Rep. Heath Shuler (D-NC) retiring after three terms

[UrbScotty]

Last edited Fri Feb 3, 2012, 06:39 PM - Edit history (1)

From Politico's homepage:

Breaking News: North Carolina Rep. Heath Shuler will not seek reelection in 2012.

No article yet.

Shuler is a blue dog who won with 54% of the vote in a bad year for Dems. Maybe with this news, we can get a REAL Democrat in that seat.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/north-carolina-democratic-rep-heath-shuler-to-retire/2012/02/02/gIQAINHAlQ_blog.html

[Pab Sungenis]

1. Shuler retiring?

[Renew Deal]

2. He will be missed

by someone

[PassingFair]

39. LOL....n/t

[bathroommonkey76]

3. I hope he doesn't jump into the governor's race. nt

[frylock]

10. k street

[TheWraith]

4. You're not likely to get someone more liberal than Shuler there.

Aside from being pro-life, Shuler has been an excellent Democrat in a district that was Republican for 14 years beforehand. He voted to repeal DADT, voted to expand SCHIP including to override Bush's veto, opposed privatizing Social Security, supported renewable energy plans, opposed offshore oil drilling, supported removing oil and gas subsidies, supported limits on CO2, supported campaign finance reform...

[WCGreen]

15. No matter how much we wish for a liberal in every district....

The districts just don't fit our plans...

[banned from Kos]

22. Egad! Posters here would ditch Shuler for a 5% chance someone more progressive

magically appears!

I would rather have a 100% chance Shuler is reelected.

[yardwork]

23. We're not ditching him. He's announced that he won't run again. Maybe you missed that part.

With the gerrymandering done by the recent Republican majority in NC we probably are facing an uphill battle to get another Democrat in that seat, much less a progressive Democrat. That doesn't mean I'm going to pretend that Shuler was anything more than he was.

It's a shame, because Asheville is one of the state's most liberal cities and should easily elect a strong progressive. The Republicans have had it jammed together with a bunch of right-wing districts.

[banned from Kos]

25. You're technically correct I admit. I just want 218 (D)s so I don't see Boehner ever again.

If it takes 50 Blue Dogs I don't care.

I am Blue myself but I will never be an (R).

[PragmaticLiberal]

32. Good post.

Though he's technically a Blue Dog, he's been pretty progressive when you consider the area he's representing.

[PlanetBev]

5. Goodie Gumdrops

Another egregious anti-choice ratfucker is leaving.

[tularetom]

6. Good riddance

He's supposed to be some kind of distant cousin of mine but everything I've heard about him tells me he is a horse's ass.

[The Wielding Truth]

7. Hope that we have a great candidate ready to serve.

[dsc]

8. We won't

His district was made much redder. They moved Asheville into Patrick Henry's district. I hope he doesn't run for governor but his replacement will be a Republican in that district.

[JI7]

19. so that's why he is retiring, and if he is going to retire anyways

why doesn't he just start voting more Dem.

[KamaAina]

50. That'd be Patrick McHenry

Even if Patrick Henry were alive, he'd be ineligible 'cause he lived in Va.

Say, what ever happened with the gay love triangle murder involving one of his most trusted henchmen?

http://www.democrats.com/is-patrick-mchenry-involved-in-the-tawdriest-republican-scandal-ever%3F

[RobertEarl]

9. Gonna miss you, Heath

As far as I know there is one Dem running so far.
Cecil Bothwell.
He's pretty liberal, as far as I can tell.

It won't be easy to win as a liberal in this district. So the challenge is huge.

Heath was a pretty good match for the folks here and he replaced a real bad republican.

This is gonna get interesting.

[dmallind]

18. Bothwell? the open atheist? Would be great. Just like my winning the Powerball would

And about as likely.

[RobertEarl]

21. He's not an atheist

He just isn't a bible beater, is what I heard. What did you hear about him being an atheist? Thanks.

[tpsbmam]

27. He doesn't tout his atheism but he is, indeed, an atheist. He's a very active, long-term member of

the Unitarian Universalist Church in Asheville and he helped create a jail ministry for the Buncombe County Detention Center. Cecil's like me -- he's very aware of the power & support people find from religion in their lives and he's very supportive of it. I worked in hospitals and was the first to call in pastoral support to help people who would benefit from it, and I got religious tomes donated by Christian organizations, Muslims, Jewish materials.....all kinds of religions, which was way more than most of the pastoral support offices did! I think people would look again when they see how involved he is with his church. But yeah, he's an atheist.

[dmallind]

35. Sorry - like a lot of UUs he is..

http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20091214/NEWS01/312140021/Asheville-councilman-atheism-debate-goes-viral-Cecil-Bothwell-gets-wide-audience

http://www.rollcall.com/news/republicans_hope_heath_shuler_could_be_weakened_by_primary-205172-1.html

And of course how more credible can you get than agreement on this from one of DU's most virulent haters of atheists?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=214x295368

[tpsbmam]

29. Terry Bellamy is running (Mayor of Asheville), Cecil Bothwell & I hear Patsy Keever is going to run.

So there -- three who are better than Shuler. I'd be happy with either Cecil or Patsy. Not sure about Terry -- I live just outside Asheville (but in the 11th district) so she's not my mayor and I don't know enough about her. I've been doing some work for Cecil & I'm a fan. I've been a fan of Patsy's for quite a while now.

[cecilbothwell]

44. Clarification per NC 10 and 11

State Representative Patsy Keever and Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy are running in NC's 10th Congressional District. I am running in the 11th, which Shuler has represented since 2006.

