Sen. Barbara Mikulski *announces* plans to retire

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Last edited Mon Mar 2, 2015, 03:20 PM - Edit history (1)

Beth Fouhy ?@bfouhy

Per @KellyO, Sen. Barbara Mikulski is set to announce plans to retire. Will announce today at 11am.


CSPAN ?@cspan 13m13 minutes ago
VIDEO: From 2012, tributes to @SenatorBarb when she became longest-serving woman in Congress. http://cs.pn/1hhky2v

The Associated Press ?@AP 18m18 minutes ago
Sen. Mikulski was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1976 and has served in the Senate since 1987: http://apne.ws/1BxLOSU

Jonathan Martin ?@jmartNYT 19m19 minutes ago
Will be pressure on O'Malley to run for Senate in MD. Question is if Ds can head off primary for him a la Kamala

from the Washington Post: http://ow.ly/JOWx3


*update*

BALTIMORE, Md. – Today at Henderson’s Wharf Inn in Fells Point, U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) announced she has decided not to run for re-election. Senator Mikulski, who will complete her 5th term in office in January, 2017, says she wants to focus for the next two years on working for her constituents and for the nation.

“Because every day, I want to wake up thinking about you -- the little guys and gals, the watermen, automobile workers, researchers, small business owners and families,” Senator Mikulski said. “I want to give you 120 percent of my time with all of my energy focused on you and your futures. Because it’s always been about you, never about me. That’s what it takes to be a good senator by my expectations and by my standards.”

Senator Mikulski’s prepared statement:

“It’s great being here in Fells Point today where I spent a good part of my life and where I learned my values. Growing up in East Baltimore was growing up in an urban village where people lived, worked, shopped and worshipped. But it’s not about what we did, it’s about what we believed.

“It’s the values I learned from my family -- my mother and father, from my church – the nuns and priests, and from the people in the neighborhoods themselves. It’s where I learned about patriotism, the love of this country, and that you have to fight for and protect the freedom and opportunity it gives. Where I learned about neighbor helping neighbor through the genuine gestures and actions of people who were looking out for one another every day and in every way. Where I learned that we are all in this together as we witnessed young men and women go off to protect their country and helped care for the families they hoped to come home to.

“And it’s where I learned about service from my mother and father who said, ‘Good morning can I help you?’ every morning when they opened the small neighborhood grocery they owned and ran. I still believe in ‘Good morning can I help you.’ That’s the spirit of East Baltimore. It’s how I was raised and how I still live every day.

“For me, service is about solving problems for my constituents. I could never put you or your needs on a back burner. With my own re-election on the horizon, I thought long and hard about how I want to spend the next two years – what is it I want to campaign for, for you or for me?

“I had to decide whether to spend my time fighting to keep my job or fighting for your job. Do I spend my time raising money or raising hell to meet your day-to-day needs? Do I spend my time focusing on my election or the next generation. Do I spend the next two years making promises about what I will do or making progress on what I can do right now.

“The more I thought about it, the more the answer became really clear – I want to campaign for you. That’s why I’m here to announce I won’t be seeking a 6th term as a United States Senator for Maryland.

“Because every day, I want to wake up thinking about you -- the little guys and gals, the watermen, automobile workers, researchers, small business owners and families. I want to give you 120 percent of my time with all of my energy focused on you and your future. Because it’s always been about you, never about me. That’s what it takes to be a good senator by my expectations and by my standards.

“Over the next two years, I’ll be fighting to give families a raise by finishing what we started with the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and passing the Paycheck Fairness Act, once and for all guaranteeing equal pay for equal work. I’ll be fighting for a family-friendly tax code with targeted tax breaks, doubling the child care tax credit to make child care more affordable.

“I’ll be fighting for you jobs. Creating jobs today in construction rebuilding America’s roads, bridges and water plants. And creating jobs for tomorrow in the new economy through research and discovery.

“I’ll keep up the charge to make college more affordable with permanent tuition tax breaks and by reforming Pell Grants, making them year round, easier to apply for and increasing them to cover more costs. And families should be able to refinance student loans at lower rates. I’ll also be introducing my new bill, Debt for Duty, providing student loan forgiveness in exchange for time spent volunteering.

“I’ll be making sure promises made are promises kept to our veterans. Because if you’ve been on the frontlines, you shouldn’t have to stand in line for benefits you’ve earned and deserve. And I’ll be protecting the social safety net for seniors, because ‘Honor thy father and mother,’ isn’t just a great commandment to live by, it’s good public policy. That means making sure Social Security remains a guaranteed, lifetime and inflation-proof benefit and that Medicare is there when you need it.

“To the people of Maryland -- I thank you. You’ve honored me with your confidence and trust. I’ve tried to live up to it and will continue to do that every day. I pledge, as always, that I will take the values I learned living here in East Baltimore and work as hard as ever, dedicated to you and dedicated to the nation. Thank you and God bless.”

http://www.mikulski.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/mikulski-announces-5th-term-will-be-her-last-will-focus-on-working-for-her-constituents

[Tommy_Carcetti]

1. If O'Malley's presidential bid doesn't take flight, do you think he'll make a run for Senate? nt

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3. speculation's already happening in the press

...I think it would be a good move for him, for the state, for Democrats.

[RandySF]

2. She'll be missed.

Almost three decades of good, old fashioned progressive fire day in and day out. Two Maryland giants have moved on, now that she and Paul Sarbanes will have both retired in 2017.

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5. you make a good point

...the pair represented Maryland Democratic politics in the Senate like no others.

[Skidmore]

4. One of the strongest voices on women's issues

for decades. I hope she enjoys her retirement. She'll be hard to replace.

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6. who will run?

MarylandReporter.com ?@mdreporter 24s25 seconds ago

Who will run? O'Malley, Van Hollen, Sarbanes, Edwards, Cummings, Delaney and so on; early primary in presidential year


...Reps. Elijah E. Cummings, Donna Edwards?

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7. »

[Spirochete]

8. The Senate is rapidly

running out of Barbaras.

Sorry to see her go. Hope someone good turns up to run for that seat.

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9. well put, Spirochete

...I'm going to remain optimistic for our newer generations, though, to step into their shoes.

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10. President Obama remarks on retirement announcement

"Senator Mikulski is more than just a legendary senator for the people of Maryland, she's an institution in the United States Senate. Barbara's service to the people of Maryland spans decades, but her legacy will span generations. Barbara is the longest serving woman in Congress, and her leadership serves as an inspiration to millions of women and girls across the globe to stand up and lead.

As the Chairwoman and now Vice Chairwoman of the Senate's Appropriations Committee, Barbara has always known that our budgets should reflect our deepest held values. In that spirit, Barbara has wielded her gavel and used her booming voice to advocate on behalf of paycheck fairness, childcare, health care, education, women's rights and countless issues that have contributed to the strength of America's families. Thanks to her leadership, more women excel in their careers, more children have access to quality education, more families have health insurance and more people are treated fairly under the law. I look forward to working with Senator Mikulski over the course of the next two years, and Michelle and I extend our warmest wishes to Barbara in her next endeavors."

others remark: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/blog/bs-md-barbara-mikulski-quote-rail-20150302-story.html#page=1

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11. update: Senator's statement in op

http://www.mikulski.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/mikulski-announces-5th-term-will-be-her-last-will-focus-on-working-for-her-constituents

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12. kick

[Hekate]

13. Kick

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14. Martin O'Malley rules out Senate bid

GuardianUS ?@GuardianUS 5m5 minutes ago

Martin O'Malley rules out Senate bid and keeps presidential ambitions alive http://trib.al/l4CEFCr