Ralph Regula to Retire
From the AP:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Ralph Regula, an Ohio Republican who has served in the House for 35 years, has decided not to seek re-election, GOP operatives said Thursday.
The congressman was expected to announce Friday that he will retire at the end of his current two-year term in January 2009. He will be the 11th Republican to forgo a re-election bid next year, further complicating the GOP’s efforts to retake control of the House.
Regula, 82, is the dean of Ohio’s congressional delegation and the No. 3 Republican on the powerful Appropriations Committee. He has held his seat since 1973.
I’m sorry to see another Ohio Republican out of Congress, and Regula has served his district well (the American Conservative Union gave Regula a lifetime rating of 68, which makes him the most liberal Ohio Republican in the House or Senate). But I assume once someone reaches the age of 82, I imagine anyone would want to spend more time with their family, and less time in Washington.
