Retirement season hits GOP hard

[Lone_Star_Dem]

WASHINGTON -- This is crunchtime for members of Congress who must decide whether to seek reelection next year or leave office, and so far Republicans seem to be lunging for the exits. While 16 GOP lawmakers have decided to throw in the towel on their Capitol Hill careers, only two Democrats so far have called it quits -- and they both are seeking higher office.

The disparity underscores the sharply different moods in the two parties: Democrats, still heady from winning control of Congress last year, are enjoying the fruits of power. Republicans, their party in disarray and reduced to minority status in the House and Senate, see more allure in retirement or private life.

"I don't like being in the minority," said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), who was first elected in the 1994 GOP landslide and will retire after this term. "It's not that much fun, and the pros- pects for the future don't look that good."

The wave of retirements compounds the challenge facing the GOP in the 2008 congressional election, because the party is significantly trailing Democrats in fundraising. That means Republicans will apparently be defending more House and Senate seats with less money, and they will be fighting battles in places that otherwise might have been secure.


More at link: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-retire16oct16,1,1016690.story?track=rss



Rep. Ray LaHood

[BOSSHOG]

1. Fucking failures and quitters

We're not in the majority Mommy, where's my sugar tit? Its all george bush's fault but we are afraid to state the obvious cause he might hurt us.

[Skittles]

7. rat pukes jumping ship

fucking cowards

[MADem]

2. Gee, pity he couldn't have taken that empathy towards minorities and translated it into

some fucking legislation? If he had, he might have stayed in the majority!!!

It sucks being downtrodden.:nopity:

[Virginia Dare]

3. Cut and run! Cut and run!

[Bravo Zulu]

4. good riddance

[Carrieyazel]

5. LaHood knows what's coming. And it isn't pretty.

Repuke minority status in the House for a decade at least. He's doing the right thing by leaving.

[Demeter]

6. Twenty Years, At Least!

There are too many healthy Boomers to forget this fiasco that early.