The Republican Excuse-O-Meter

This fall’s top five scandal-tinged congressmen and their “official” reasons for retiring.

Illustration: Gordon Studer

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.


Of the more than two dozen retiring members of Congress, some will be dearly missed (Godspeed, Chuck Hagel!), while others…not so much. Democrats are absent from our list not because they have a franchise on good behavior (we’re talking to you, “Dollar” Bill Jefferson), but because few are retiring this year and none of them are actually under indictment.

Rep. John Doolittle (R-Calif.)
Why: Under investigation in connection with the Jack Abramoff and Brent Wilkes scandal
In His Words: “I needed to not run again.”
About Time: His long history of blurring congressional and family business included paying his wife nearly $200,000 in fundraising commissions.

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.)
Why: Passing the torch to Duncan Jr.
In His Words: As Hunter mounted a doomed campaign for the presidency, a spokesman announced, “Congressman Hunter does not intend to run for two offices simultaneously.”
About Time: With ties to Brent Wilkes and Duke Cunningham, Hunter has long been accused of swapping earmarks for campaign cash. Duncan Jr. seems poised to follow in his father’s footsteps, already receiving contributions from the beneficiaries of Hunter-sponsored earmarks.

Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.)
Why: 35 excellent reasons, according to his indictment
In His Words: No comment.
About Time: Fraud, conspiracy, money laundering, extortion…’nuff said.

Rep. Jerry Weller (R-Ill.)
Why: Ask his Nicaraguan real estate agent.
In His Words: “I need to give my family the time needed to be a full-time dad and full-time husband.”
About Time: Accused of using his congressional clout for private profit, Weller masked the extent of his Central American land dealings.

Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.)
Why: Got caught
In His Words: “[I] need to concentrate on healing the wounds that I have caused to my wife and family.”
About Time: Before he was felled by a drunk driving and adultery scandal, Fossella had a rep for mixing business with pleasure, using campaign funds for things like ski lessons for his family.

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate