Fourteen years ago, Ken Buck was, for liberals, a poster child of right-wing extremism run amok. As a prosecutor, he had declined, controversially, to pursue a case of alleged rape, and during a tough primary fight, he referred dismissively to the fact that his opponent, a woman, wore high heels. Thus, the liberal media demonized him for alleged sexism.
Buck also drew criticism for saying that being gay was a life-style choice. And his firm opposition to Obamacare and the Obama stimulus didn’t win him any friends in the mainstream media, either.
Buck went on to lose his 2010 Senate bid. However, he was elected to the House in 2014 and has served in that body since January 2015.
These days, Buck, though not a mainstream media darling, is more apt to draw criticism from conservative Republicans than from liberals. He opposed the decision to launch an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden. And he expressed his opposition in an op-ed published by. . .the Washington Post.
Buck has also criticized Republicans for continuing to claim that the 2020 election was stolen. “Too many Republican leaders are lying to America,” he says.
In addition, Buck voted against the impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas. And, although he voted against impeaching Donald Trump in 2021, he has said that if Trump is convicted of crimes that “are integrally involved with how he operated the White House and what he did after he lost an election,” it would be legitimate to impeach him if he’s elected president.
All the while, Buck has remained steadfastly conservative. His Heritage Action lifetime score is 91 percent. The Club For Growth rates him at 98 percent, lifetime. CPAC gives him a lifetime rating of 97 percent.
In short, Buck is a principled conservative on policy who has fallen out with his party because he is also principled when it comes to discussing Trump and does not believe in impeachment as a political weapon.
This is all to his credit, in my opinion.
Nonetheless, I come to criticize Buck, not to praise him.
Why? Because he has decided not to finish his term in Congress.
Buck explained that decision by calling Congress “dysfunctional.” “This place has just devolved into this bickering and nonsense and not really doing the job for the American people,” he added.
That may be true. However, it was also true in 2022 when Buck ran for reelection. Voters in his district had the right to believe that, despite the bickering, nonsense, and dysfunction, Buck would represent them for another full term.
Buck complains that this past year has been his worst in Congress. That’s probably true, as well. The GOP has struggled to find a Speaker (although Buck contributed to the mess by voting to oust Kevin McCarthy). And, in Buck’s view, his party has wasted time on meritless impeachment-related proceedings.
But Buck didn’t tell the voters in his district he would quit if the going got tough. Serving in Congress can always become bumpy. That’s no excuse for leaving before the expiration of a term that lasts only two years. A candidate assumes the risk that things won’t go his way in Congress.
Buck’s resignation is all the more disappointing because, given the narrowness of the GOP majority, it will make it increasingly difficult for his party to control the House. I don’t blame Buck for being unhappy with his caucus. However, that caucus still stands for many of the conservative principles Buck has consistently upheld during his career. The Democratic caucus stands for none of them.
Buck isn’t the only House member to resign before his current term expires. Other members who have done so thus far are David Cicilline (D-R.I.), Chris Stewart (R-Utah), Brian Higgins (D-N.Y.), Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), and of course Kevin McCarthy, the ousted Speaker. None resigned to serve their country in another capacity.
This many resignations is unprecedented, the Washington Post reports. According to its analysis, it’s “clear from the data that over the last four decades, at least, the House hasn’t seen this many people just quit public service in the middle of their term.”
Why so many quitters these days? House “dysfunction” alone doesn’t explain why members can’t wait a a year or less before departing. I think the explanation probably resides in a turning away from values like keeping one’s promises and completing one’s job.
In addition to those leaving Congress early, more than three dozen House members have announced that they will be standing down, but not before the end of the year (at least so far). By keeping their implicit promise to voters, these members chose the right way to exit.
By quitting early because things haven’t gone the way he wanted, Ken Buck chose the wrong way. To me, this is a stain on an otherwise solid record in Congress.
Mr. Buck knows that his resignation will make it that much more difficult for the Republicans to enact conservative legislation and stop leftist legislation. He can count. I suspect that’s the whole point. By having a temper tantrum and not finishing his two year term, his actions show that when intra-party politics get tough, his conservative “principles” aren’t so important anymore. Sad.
I agree, but maybe we shouldn't be surprised a Buck is high-tailing it. Jim Dueholm