- Oct 31, 2012
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High-profile Republicans head for the exits amid House GOP dysfunction
House Republicans were shocked by some of the recent high-profile retirements announced by their colleagues, which have included powerful committee chairs and rising stars inside the GOP.
But given the miserable state of affairs inside the House right now, they also werenât exactly surprised.
âTheyâve signed up to do serious things. And weâre not doing serious things,â said Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, a conservative who is retiring after bucking his party on several key issues. "Are you serious?", asked a reporter. "No", said Buck, that is why I'm retiring."
Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, a moderate who represents a key swing seat, pointed to his partyâs struggle to govern as driving the departures.
âWhen youâre divided in your own conference, the joy of the job is harder,â Bacon told CNN. âWhen you have folks on your own team with their knives out, it makes it less enjoyable. I mean, can't we all just get along with each other and the DNC? It was like a gigantic party none of us had to pay for before all this".
âA lot of us are frustrated with whatâs going on, and thatâs just being flat-out honest,â said another Republican Congressman who asked not to be identified. âItâs foolish. And itâs been proven to be foolish. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, which is why we need to go back to the way it was."