The slow trickle of open seats left by House Republicans is beginning to become a drum beat. Rep. Jerry Weller (R-IL), who has been dogged by inquiries regarding his suspect land deals in Nicaragua in recent weeks, is going to bail out on Congress after his current term expires, according to Roll Call.
Weller’s district is competitive terrain that Bush won by a 53%-46% margin in 2004, but only by two points against Al Gore. Earlier today, Trent wrote that Emily’s List is heavily recruiting state Senate Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson to run for the seat. An open seat here would undoubtedly launch this Illinois district into the top tier of 2008’s House races–meaning another headache for the GOP.
(H/T: TPM EC)
Race Tracker: IL-11
UPDATE (David): Weller made it official on Friday.
Because “Another One Bites the Dust” :p
Weller may be the single most unethical Rep to retire this cycle. (I realize with Hastert and Rezni stepping down that there are heavyweights vying for that crown, but Weller's Central American dealings transcend their activites.) Regardless of how the district goes from here, the House just got quite a bit cleaner.