Retiring Congressmen - Let's compile a list and see if there is anything to this. Head For Ze Hill

With all the stories of Senators and House Members retiring or choosing not to run for re-election (or even in some cases purposely (?) tanking their campaign to take a loss) it got me thinking. Is there any possibility that these individuals know that something rather devistating is coming in the next couple of years and are either dropping out to spend the last days with loved ones, or are already making plans to head to the bunkers, or are staffing the Shadow Government in advance? It reminds of the scene in Deep Impact, when a member of the President's cabinet was packing his boat with cases of Ensure and hightailing his family out of Dodge.

My curiousity, mixed with a wee bit of laziness and a little more ignorance, caused me to start this thread and I'd love to see the combined brain power of ATS put together a list... those who publically have bowed out or announced retirement, as well as those who lost their districts that they should've easily won, as well as what sort of committees these congressmen served on.

Also, and sort of off-topic but not really, are there any current "insiders" choosing to run for president in 2012? Right now, to me, the race seems filled with those who might not know if something was up... either because they are politically shunned (Ron Paul), never had any real access to begin with (Sarah Palin), or have been out of the loop in awhile (Newt Gingrich.) A real lack of long-tern, powerful players in the race would also signal that something was up.

I'd love to see what you guys come up with. Perhaps there is a pattern here, perhaps there isn't, but it would be interesting to see. Hopefully the rest of you see some validity in this theory as well.

Thanks!

I'll start...

Senator Joe Lieberman - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Senator Chris Dodd - Chose not to run for re-election during the 2010 mid-term elections - Chairman Senate Banking Committee

Representative Patrick J Kennedy - Chose not to run for re-election in 2010. - Served on U.S. House Committee on Appropriations

Senator Jon Kyl - Announced retirement this week - Senate Minority Whip

Senator Jim Webb - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Former Secretary of the Navy

Senatory Kay Bailey Hutchinson - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Served on the Senate Appropriations Committee and strongly tied in to NASA

Senator Kent Conrad - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Budget Committee

Representative Chris Lee - Resigned due to scandal (manufactured by the congressman?) - Served Committee On Financial Services

The real political figures to keep an eye on are Hillary Clinton and Obama. If Obama doesnt run for re-election for some reason then you raise an eye brow....if Hillary doesnt jump at the opportunity that Obama doesnt for some reason...then you run for the hills. A lot of these politicians just cant handle whats going on in this country right now. More from a public perspective than anything else...watch Bill Mahers show...especially when he brings Republicans and Tea Party Members on. Most of them flake in the line of fire....just as most Democrats do when they are on Bill O'Reilly. Most of these politicians cant stay calm under fire and theres huge fires in this country right now.

reply to post by larphillips


Something bigger then we know about is going on, there are all these theories out there. I'm thinking most of them know whats going on, and they are letting the under dogs that aren't in the shadow circle run so it all appears well.

If you aren't paying attention now... Then enjoy the train tracks and wait.

I would assume that when the bigwigs like Obama and Clinton are caught heading for the hills, it would be too late for the rest of us.
Why do we wait for this only to go, “Aha, I knew it!! Now what?”

We all know that something is bound to happen in the next few years leading up to 2012. Even if it is not the dawn of a new age as predicted by the Mayans , or the return of a celestial race. Why?

The belief in 2012, and the paranoia that is bound to come with it, will make for trying times. People will have to fight hard to resist the urge to run to the hills should they read the wrong headline or hear the end bit of a dodgy news broadcast. People are funny like that…

Connected people are now speaking to other even more connected people, trying to get the inside scoop from their political and Forbes 500 buddies. Everyone is saying that something is going down. Because there’s a lot of sh!ft happening right now, the connected one resorts to cashing in and getting out. Then Google’s “bunker”…

Either way people are going to vanish. Whether it be to get away from the aliens or the very people they were happy to share a patch of earth with not too long ago.

Originally posted by larphillips
I'll start...

