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If you ask Rep. Howard Coble  whether he plans to retire from Congress any time soon, chances are he’ll haul out one of his favorite stock lines.

“I’m not planning on VOLUNTARILY retiring,” the 78-year-old Greensboro Republican said recently.

Like pretty much all of North Carolina’s congressional delegation, Coble is poised to run for re-election in 2010. However, few if any of them will skate by without a challenge of some type.

Coble and Democrats Brad Miller  and Mel Watt , who all represent parts of Greensboro,  already face announced challengers months before filing opens in February.

Coble’s long tenure and age — along with statements he has made about “not dying with his boots on” — have prompted speculation for the past several years that he may be reaching the end of his political career.

But with more than $500,000 in his campaign coffers and reliable name recognition throughout the Triad, Coble is an attractive incumbent that his party’s leaders would like to keep around as they try to eat into the Democrats’ majority in the House.

“I’ve gotten some encouragement, for want of a better word, from the leadership about running again,” Coble said.

However, Coble will face a Republican primary challenge this year for the first time since he won election to the seat in 1984.

Cathy Brewer Hinson , 58, says she likes Coble very much and has voted for him over the years. But the Republican, who is manager of the Union Square furniture showroom in High Point, says she wants to press her concerns about the country drifting away from principles in the Constitution.

“I want to go make a difference, make a change and come back home,” she said.

“I don’t believe in career politicians.”

Hinson has never held public office, so why take aim at Coble, a man she says she likes and with whom she would probably agree on 99 percent of issues?

“I don’t think he’ll get up there in Washington and fight for the people,” Hinson said. “I just don’t think he’s got the fight left in him.”

Hinson’s thoughts on policy and governing seem to be closely aligned with the Tea Party movement. When asked if she identified with the folks who have organized protests in Washington  and across the country, she said, “Yes, I’m a conservative.”

As of the last reporting period, Hinson has not reported raising any campaign funds to the Federal Elections Commission.

Other races

According to the Federal Elections Commission, Republican Paul Allen Johnson  created a campaign committee to run in the 12th Congressional District, a seat now held by Democrat Mel Watt .

Johnson, 34, served in the Marines from 1993 to 2005.

“Right now, Congress is on the verge of fundamentally changing our country to a more socialistic government,” he writes on his campaign Web site. “We have seen in European countries that a socialistic government doesn’t work. The government should only provide services that private industry can’t provide.”

Johnson has loaned his campaign $133 and has $14 cash on hand.

Lon Cecil , 63, a Libertarian, has started a campaign Web site that says he’ll run in the 12th District. But he has not reported raising any campaign funds to the Federal Elections Commission. Watt reported having $140,281  in cash on hand.

In the 13th Congressional District, Bill Randall, who lost a four-way race for North Carolina Republican Party chairman earlier this year, has established a campaign Web site and told reporters that he’ll run for Brad Miller’s seat .

As of the last campaign reporting deadline, Randall had not reported raising any funds.

Miller reported having $148,348  in cash on hand. 

Votes and a question

Neither the House nor the Senate took any recorded votes last week.

However, your humble correspondent did get questions. At least two readers wanted to know why the Senate version of the health care bill was listed as HR 3590, a House bill whose original title deals with a home-buying tax credit for members of the military.

That bill was stripped of its original language and the health care bill, drafted by Senate Democrat Harry Reid  of Nevada, was inserted.

Next up, more health care

The House and Senate are back to work this week.

Much attention will be on health care as the Senate begins debating the health care plan.

The chamber is expected to continue that debate through December.

Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com