Kay Bailey Hutchison

Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison stepped down from her term as U.S. permanent representative to NATO in Brussels, Belgium, in 2021. During her 3.5 years as permanent representative, she focused on the importance of U.S. leadership in the alliance and strengthening the transatlantic bond that provides the security umbrella for Europe and North America. From 1993-2013, she represented Texas in the U.S. Senate. There, she was elected by her peers to chair the Republican Policy Committee, the fourth-highest leadership position. She was ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and chair of the military construction subcommittee on the Senate Committee on Appropriations. She served two terms as chair of the Board of Visitors of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Significant legislation included reauthorization and reform of NASA with Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) and the Hutchison-Mikulski legislation establishing a new retirement vehicle, the Kay Bailey Hutchison Spousal IRA. She played a central role in the founding and success of The Academy of Medicine, Engineering, and Science of Texas (TAMEST).  As Texas state treasurer, 1991-1993, she proposed limits on state debt the state legislature adopted and lead the successful defeat of a state income tax. Ambassador Hutchison is the author of three books, including the bestseller American Heroines (William Morrow, 2004). The Dallas City Council named the city’s convention center in her honor in 2013. She earned a B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin and a J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law.