http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/24/politics/ ... index.htmlRepublican Sen. Jeff Flake won't run for re-election
Washington (CNN)Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, who has sparred frequently with President Donald Trump, will not run for re-election, he said Tuesday in a blistering floor speech bemoaning the changing tenor of politics in the United States.
"If I have been critical, it's not because I relish criticizing the behavior of the President of the United States," Flake said. "If I have been critical, it is because I believe that it is my obligation to do so, as a matter of duty and conscience."
He continued, "The notion that one should stay silent as the norms and values that keep America strong are undermined and as the alliances and agreements that ensure the stability of the entire world are routinely threatened by the level of thought that goes into 140 characters -- the notion that one should say and do nothing in the face of such mercurial behavior is ahistoric and, I believe, profoundly misguided."
His decision means Flake joins retiring Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker as an outspoken critic of Trump with nothing to lose in the year before 2018's midterm elections.
"It's difficult to move forward in a Republican primary if you have been critical of any of the behavior that's gone on," Flake said on CNN's "The Lead." "We Republicans certainly can't countenance that kind of behavior. We ought to stand up and say 'This is not right. This is not us. This is not conservative.'"
Flake's political fortunes suffered as a result of his long-running feud with Trump -- including an anti-Trump tome Flake published over the summer. Private polls conducted by Republican and Democratic groups in Arizona, sources with those groups said, showed him on track to lose badly in next August's Republican primary to challenger Kelli Ward.[A POS and a whack job if ever there was one; she'd fit right in with Trump]
His retirement is a double-edged sword for Trump's White House: It opens the door for Flake to be replaced with a more supportive Republican. But his seat is also a prime Democratic pick-up opportunity.
And it turns Arizona -- once a Republican stronghold but increasingly competitive in recent elections -- into perhaps the most important state in the 2018 midterms, with Flake's seat now open and questions looming about
Sen. John McCain's long-term prognosis as he is treated for brain cancer.
McCain and Corker were both in attendance of Flake's Senate floor speech Tuesday and gave him a standing ovation at conclusion of his remarks -- as did Wyoming Republican Sen. John Barrasso.
"One of the greatest people I've served with," Corker said after the speech, describing Flake and adding later,
"He's what I would call a real conservative."
Corker said Flake told him about his decision after the lunch among Republican senators earlier Tuesday.
When asked what it said about the Senate that Flake said he couldn't fit into the current Republican party, Barrasso said that is up to every senator to decide.
"Every senator speaks for themselves. I continue to be very privileged to represent the people of Wyoming and hope to continue to do that in the future," Barrasso said.
Sen. John Cornyn, the second ranking Republican in the chamber, said it is "a very sad day" and GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who recently decided to skip a run for governor and stay in the chamber, called Flake's decision "incredibly disappointed."
Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia left the floor in tears following Flake's speech, calling it "depressing."
"When someone as good and decent a person as Jeff Flake does not think he can continue in the body, it's a very tragic day for the institution," Kaine said.
If you haven't seen his speech, it's well worth watching in its entirety:
A party that's losing Bob Corkers and Jeff Flakes and "gaining" Roy Moores and Kelli Wards sure ain't oarin' in the right direction...
