Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana at the 2018 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland (Gage Skidmore)
Before Monday, 51 US House members and nine senators had announced they were not seeking reelection this year, 35 of whom are Republicans. As of Monday, there is now a thirty-sixth retiring Republican, President Donald Trump’s own former interior secretary.
"I have made the decision to leave office at the end of my fourth term and not seek re-election," announced Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) in a public statement. "I do not take this decision lightly and have informed President Trump, the Governor and senior leadership of this difficult but necessary decision."
Citing his time as a Navy SEAL, Zinke claimed that he could not seek another term because of his health.
"While my belief in term limits for elected office is a consideration, I have quietly undergone multiple surgeries since I returned to Congress and unfortunately face several more immediately after leaving office," Zinke explained. "The injuries sustained from a career in Special Operations are not immediately life threatening, but the repair cannot be deferred any longer and recovery will require considerable time with my wife Lola and my family."
Zinke’s imminent departure speaks to a growing pattern of Republicans retiring at unprecedented levels during Trump’s second terms. According to columnist Ed Kilgore from the Intelligencer, Trump himself can be blamed for this, even if Republicans are too afraid to admit it publicly.
“Even in safe seats, you have to beware a primary opponent, particularly if you are a Republican who has somehow forgotten to bow down to Donald Trump once after breakfast and twice before supper,” Kilgore explained.
Zinke himself has occasionally parted ways with his own president. Speaking to Fox Business in October, the Montana Republican expressed alarm over the declining economy, hinting that Trump may suffer political damage from the persistent troubles.
“Our economy is not great,” Zinke explained, saying “there’s a lot of strain” and adding that the then-government shutdown “injects another degree of uncertainty, distraction, in the economy, and it’s going to affect, and we’re gonna see WIC go away. We’re gonna see benefits of people that really need help. They won’t be able to get it.”
In addition to continuing a pattern of Republican elected officials leaving the party under Trump’s leadership, Zinke’s departure could also put the House further into play during the upcoming midterm elections.
“His retirement could make Montana’s 1st District more competitive for Democrats in November. House Democrats had been targeting the district prior to Zinke’s announcement,” reported Politico.
Before serving as a Montana congressman, Zinke was also Trump’s first interior secretary. During Trump’s first term, Zinke pushed for allowing business to have greater access to natural resources over conservation goals, prompting consternation from environmental groups.
“Unfortunately, unprecedented attempts to silence scientists such as this directive are no longer shocking,” Shaughnessy Naughton, founder of the nonprofit pro-science advocacy group 314 Action, told Salon about Zinke in 2018. “Once again, Secretary Zinke is blatantly placing politics and special interest money over science and the environment. This grant approval process is another attempt by the Trump Administration to stifle much-needed Federally funded research —and the voices of scientific researchers — that might contradict the Secretary’s agenda.”
