Dingell to end 6 decades in US Congress
Rep. John Dingell, 87, the longest-serving member of Congress in history, makes his announcement. / Courtesy of The Detroit News
Rep. John Dingell is leaving the Congress he’s served for longer than anyone else in United States history, Detroit News reported.
At a luncheon Monday in his beloved Downriver, the Dearborn representative says he will announce he won’t seek re-election this fall to the seat he’s held since 1955.
“I’m not going to be carried out feet first,” says Dingell, who will be 88 in July. I don’t want people to say I stayed too long.”
Dingell says his health is good enough that he could have done it again. “My doctor says I’d be OK. And I’m still as smart and capable as anyone on the Hill.
“But I’m not certain I would have been able to serve out the two-year term.”
More than health concerns, Dingell says a disillusionment with the institution drove his decision to retire.
“I find serving in the House to be obnoxious,” he says. “It will become very hard because of the acrimony and bitterness, both in Congress and in the streets.”
That’s a jarring assessment from a man who last summer surpassed the late West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd as the longest-serving member of Congress.
But he says poisonous partisanship and a growing disregard for serving the interests of the people have taken the joy out of the job.
“This is not the Congress I know and love,” he says. “It’s hard for me to accept, but it will take time to cash it in.”
The question now becomes who will succeed Dingell. He won the seat at age 29 after the death of his father, a Depression-era New Dealer who served the district for 20 years.
An open congressional seat draws lots of interest. It’s no secret the congressman would like to see the Dingell tenure continue. While she won’t announce her candidacy Monday, his wife of 38 years, Debbie, a Democratic National Committee member and former General Motors executive, will almost certainly run.
“We’ve accomplished a lot together,” Dingell says. “I couldn’t have done it without her. She’s been my guide, my counsel, my friend and my closest adviser.”
Dingell is not only the longest-serving congressman, but also one of its most influential and at one time its most feared.
As chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee, he expanded its investigative reach and was noted for grueling interrogations of government contractors.