Vegas will soon show Repubs being the odds on favorites to pick up +5 Senate seats rather than +4 in 2004...
Posted on 12/15/2003 1:09:34 PM PST by RobFromGa
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 12/15/03 |
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WASHINGTON (Dec. 15) - U.S. Sen. John Breaux (D-La.) today announced he will not seek re-election to the United States Senate after serving 31 years in the United States Congress. "There comes a time in every career when it is time to step aside, and let others step up and serve," Sen. Breaux said. "And for my family and me that time has arrived. I will not seek re-election to the U.S. Senate." Sen. Breaux, 59, talked about his long career in government saying,"it's been a great 35 years - a few as a staff person, 14 years as a member of Congress, representing southwest Louisiana, and it will be 18 years as a U.S. senator, representing our state of Louisiana. I had the privilege of serving with five governors and seven presidents." Sen. Breaux is a long-time moderate Democrat, a founder of the Democratic Leadership Council, and co-chairman of the Senate Centrist Coalition. "Throughout my years in Congress, I have been guided by a simple philosophy - to make government work for everyone," he said. "My sincere hope is that future Congresses will be able to pursue the center-out coalitions that I advocated. It is my hope that cooperation and legitimate compromise between our political parties will not be seen as political failure, but rather as a means of building a stronger democracy that serves our nation." Sen. Breaux's record of accomplishments and results include: * Imposing budget discipline and passing targeted, responsible tax cuts to the people and businesses who could do the most good. * Expanding trade opportunities for Louisiana industries, while fighting to protect growers and workers from unfair and illegal foreign trade practices. * Expanding the energy industry, while seeking alternative energy sources. * Reforming the nation's welfare system - emphasizing more work, but increasing funds for training, education and childcare. * Securing funds to preserve and restore Louisiana's wetlands, and educating the nation about the importance of protecting vanishing coastlines. * And, making healthcare more affordable and more accessible, and most recently - adding a prescription drug benefit to a reformed and modernized Medicare program. Sen. Breaux thanked his wife Lois saying, "I could not have asked for a more helpful and supportive partner and friend. No one has been more lucky and fortunate than me in finding you." He also recognized his four children, three grandchildren, father, mother-in-law, staff, colleagues, friends and supporters. Sen. Breaux concluded by saying: "I'm not leaving today. There is still a lot to get done this Congress. We have to get the energy bill passed, and I want to get started on legislation for the 40 million Americans who have no health insurance. And, I look forward to co-chairing with Governor-elect Kathleen Blanco the very important summit meeting on healthcare in Louisiana. "So, this is not goodbye. After working for more than half my life on issues important to Louisiana, I intend to continue that involvement in the future, but in a different capacity. But for now - thank you for the privilege and honor of serving Louisiana and our country."
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From John Mercurio
CNN Political Unit
Monday, December 15, 2003 Posted: 3:48 PM EST (2048 GMT)
(CNN) -- Creating a fifth major headache for Senate Democrats in the South, Sen. John Breaux of Louisiana said Monday that he won't seek a fourth term in 2004.
Breaux, a centrist Democrat and the most popular politician in the Bayou State, won his 1998 re-election bid by a 2-to-1 margin. He announced his decision during a news conference in Baton Rouge.
Breaux spent Monday morning discussing his decision with Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-Louisiana, and members of the state's congressional delegation.
The retirement of Breaux, 59, deals another hefty blow to Senate Democrats as they seek to reclaim the majority in 2004.
He is the fifth Democrat from a southern state to announce his retirement before the 2004 elections. Others are Zell Miller, Georgia; Bob Graham, Florida; John Edwards, North Carolina; and Fritz Hollings, South Carolina.
Republican senators Peter Fitzgerald of Illinois and Don Nickles of Oklahoma also are retiring.
Two Congressional representatives -- Democrat Chris John and Republican David Vitter -- are expected to join the race to succeed him. Both have been raising money for a potential statewide race. Vitter ended September with $1.5 million in the bank; John had $826,000 on hand.
He and Bush get along quite well, and Breaux is quite a smart fellow.
Vegas will soon show Repubs being the odds on favorites to pick up +5 Senate seats rather than +4 in 2004...
In other words, he's been an utterly-useless parasite his whole adult life, sucking on the taxpayer tit.
Never had to achieve against performance benchmarks, try to hold a company's payroll together, or market a product to a skeptical marketplace.
He's just squandered other people's money to buy votes, with no innate understanding of where that money comes from. Great job, Mr. Breaux Parasite. Now get the hell out of our wallets.
maybe Sec. of Energy?
Then a public endorsement, like Zell Miller's, would be timely and sweet.
Fingers crossed. I'm not counting my chicks before they hatch.
Although I would like Dean to be the Democratic nominee, it's still too early in the game.
Of course, if Dean is at the top of the ticket, Democrats will have a hard time picking up any Senate seat in the South, even in moderate Florida.
Let's not forget...A decent Rat is a Rat none-the-less. Decent rats still vote for Daschle for minority leader. Decent Rats still make it possible for "indecent" Rats to have a lot of power!
This record is going to be broken. I hope it is another 120 till the next Rat.
Hank Reardon, you're my kind of American.
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