Olympia Snowe: Why I'm Leaving The Senate

The Washington Post:

Two truths are all too often overshadowed in today’s political discourse: Public service is a most honorable pursuit, and so is bipartisanship.

I have been immeasurably honored to serve the people of Maine for nearly 40 years in public office and for the past 17 years in the United States Senate. It was incredibly difficult to decide that I would not seek a fourth term in the Senate.

Read the whole story at The Washington Post

Comments

[Americanwoman55]

07:41 PM on 06/05/2012

Could Snowe resign soon. After voting against fair pay for women who have bills to pay, children to support, and often times no one but themselves to help she can NOT get out fast enough!!!
She enjoys EQUAL apy while denying her own gender te same. SHE NEEDS TO LEAVE NOW. Who cares why shw is leaving just go!!!!

[cadawa]

04:12 PM on 03/27/2012

If Obama isn't even talking to moderate Repugs, then he really isn't doing his job. He should be talking to everyone including the TPeers. He has a lot of power to create change he's just not using.

[Mildmannered]

12:17 AM on 03/05/2012

She should have switched parties instead.

[Juanmanuelsotoarg]

02:48 PM on 03/02/2012

good riddance...you lost your chance to really make a difference in job creation and health care...sad career

[ultrabop]

12:07 PM on 03/02/2012

She seemed like a classy woman. Maybe the pearls disguised a shallow interior? She seemed like the type who would be above the nitpicking and slime ball politics.

She seemed like that. So she finally votes her conscience and then quits?

I seriously doubt that she will help the situation by quitting. She was in a pole position. She had seniority. She could have stood up for women, more than just dissing the stupid Taliban proposal of Blunt. She coulda been somebody.

Gutless at best. Which describes her whole career.

[CapitalismIsCancer]

10:52 AM on 03/02/2012

The past 30 years has been a right-Wong coup. Time to throw off the dictators.

[idisVA]

10:09 AM on 03/02/2012

COMPLETE LOCK-DOWN

[Pembrokelib]

09:43 AM on 03/02/2012

Snowe is a woman of integrity, honesty and intelligence who can no longer stand the refusal of her own Party to help the country. She will be missed and it will be difficult to replace her with someone as good. Wish that she would see the light and switch Parties and I wish her a good retirement. A shame that the Pubs don't have more like her. Must have been very difficult for her to watch them mess up everything in the last two years.

[behavingbadly]

09:37 AM on 03/02/2012

She was quite eloquent in critiquing the corrosive and dysfunctional Washington atmosphere that prompted her to walk away, but doing it on her way out the door is "a day late and a dollar short".

[hypnoticmix]

02:10 AM on 03/03/2012

I agree the timing sucks but also goes to show the shackles that the reasonable have to endure in Congress when their party is polarized to the extreme. Her tenure meant nothing against the majority of hard right ideology. It's a shame she didn't have it in her to fight but that is quite the fight to take on and quite frankly I don't blame her for not wanting to stay and fight it out. After 30 years I don't know if I would have it in me either.

[Cantinflas]

09:34 AM on 03/02/2012

Those are high sounding words, Olympia. It's too bad you didn't have the backbone to vote your conscience instead of falling into lock step with McConnell's make Obama fail at any price strategy.

[Espantapajaros]

09:31 AM on 03/02/2012

"Public service is a most honorable pursuit, and so is bipartisanship."

Lame. Bipartisanship is not a virtue.

[ultrabop]

12:08 PM on 03/02/2012

Especially when dealing with jackals and thieves.

[Espantapajaros]

12:33 PM on 03/02/2012

Granted, but politics is the industry of jackals and thieves; were they any better, they'd have gotten real jobs, for the upright do not seek power.

[BigBearcatBill]

09:27 AM on 03/02/2012

She along with a few others should just change party, at least be Independents like Bernie Sanders and Joe Liberman. I hope she at least gave it a thought. Many of us are longing for the rebirth of reasonable republicans like Lincoln, Teddy, Ike, even Ron and GHW. Have we seen many dems leaving the party? no, but old repubs can't take their new creation anymore.

[trimotor]

09:26 AM on 03/02/2012

That's nice and all to spell out the intentions of how the Senate is supposed to work... but its members do not represent the people, they represent the interests of the big campaign contributors.

[Pod-gers]

09:24 AM on 03/02/2012

Olympia, you have done a wonderful job. Take a rest now. I would very much enjoy it if you started a blog on blogspot. I live in MA, and I am voting for the senator who has proven he can be bipartisan, and will not vote for the partisan rock thrower, in spite of her support for women's issues.

Take care, and continue to let us know what you think. :)

[Liberalbydefault]

09:23 AM on 03/02/2012

One of the best votes I every cast was for this classy lady. It is sad to see a person of such character and devotion to country leave under such circumstances but I can certainly understand her frustration.

It used to be that even though the parties have always had their differences, the needs of the country were the prime concern of both. Today, particularly on the Republican side, even a hint that you might compromise with the other side and your own party will target you for defeat in the next election. Very sad.