|
Costello's announcement comes on the heels of a Democrat upset
in a special congressional election March 13, in an area handily
won by U.S. President Donald Trump in 2016, prompting
Republicans to sound alarm bells of more possible Democrat wins.
In that race, Republican Rick Saccone conceded his loss to
Democrat Conor Lamb on March 21 in the razor-close race for the
state's 18th Congressional District, a Republican stronghold.
Costello announced Sunday to Kasie Hunt, on the MSNBC program
Kasie DC, that he will not seek re-election, citing both the
redrawn suburban-Philadelphia district that now favors Democrats
and his desire to spend more time with his family.
"It's the most difficult decision I can recall having to make,"
he told Hunt on Sunday night. "I have an 8-month-old. I have a
4-year-old. And it's a very challenging job, serving in Congress
with a young family."
National Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rep. Steve
Stivers told ABC News that Costello's retirement is a "great
loss."
He said in a statement to the news agency, "We will work
tirelessly to ensure this seat remains in Republican hands."
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said in a
statement that other Republicans should take heed of Costello’s
decision.
“Costello's exit should set off alarm bells for vulnerable House
Republicans, who will also have to explain to middle-class
voters why they’ve given repeated handouts to the rich and
biggest corporations, and who will face similarly tough,
well-financed challenges from our deep field of impressive
candidates,” said spokesman Evan Lukaske in a press release.
Neither Costello nor his representatives were immediately
available for comment.
(Reporting by Rich McKay; Editing by Michael Perry)
[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
