor, and I'm listening," said Strayhorn, who regularly takes aim at Gov. Rick Perry, a fellow Republican.

Strayhorn, in her second term as the state's chief financial officer, won't say when she will announce a decision.

A fast talker with a Texas twang, Strayhorn's booming voice belies her 5-foot-1 stature. She can boast about her five granddaughters, reel off political jabs and crack jokes at a rapid-fire pace.

Two of her four sons serve in President Bush's administration. Scott McClellan is White House press secretary, and Dr. Mark McClellan is administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Two other sons, twins Dudley and Brad McClellan, are attorneys.

A former conservative Democrat, Strayhorn served non-partisan posts on the Austin school board and three terms as Austin mayor before switching parties.

"I don't like labels. I guess if I had to label myself I'd call myself an 'activist, populist Republican.' I care about people. I care passionately about education. I care about health care. I care about paychecks and jobs, and they all interconnect," said Strayhorn, a former high school civics and history teacher.

Strayhorn, 64, says she was pulled into politics in the 1970s when she volunteered as "lamination chairman" at Casis Elementary School. She oversaw the ironing of plastic coating onto paper and cardboard classroom materials.

With her four sons in tow, she headed to a school board meeting. She waited hours until citizens were allowed to talk, then became disgusted when board members were rude to two people who spoke before her.

"It was at that moment," she said, "when I decided that I was going to run for the school board — and exactly who I was going to run against."

Brad McClellan says his mother has always been determined. He remembers how she got him and his brothers ready for school in the morning before tending to her duties as mayor. During many of those mayoral years she was a divorced mother, and her sons sometimes tagged along to the city offices.

"People always wonder why we walk fast and talk fast. I don't know if it's an acquired trait or genetics," he said. "She could give us a one-hour lecture in five minutes."

After becoming a Republican, Strayhorn lost a race for Congress against popular Democratic incumbent J. J. "Jake" Pickle in 1986. She lost a GOP primary race for Texas Railroad Commission in 1992, but two years later was elected to the panel.

In 1998, still known by the last name Rylander — the name of her second husband, before her January 2003 marriage to her high school sweetheart Ed Strayhorn — she became the first woman elected Texas comptroller.

Strayhorn often credits her strong-willed persona to her late father, Page Keeton, a longtime dean of the University of Texas law school.

"Dad also told me something from a very early age, he said, 'Carole, if you don't have somebody mad at you, you probably haven't done anything.' So I remember that often, lately," she said.

Strayhorn's attacks on Perry and his policies — including state cuts to health care and the failure to devise a new method for funding public schools — routinely make headlines.

The catalyst for their clash, she says, came last year when Perry, in the final days of the 2003 legislative session, torpedoed funding for her plan to provide free community college education to high school graduates. Perry's office disputes her account and says the governor worked to pass a version of the program. The Legislature rejected Strayhorn's proposal.

After that, Strayhorn refused to certify the state budget until Perry vetoed certain items.

Lawmakers then stripped Strayhorn's agency of two prominent duties: government efficiency recommendations and school performance reviews. She claims the governor's office prompted the lawmakers to make the changes, an allegation the governor denies.

Perry, who typically avoids personally returning Strayhorn's political volleys, won't publicly discuss the 2006 election. He says it's too early. Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison is another possible primary challenger. All three plan to attend the GOP convention starting Monday in New York.

Strayhorn shrugs off suggestions that she would have a tough time defeating Perry, with his wealthy Republican supporters.

"Dad also told me something from a very early age, he said, 'Carole, if you don't have somebody mad at you, you probably haven't done anything.' So I remember that often, lately," she said.

Maybe, she's on to something: one who has no enemies is likely to accomplish little.

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