Heath Shuler joined the ever increasing ranks of Democrats going to ground by not seeking re-election. I can understand Beverly Perdue, Joe Hackney and Brad Miller capitulating since their records have not warranted even their current political offices. Erskine Bowles’ decision to not run for governor is also an anomaly since he has the best chance of beating the GOP elite’s Pat McCrory.
But Heath Shuler abandoning ship when he has $314,282 cash on hand for the 2012 election already makes no sense:
Cycle Fundraising, 2011 – 2012, Campaign Cmte
| Raised: |  $558,992 |
 |
| Spent: | $322,691 |
|
| Cash on Hand: | $314,282 |
|
| Debts: | $0 |
|
| Last Report: | Saturday, December 31, 2011 | |
It is possible that Rep. Shuler wants to spend more time with his family. My best guess is that he wants to get out of Washington, DC before the SHTF.
David DeGerolamo
NC’s Heath Shuler won’t seek re-election to House
U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler of North Carolina announced Thursday he won’t seek re-election in what’s become another blow to conservative Democrats on Capitol Hill and the party’s state congressional delegation.
Shuler, a former professional football player and conservative who challenged House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi for her post following the November 2010 elections, announced in a statement that he will not seek a fourth House term representing far western North Carolina.
Shuler said he discussed running for North Carolina governor with his family but decided against it earlier this week.
“I spent time with the family and realized I have to be at home more, spend some more time with them.” Shuler and his wife have two children ages 10 and 7.
Shuler told reporters in Washington his decision had nothing to do with his unsuccessful challenge to Pelosi or his occasional clashes with party leaders, who are all more liberal than he is. He was a leader in the so-called Democratic Blue Dog Coalition in Washington, which included moderate and conservative Democrats who lobbied for greater fiscal responsibility in Washington.
“I feel very at peace,” Shuler told reporters in Washington. “There’s no other reason other than to spend as much time as I possibly can with them. When you’ve got a 7-year-old girl, and you left on Tuesday and she calls you Wednesday and says, ‘Come home now,’ I want to be home with those kids.”
In January 2011, 11 Democrats voted for Shuler for speaker, an apparent effort to express some unhappiness with Pelosi’s previous four years as speaker.
“We need more commonsense voices in Congress like Heath Shuler who judge policy based on its merits, not on party allegiance,” U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., a Blue Dog Coalition co-chairman, said in a statement.
Pelosi praised Shuler as “a national leader for fiscal responsibility who has always maintained a laser-like focus on his constituents in western North Carolina.”
Republicans in the state Legislature had made his 11th District seat more difficult to win through redistricting, particularly by splitting Democratic-leaning Asheville.
While Shuler, who was also considered anti-abortion, said polls showed he was still ahead by about 8 percentage points in the 11th District, at least nine Republicans had expressed interest in unseating him.
