One of the most powerful Republicans in Congress just announced he's retiring


Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.) will retire at the end of this congressional term, he announced Monday. Frelinghuysen has served as the representative for New Jersey's 11th congressional district since 1995 and was appointed to the chairmanship of the House Appropriations Committee in 2017. He was one of only 12 House Republicans to vote against the GOP's tax bill, citing the negative impact it would have on his New Jersey constituents.
Frelinghuysen's retirement represents another opportunity for the Democratic Party to win back seats in the House in this year's midterm elections. NBC News' Alex Seitz-Wald noted on Twitter that President Trump only won Frelinghuysen's district by one percentage point in 2016. Even before Frelinghuysen announced his retirement, the race was expected to be competitive in the midterms.
Frelinghuysen is one of several prominent Republican lawmakers — among them Reps. Darrell Issa (Calif.), Charlie Dent (Pa.), and Bob Goodlatte (Va.), as well as Sens. Jeff Flake (Ariz.), Orrin Hatch (Utah), and Bob Corker (Tenn.) — to decide to call it quits rather than run for re-election in 2018.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In a statement, Frelinghuysen said that he would devote "all of [his] energies" to passing appropriations bills for fiscal years 2018 and 2019. He also lauded the virtues of public service, writing that it "is an incredible way to turn your convictions into something that serves the greater good." Read his full statement below. Kelly O'Meara Morales
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.
-
RFK Jr.: How to destroy vaccination
Feature Robert F. Kennedy Jr. replaces all 17 members of the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice
-
The god in the machine
Feature An AI model with superhuman intelligence could soon become reality. Should we be worried?
-
ICE: Targeting essential workers
Feature After a brief pause, the Trump administration resumes its mass deportation plan
-
Judges order release of 2 high-profile migrants
Speed Read Kilmar Ábrego García is back in the US and Mahmoud Khalil is allowed to go home — for now
-
US assessing bomb damage to Iran nuclear sites
Speed Read Trump claims this weekend's US bombing obliterated Tehran's nuclear program, while JD Vance insists the US is 'not at war with Iran'
-
Trump's LA deployment in limbo after court rulings
Speed Read Judge Breyer ruled that Trump's National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was an 'illegal' overreach. But a federal appellate court halted the ruling.
-
Marines, National Guard in LA can detain Americans
speed read The troops have been authorized to detain anyone who interferes with immigration raids
-
Trump vows 'very big force' against parade protesters
Speed Read The parade, which will shut down much of the capital, will celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary and Trump's 79th birthday
-
Smithsonian asserts its autonomy from Trump
speed read The DC institution defied Trump's firing of National Portrait Gallery Director Kim Sajet
-
Trump sends Marines to LA, backs Newsom arrest
speed read California Gov. Gavin Newsom is filing lawsuits in response to Trump's escalation of the federal response to ICE protests
-
Trump foists National Guard on unwilling California
speed read Protests erupted over ICE immigration raids in LA county