And, then, there were 39

This fall, Texas Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is quitting to run for Governor:

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) on Wednesday said for the first time that she is prepared to resign her Senate seat in October or November, paving the way for a May 2009 special election to replace her.

Hutchison, who would resign her seat in order to focus on campaigning for governor, said in a radio interview with a Dallas-Fort Worth station that she couldn’t stay in office and wage the kind of campaign she wanted.

So, for six or seven months anyway, the Republican caucus will be down to 39 (in 2006, there were 55 GOP Senators.)

Too bad Democrats only have 60 Senators in their caucus. Otherwise, they might be able to get some things, like health insurance reform, done.