Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), one of the handful of Republicans who voted against impeaching DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, made a shocking announcement over the weekend.
According to the Daily Wire, the Wisconsin Republican announced he will not seek reelection.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher will resign when his term is up. Gallagher just voted against impeaching Biden’s DHS Secretary Mayorkas. https://t.co/Cmt2fdIXxu
— *Gun Grunt™* D1/4 (@FMFGrunt) February 11, 2024
Gallagher released a statement regarding his shocking revelation.
"Eight years ago, I promised to treat my time in office as a high-intensity deployment," said Gallagher, a former U.S. Marine officer.
He added, "Through my bipartisan work on the Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, chairing the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, and chairing the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, we’ve accomplished more on this deployment than I could have ever imagined."
The Wisconsin lawmaker went on to explain that he doesn't believe politicians should make a career out of their positions.
"But the Framers intended citizens to serve in Congress for a season and then return to their private lives," Gallagher said.
"Electoral politics was never supposed to be a career and, trust me, Congress is no place to grow old. And so, with a heavy heart, I have decided not to run for re-election."
The Daily Wire noted:
Earlier this week, Gallagher joined Reps. Ken Buck (R-CO) and Tom McClintock (R-CA), along with all voting Democrats, to defeat a resolution that could have made Mayorkas the first Cabinet secretary to be impeached since 1876. Gallagher argued that impeaching Mayorkas would set “a dangerous new precedent on impeachment that will be used against future Republican administrations.”
Gallagher is the fifth Republican lawmaker in recent weeks to announce their retirement from Congress, creating a potential predicament for the GOP as they already only have a slim margin of majority in the lower chamber.
Social media users reacted to Gallagher's news, with many echoing a sentiment of "good riddance" after he voted to save Mayorkas.
"Ding dong another RINO GONE!! Rep. Mike Gallagher, who voted to let Mayorkas off the hook, won’t run for re-election. Time for an America First Patriot to fill his seat," one X user wrote.
Another X user wrote, "And he says he’s leaving because Congress wasn’t ever meant to be a lifetime career. No it’s because he knows he won’t be reelected after his Mayorkas impeachment no vote."
