Hutchison launches gubernatorial committee

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison today launched a committee to explore a run for governor in 2010.

Hutchison’s paperwork, filed at the Texas Ethics Commission, names Allan “Bud” Shivers Jr. of Austin as her campaign treasurer.

Although the paperwork doesn’t mean Hutchison has officially declared she’s running, it allows her to raise money in anticipation of challenging Gov. Rick Perry, a fellow Republican.