House Republican gives up and announces retirement in midst of Speaker battle

| 6:05 pm EDT October 17, 2023
Share with your friends!
BlueskyMessengerPrintRedditSMSThreadsWhatsAppTelegram
We've launched the Palmer Report 2025 Operating Expenses Fund. If we can fully fund this, it'll bridge the gap and ensure that Palmer Report can keep fighting now and forever. I'm asking you to contribute what you can to our GoFundMe Page or our PayPal Page, both of which accept debit and credit cards. Thank you.

Just how poorly are things going for House Republicans? In the midst of their ongoing failure to pick a Speaker of the House, one of their members has gotten so frustrated with the whole thing that she’s decided to retire.

Shortly after today’s first failed Speaker vote, House Republican Debbie Lesko announced that she’s retiring at the end of her term. She’s giving the usual excuses about wanting to spend more time with her family, but she’s also adding that “Washington, D.C. is broken; it is hard to get anything done.” Well okay then.

It’s pretty bad for House Republicans when their internal dysfunction reaches the point that one of their members abruptly announces her retirement in the midst of the dysfunction.

Debbie Lesko’s district leans ten points Republican, so it’s not likely to become competitive even with her retirement; the Republican majority in her district will very likely just replace her with another Republican. But the thing to watch for will be if Lesko’s retirement is a sign of more House Republican retirements to come. How many more of them are getting sick of this nonsense, and are ready to quit and go start their lobbying careers? And will some of them end up being from competitive districts?

It's been a tough week, a tough month, a tough year. For all of us. But the fight goes on. Because we know how important this is. Because we care. Because we're the ones who fight. It's you and me. It has been for a decade. And I'm never backing down. But Palmer Report does have operating expenses. And in this uncertain time, I truly need your help. For that reason I've launched the Palmer Report 2025 Operating Expenses Fund. If we can fully fund this, it'll bridge the gap and ensure that Palmer Report can keep fighting now and forever. I'm asking you to contribute what you can to our GoFundMe Page or our PayPal Page, both of which accept debit and credit cards. Thank you.