7th Republican member of US House retires

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http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0907/5880.html

Rep. Jim Ramstad’s announcement that he’s retiring from his Minnesota seat is the latest in a wave of Republican retirements that are dimming the GOP’s already long chances of recapturing control of Congress in 2008.

Ramstad is the seventh Republican this election cycle to announce a planned departure, even as party leaders have tried to limit the number.

He follows Rep. Deborah Pryce (R-Ohio), former House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.) as the latest member vacating a district that is expected to have a hotly contested race next year.

The other three retirees are Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) and Ray LaHood (R-Ill.).

And at his press conference, Ramstad predicted more to come. “There are going to be a number of retirements, I assure you, in both parties,” Ramstad said.

Republicans need to hold on to their own seats, plus win back 16 Democratic seats, to regain control of the House next year.

In the Senate, Republican Sens. John Warner of Virginia and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska have also announced their retirement, giving Democrats prime pickup opportunities in two traditionally conservative states.

In Minnesota, Democrats have high hopes of capturing Ramstad’s seat. While he routinely won reelection by sizable margins, his suburban Minneapolis district has been competitive at the federal level. President Bush won only 51 percent of the vote there in 2004, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) garnered 55 percent last year.

“With Congressman Ramstad’s unexpected retirement, this open seat automatically becomes competitive,” said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesman Ryan Rudominer.

Ramstad’s retirement came as a mild surprise. He was “burnt out” after nearly nine terms in Congress, he said, and eager to return home.

“My passion for serving people remains as strong as ever. But after 17 years of commuting every week to Washington — 17 years of being gone all week — it’s time to be home with the people I love and miss,” he said.

Potential Democratic candidates for his seat include former gubernatorial candidate Steve Kelly, state Sen. Terri Bonoff, state Rep. Melissa Hortman, former secretary of state candidate Buck Humphrey and former Hennepin County attorney candidate Andy Luger.

Still, Republicans are optimistic about their chances of holding Ramstad’s seat, pointing out that it has been in GOP hands since 1961. Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican, carried the district with 53 percent of the vote last year.

“The NRCC will be working with local Republicans to field a candidate who will continue fighting for the people of Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District and representing their interests on the federal level,” said Tom Cole, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Potential Republican candidates include state Rep. Erik Paulsen, businessman Brian Sullivan and Pawlenty’s former chief of staff David Gaither.

Ramstad has been one of the most centrist members in the GOP caucus, one of only three Republicans to vote entirely with the Democrats’ “first 100 hours” legislative agenda and one of 17 Republicans to vote against the president’s troop surge in Iraq. And the congressman supports abortion rights and federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.

A recovering alcoholic, Ramstad has also been a leading advocate on mental health issues, and he co-sponsored legislation with Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.) to require health insurers to cover mental illness at the same level as physical illness.

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