House Transportation Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio has announced he will retire at the end of his current term and not seek reelection in 2022.
Fox News reports that DeFazio, 74, served as a County Commissioner before being elected to Congress in 1986, noting that the Congressman served Oregon’s 4th Congressional District for 36 years.
DeFazio becomes the 19th Democratic lawmaker to announce his retirement or decision not to run for office in 2022.
Amid what is becoming a mass exodus, and abysmal poll numbers for Harris, Biden, Pelosi, Schumer, and other key Democrats, GOP leaders are preparing to seize the opportunity to take control of the House in the midterm elections.
Biden’s recent announcement that he intends to run for reelection, ostensibly to keep him from being viewed as a lame-duck President next year, convinced few that the name Biden will be at the top of the DNC ticket in 2024.
DeFazio announced his retirement in a statement:
“With humility and gratitude I am announcing that I will not seek reelection next year. It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as Congressman for the Fourth District of Oregon. For 36 years I have fought corporate greed and special interests to benefit Oregon’s working families–from delivering affordable health care under the Affordable Care Act, to preventing the privatization and destruction of the Social Security safety net, to protecting our natural treasures for future generations, to fighting trade policies that undermine American workers, to holding industry and regulators accountable to improve aviation safety, to asserting congressional war powers authority to stop endless wars, to making historic job-creating investments in our roads, bridges, ports and more under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Thank you for putting your trust in me.”
In a statement released by the House Speaker’s Office, Nancy Pelosi praised DeFazio saying:
“DeFazio is known and respected by all as a champion of sustainable, smart and green infrastructure, whose progressive values, passion and persistence have helped rebuild America and the middle class. Our Democratic Caucus will miss a trusted voice and valued friend.”
Pelosi closed her statement by noting DeFazio was “an absolute force for progress, whose 36 years of effective leadership in the House will leave a legacy that will benefit the Congress and Country for decades to come.”
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