Five senior Republicans decline to run for re-election in 2022
Replacements may be less inclined to legislative compromise
April 5, 2021 5:01 AM
By Nancy Ognanovich
President Joe Bidenâs window to strike deals with Senate institutionalists who practiced traditional deal-making is steadily narrowing as more veterans prepare to head for the exits.
As Biden starts a push to enact ambitious plans to invest $4 billion into the nationâs infrastructure, Republicans known for negotiating large bipartisan spending agreements are entering the homestretch of their Senate careers. Five have already said they wonât seek re-election in 2022.
Veteran congressional watchers say the planned departures of GOP Sens. Richard Shelby (Ala.), Roy Blunt (Mo.), Rob Portman (Ohio), Richard Burr (N.C.), and Pat Toomey(Pa.) signal a continuing shift away from the kind of lawmakers who have long cobbled together bipartisan deals. Likely to take their place are hardliners less inclined to work with Democrats on expansive legislation, they said.