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Republican Issa is retiring: another prominent GOPer calls it quits

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Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), a controversial GOPer inside and outside of his state who was considered one of 2018’s most vulnerable Republican’s up for re-election, has decided to call it quits. Just like a growing batch of Republicans. His retirement is likely to be a blow to the increasingly weak Republican Party in California, and also bolster Democratic hopes of taking back the House.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) announced Wednesday that he will not seek reelection this year, increasing Democrats’ chances of flipping his swing district in their favor.

Issa barely won reelection in 2016 by just over half a percentage point in a San Diego-area district that went for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton by about 7 points.

“Throughout my service, I worked hard and never lost sight of the people our government is supposed to serve. Yet with the support of my family, I have decided that I will not seek re-election in California’s 49th District,” Issa said in a statement.

The former House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman faced a tough path to reelection in an increasingly Democratic district. The lack of a 17-year incumbent will now make it easier for Democrats to win the district as they seek to win back the House this year.
Issa’s retirement offers yet another boon to House Democrats in California.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.), who also represents a district won by Clinton, announced on Monday that he won’t seek reelection this year either.

Royce won reelection by 14 points even though Clinton carried his district by nearly 9 points, compared to Issa’s razor-thin margin.

“California Republicans clearly see the writing on the wall and realize that their party and its priorities are toxic to their reelection chances in 2018,” said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) spokesman Drew Godinich.

The Times of San Diego:

Issa has faced weekly protests over the past year, with roughly 300 people gathering each week — and sometimes more than double that number — outside his Vista office. The protests have sometimes been general and other times targeted specific decisions or issues like health care or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

…“California Republicans clearly see the writing on the wall and realize that their party and its priorities are toxic to their re-election chances in 2018,” said Drew Godinich, an official with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Meanwhile, on Twitter:

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