We are going to win this primary (no matter who jumps in now) and win the general by energizing the populist base. Today, at a Town Hall Meeting in Andrews, two Tea Party activists and one 90-something lifelong Republican listened to my presentation along with a few dozen other folks. Afterward, the Tea Partiers said they planned to vote for me and the Republican told me that for the first time in her life she was prepared to change her registration.

We are going to win this one on the facts. The current leadership of the Republican party is intent on further enriching the rich and slashing Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps and other pieces of the social safety net. We need jobs now, and the way to create jobs now is to implement infrastructure projects that are national in scope and can only be done by the federal government.

The political winds have shifted. It is time for the people to take back this country from the entrenched powers that be.

[tpsbmam]

47. Many thanks for the clarification, Cecil. May the force be with the Democrats in both districts! nt

[Thrill]

11. Wonder if he is going to run for Governor?

.

[racaulk]

40. That wouldn't surprise me at all.

Since the Democratic incumbent Governor isn't seeking reelection, there is certainly an opportunity there if Shuler chooses to sieze it.

[GreenTea]

12. Why not-He made over a million dollars from tax payers just in salary & 100% health care for life

for himself and his whole family and a government pension to boot.

To the do nothing conservative "democratic" Shuler we say good riddance!!

Shuler already had big bucks before, now after six nearly invisible years he will get himself a nice cushy job as a lobbyist or with some corporation he helped and made himself even richer on our tax dollars for six years.

Go ahead Shuler go enjoy life , you'll NEVER do anything for anyone but yourself anyway!!

[Drunken Irishman]

13. Makes the Democrats winning back control of the House that much more difficult...

This is certainly a seat that'll go red in November

[UrbScotty]

14. Only one seat out of 435. And Democrats did a lot without his vote

when Democrats held the majority.

More often than not, when the chips were down, Shuler has sided with Republicans.

[dmallind]

17. Absolutely false. There is not a single Dem anywhere NEAR a 50% voting rate

There may - just may - be one just a hair below 80%, but not Shuler.

[hedgehog]

20. If we have a numerical majority, people

expect the House to deliver the bills the President wants. Better for people to understand which idealogues are actually in control.

IIRC, the Heath Care Reform Bill was changed more to keep the votes of moderate Democrats than for the Republicans!

[Drunken Irishman]

24. Well unless we lose the Senate...

Then yeah, we kinda really do need the House.

[hedgehog]

41. What I'm trying to say is that it may look like

we have the House, but if the bodies in the seats are voting with the Republicans and/or dragging us to the Right, then we don't really have the House, but we get all the credit - or blame!

Think of those Blue Dogs as so many clones of Joe Libermann!

[MadBadger]

36. Id rather lose the seat than have Heath Shuler

[cecilbothwell]

46. Not.

We have over 1,100 volunteers and more donors than all 8 Republican candidates and Shuler combined.

I am going to win the May primary, no matter who jumps in now, and sweep the November election. There are winds of change in this District that the Washington pundits and the self-styled poli-sci experts are ignoring because they aren't out there on the ground.

Watch this race. We are rockin' it.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

48. I'm in Maryland, but what can we do to help?

[dmallind]

16. ....and another vote will swing to Speaker Boehner not Pelosi

....but that's somehow a good thing to some....

[bluestateguy]

26. I was not his biggest fan, but he is about the best Democrat you can get in that district

His vote against the health care bill (which many people on this board dislike) probably saved his seat in 2010.

I can cut Democrats in tough districts some slack for not always playing ball. It is when Democrats come from safe seats and districts (Joe Lieberman, etc.) and then do the Blue Dog thing anyway that angers me.

[tpsbmam]

28. Pfffttttt.....I'm supposed to think of something nice to say about this Democrat, right?

Hmmmmmm......okay, HE'S FINALLY FUCKING OUTTA HERE! YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[bathroommonkey76]

31. And he will be replaced by some right-winger

Virginia Foxx clone. Just what we need, right?

[tpsbmam]

43. Not necessarily. It's not clear that the redistricting of the 11th will be in place for 2012 --

the old 11th districting stands as of today and word from those close to the issue is that this district may hold for 2012. There are potentially 4 good Dems running for this seat, so we shall see. It's not out of the realm of possibility that one of them could take the seat if the districting holds. 2014 is a whole other story though -- the redistricting is sure to have gone through by then unless fighting it actually succeeds (doubtful). I'm working (volunteering) for one of those Democrats and won't give up until the last vote is counted!

[bathroommonkey76]

45. When will the people know about the redistricting changes?

I have been keeping an eye on the local news here in the Raleigh area and they have not reported on this story.

I'm glad that you are volunteering.

I plan on volunteering in the 2nd district once a candidate comes out against Ellmers. Was wishing that Etheridge would challenge her again.

[indivisibleman]

30. Good. Bluedogs are nothing more than

Republicans in Dem clothing.

[PragmaticLiberal]

33. Now we'll more than likely have to deal with an ACTUAL Republican.

[paparush]

34. Adios to a scumbag blue dog Jesus freak.

Throwing all support and good vibes to Cecil Bothwell.

[Tx4obama]

37. Here's a link to the story in the OP

North Carolina Democratic Rep. Heath Shuler to retire
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/north-carolina-democratic-rep-heath-shuler-to-retire/2012/02/02/gIQAINHAlQ_blog.html

[Rhiannon12866]

38. This OP still needs a link:

Here's the Politico story:

Heath Shuler will not seek reelection or run for governor in 2012
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0212/72388.html

[truebrit71]

42. ...lemme guess...becoming a lobbyist??

...or does he want to "spend more time with the family"...

[Vinca]

49. You mean "DINO-NC."