Frustrated House members call it quits over nonstop chaos: 'Difficult and frustrating times'

23 November 2023

The GOP-led U.S. House of Representatives has been in a state of chaos in 2023. After Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-California) was ousted as speaker thanks to a "motion to vacate" triggered by far-right Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), the House went through three nominees before finally confirming Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana).

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) was among the GOP speaker nominees who were rejected by the House Republican Conference. And some of the Republicans who voted against Jordan received death threats, including Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colorado). A frustrated Buck has announced that he won't be seeking reelection in 2024, and he isn't alone.

In an article published on November 23, the Wall Street Journal's Siobhan Hughes describes the wave of House members who —frustrated by all the chaos — have decided against running in 2024.

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Hughes explains, "A dozen lawmakers — six Democrats and six Republicans — have said in November that they don't plan to continue serving in Congress, the most in any month since at least 2011, based on data compiled by news site Ballotpedia. Just Tuesday, Republican Rep. Bill Johnson of Ohio, 69 years old, announced he would leave office early next year to lead Youngstown State University."

Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Michigan) is among the Democrats who has decided against seeking reelection.

Kildee told WSJ, "The last few years have been among the most difficult and frustrating times in my professional career with a chaotic House. It's hard to erase that experience from one's mind in making this decision."

Some of the House members who are frustrated by all the chaos plan to serve out the remainder of their terms; others plan to leave before that. Ten-term Rep. Brian Higgins (D-New York) is departing the House in February 2024 to head a performing arts center in Buffalo. And he obviously isn't optimistic about what lies ahead.

Higgins told WSJ, "This is a bad patch. But it's the start of a bad patch, not the end of it. Spending more time doing considerably less is not a way that I want to spend the next decade."

The Wall Street Journal's full report is available at this link (subscription required).

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