Nebraska Republican Rep. Don Bacon cites political dysfunction in deciding not to seek reelection

OMAHA Neb AP U S Rep Don Bacon a Republican from Nebraska informed Monday he will not seek reelection next year amid an increasingly polarized political environment Bacon disclosed at a news conference at Omaha s airport that he would not seek a sixth term representing Nebraska s second district with its so-called blue dot that includes plenty of progressive voters around Omaha Bacon has had to approach an ever-thinning line between staying in his party s and President Donald Trump s good graces without alienating his increasingly Democratic district In May at an Omaha roundtable with business leaders to discuss Congress up-to-date tax bill Bacon reported he would decide by this summer whether he would run again citing a desire to spend more time with his family including his eight grandchildren When pressed he acknowledged that the dysfunction in Washington contributed to his decision It s one thing when you have the opposing party fighting you but when you have divisions in your own party you know it makes it harder he disclosed An Air Force veteran first elected in he won reelection in He serves on the House Armed Services Committee and has been at the center of plenty of debates in Congress He has also been chairman of the conservative-centrist Republican Main Street Caucus in the House Bacon has earned a reputation as a centrist an increasingly rare designation among Republicans as the party has moved farther to the right But he has long acknowledged that moderation is a necessary attribute for anyone seeking to represent the Omaha-centered district which is closely divided between Republican and Democratic voters Nebraska is one of two states that doesn t follow a winner-take-all system of awarding Electoral College votes Instead Nebraska and Maine allow presidential electoral votes to be split by congressional district Bacon s district has seen its elector vote go to a Democratic presidential candidate three times to Barack Obama in to Joe Biden in and to Kamala Harris in The political circumstances is rapidly changing in Omaha where voters of late rejected a fourth term for Republican Mayor Jean Stothert in favor of her Democratic opponent John Ewing Seeing an opportunity to flip a vulnerable seat several Democrats have already declared their candidacy The bulk widely recognized is John Cavanaugh a state senator from Omaha who s father John J Cavanaugh III represented the nd District in Congress from to Bacon has managed to survive the district s swing to the left by staying squarely in the middle In his the bulk contemporary campaigns he touted his bipartisan credentials in political ads and cited his willingness to buck his party to promotion measures such as the Biden administration s popular infrastructure assets bill Despite Bacon s willingness to rebuke both his party and the Trump administration he has consistently voted with preponderance of their agenda But his criticism of Trump has been enough to draw the growing ire of his party Bacon faced a primary challenger in who was endorsed by the Nebraska Republican Party which is led by Trump loyalists Even so Bacon has grown more vocal in his criticism of the Trump administration That includes the president s chaotic tariff policies with Bacon going so far as to introduce a bill to return authority to issue tariffs to Congress On Sunday Republican Sen Thom Tillis of North Carolina also decided to not seek reelection next year He had held to his opposition of President Donald Trump s tax breaks and spending cuts package because of its reductions to fitness care programs Source