More Republicans Announce Retirement Ahead Of 2018 Mid-Term Elections

Congressman Trey Gowdy

Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) has announced he will join the stampede of fellow GOPers heading for the exits rather than face tough reelection terrain.

From The Washington Post:

A former prosecutor, Gowdy rose to prominence as chairman of a special House panel investigating the deadly 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s role in the State Department’s response.

“I will not be filing for reelection to Congress nor seeking any other political or elected office; instead I will be returning to the justice system,” Gowdy said in a statement.

“Whatever skills I may have are better utilized in a courtroom than in Congress, and I enjoy our justice system more than our political system,” he said. “As I look back on my career, it is the jobs that both seek and reward fairness that are most rewarding.”

There is a time to come and a time to go. This is the right time, for me, to leave politics and return to the justice system. Full statement here → pic.twitter.com/7I8AApqvs1

— Trey Gowdy (@TGowdySC) January 31, 2018

Trey significant! The legion of Republican retirements—Gowdy being the latest—speaks volumes about the party’s prospects in the midterms this fall.https://t.co/nYexSqKzlO

— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) January 31, 2018

Wow. Several Committee Chairmen resigning. Tells you one thing, they’re concerned about becoming the minority, and having to endure handing over the gavel. https://t.co/j0K5rUTxNM

— Ana Navarro (@ananavarro) January 31, 2018

Trey Gowdy is not running again. pic.twitter.com/ft87kvBHSe

— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) January 31, 2018