Democratic Rep. Denny Heck announced his plans on Wednesday to retire from Congress at the end of this term.
In an open letter, Mr. Heck detailed some of his favorite accomplishments and expressed a “bone deep” gratitude for his service, but said the deep partisan divide in Washington — particularly around the impeachment issue — also made him “discouraged.
The Washington Democrat served on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which spearheaded the impeachment investigation over the past two months into allegations President Trump pressured Ukraine to open politically beneficial investigations into a political rival.
“The countless hours I have spent in the investigation of Russian election interference and the impeachment inquiry have rendered my soul weary,” he said. “I will never understand how some of my colleagues, in many ways good people, could ignore or deny the President’s unrelenting attack on a free press, his vicious character assassination of anyone who disagreed with him, and his demonstrably very distant relationship with the truth.”
Mr. Heck served multiple terms in the Washington State House of Representatives and was elected as Majority Leader for his party before retiring in 1986. He was elected to Congress in 2012 midterms in the newly created 10th Congressional District.
So far, six Democrats, including Mr. Heck, have announced their plans to leave Congress instead of running for reelection in 2020.
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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