McDermott: I retire from the house forever humbled

After 27 years representing Seattle in the U.S. House, Democrat Jim McDermott is retiring.

The word was out Monday morning, a couple hours before Congressman McDermott walked into a room packed with reporters. And so he began: “I’m not sure there’s any surprise here, having read the newspapers and the blogs.”

He says the decision was tough. He doesn’t want to be a quitter.

“I retire from the house forever humbled and grateful to my constituents for their unwavering embrace,” he said.

And unwavering it was for 14 terms, all the while as a no-holds-barred Progressive with many controversial tussles over the years.

Related: Should Kshama Sawant take over for Rep. Jim McDermott?

McDermott was called a traitor when, in 2002, he said President George Bush was so eager to go to war that he would lie to get the country into Iraq. On the right, he’s still known derisively as “Baghdad Jim” for that stance and for his visit to Iraq. On the left, he’s known as the guy who warned the public about a misguided war.

“What we’re looking at today, fourteen years later, is the result of the mistake we made going in there,” he said. “I don’t take any pleasure being right. I mean, I feel for the Iraqis and for Americans and for everybody else, but somebody has to say that stuff and this district gave me the power to do it.”

Fox News Anchor Megyn Kelly was applauded by conservatives for her interview with McDermott in 2013 after he challenged tea party activists who were speaking to Congress about mistreatment by the IRS.

She asked him if he was blaming the victim and in their tense exchange, he told her to stop putting words in his mouth. “Stop that,” he said. “Stop it!”

McDermott is known for his longtime push for healthcare reform, to the point he at first did not support the Affordable Care Act because it didn’t go far enough. He wants single-payer healthcare.

“Not surprisingly, everything has not worked out as I hoped, but I leave Congress with no regrets,” McDermott said.

He says access to healthcare has improved but he’s still pushing for cost control, things like lower prices for prescription drugs.

McDermott is 79 and says it was time to move on. Now, he’ll be able to spend more time with his sons, travel to Portugal, and paint.

He says he wasn’t concerned he would lose his seat, although a month ago, Democratic State Representative Brady Walkinshaw announced he would run against McDermott. Many called Walkinshaw the first viable challenger in years.

Will Walkinshaw be the winner? It’s a seat one man filled for 27 years. The list of hopefuls vying for the spot is likely to keep on growing.

McDermott says he won’t lend his support to any particular potential predecessor. At least not yet.

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