Senator Joe Lieberman - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Senator Chris Dodd - Chose not to run for re-election during the 2010 mid-term elections - Chairman Senate Banking Committee

Representative Patrick J Kennedy - Chose not to run for re-election in 2010. - Served on U.S. House Committee on Appropriations

Senator Jon Kyl - Announced retirement this week - Senate Minority Whip

Senator Jim Webb - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Former Secretary of the Navy

Senatory Kay Bailey Hutchinson - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Served on the Senate Appropriations Committee and strongly tied in to NASA

Senator Kent Conrad - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Budget Committee

Representative Chris Lee - Resigned due to scandal (manufactured by the congressman?) - Served Committee On Financial Services

edit on 2/15/11 by larphillips because: added to list

I'm in a particularly pragmatic mood so I'll just point out that you've listed 8 out of 535 which is 1.4%. I don't think its a conspiracy yet.

Originally posted by ararisq

Originally posted by larphillips
I'll start...

Senator Joe Lieberman - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Senator Chris Dodd - Chose not to run for re-election during the 2010 mid-term elections - Chairman Senate Banking Committee

Representative Patrick J Kennedy - Chose not to run for re-election in 2010. - Served on U.S. House Committee on Appropriations

Senator Jon Kyl - Announced retirement this week - Senate Minority Whip

Senator Jim Webb - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Former Secretary of the Navy

Senatory Kay Bailey Hutchinson - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Served on the Senate Appropriations Committee and strongly tied in to NASA

Senator Kent Conrad - Will not seek re-election in 2012 - Chairman Senate Budget Committee

Representative Chris Lee - Resigned due to scandal (manufactured by the congressman?) - Served Committee On Financial Services

edit on 2/15/11 by larphillips because: added to list

I'm in a particularly pragmatic mood so I'll just point out that you've listed 8 out of 535 which is 1.4%. I don't think its a conspiracy yet.

Point taken, but mine is not nearly a complete list. As I said in the OP, I'm counting on the hard work of others for this project.

Also, the list should probably start around 2009... unless there is some cause for starting it earlier.

reply to post by larphillips

Also, the list should probably start around 2009... unless there is some cause for starting it earlier.

I'd say the list should start beginning of 2008. Who retired and/or didn't run in 2008. Republicans pretty much handed the election to Democrats, and Democrats put up a greenhorn unknown, so I think the Conspiracy started then. Hillary fought hard, but Bill endorsed Obama pretty quickly! Maybe Hillary was out of the loop?

BTW: Nice thread, I have been thinking we needed something like this too!

I wonder how much turnover rate there was from prior to the 2008 election to the now, and then how many more are choosing to retire now? If the turnover rate is large over the three election period, then we need to look at a prior three election period, like in the 80's when things were going along pretty good and see what the difference is.

Senator Daniel Akaga announed today that he will retire and not seek re-election in 2012.

Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico will not run for re-election in 2012

Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota retired last year.

Akaga served on the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Bingaman served on the Committee on Armed Services, was chairman on the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Dorgan was "Chairman of Senate Committees and Subcommittees on the issues of Energy, Aviation, Appropriations, Water Policy and Indian Affairs."

You already have Bush heading for the hills, with his 100,000 acre spread in Paraguay.

Bush Buys Ranch in Paraguay: Planning Escape?

... The Bush Family has purchased a 98,840 acre ranch through a secretive land trust in Paraguay.

According to Wonkette, this story is being covered by papers in Cuba, Venezuela and Argentina, but has not yet hit the American presses.

"The Paraguayan Senate voted last summer to "grant U.S. troops immunity from national and International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction."

Immediately afterwards, 500 heavily armed U.S. troops arrived with various planes, choppers and land vehicles at Mariscal Estigarribia air base, which happens to be at the northern tip of Paraguay near the Bolivian/Brazilian border. More have reportedly arrived since then."

Perhaps our government continuity plan is to be carried out in Paraguay?

I'd look more for politicians who had close connections with the "military-industrial complex", those died-in-the-wool neo-cons who supported spending on defense budgets and military projects no matter how extravagant. These same politicians who gutted education or social programs, since, if something big is going to happen, what's the point in spending money on the soon-to-be dead? That's money that can be further used to build this "continuity government", i.e., survival camps for the world's elite. Obama? He doesn't seem to be too popular with this crowd, I don't see him getting an invite to the DIA, or any DUMB's beneath it, or to Paraguay when the SHTF.

Senator John Ensign of Nevada will leave office when his term ends after the 2012 election.

Ensign served on the Committe on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs