Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) will quit Congress on April 19, intentionally staying beyond the deadline to replace him with a special election and enabling him to vote for Ukraine aid and the extension of a controversial government program accused of spying on Americans.
Gallagher announced on March 22 he would resign before his term ends, but his long goodbye raised eyebrows on Capitol Hill and at home in his Wisconsin district.
By delaying his departure almost four weeks, Gallagher will extend his stay in Congress beyond the April 9 deadline to trigger a special election for his seat, denying his constituents a voice in the House until January 2024 — as Congress fights over government funding and oversight of President Joe Biden and his administration.
Gallagher reportedly is leaving after leveraging his Congressional experience to take a job with Palantir, a data analytics and security firm. The company’s data services are used by governments including the U.S. and Ukraine in security, defense, and intelligence sectors.
Gallagher’s decision is expected to give him the opportunity to vote on two of his priorities — a bill to provide billions in taxpayer funds to Ukraine for its faraway war with Russia, and legislation to extend the authorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
Gallagher’s final priorities in Congress seem to dovetail with those of his future employer, which would benefit from additional aid to Ukraine as well as the extension of FISA.
Palantir signed a partnership agreement with the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine in March, days before Gallagher’s announcement he would quit Congress and before reports he would take a job with the company. The company also provides services for intelligence agencies, including those which utilize the controversial FISA Section 702.
Gallagher’s announcement that he would leave April 19 says he “worked closely with House Republican Leadership on this timeline.” The April 19 date is the deadline for Congress to reauthorize FISA.
A statement from Congressman Mike Gallagher. pic.twitter.com/dOBcM8kbNV
— Rep. Gallagher Press Office (@RepGallagher) March 22, 2024
Additionally, Gallagher’s departure will further reduce Republicans’ slim House majority. After April 19, the split is expected to be 217 to 214, giving Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) only one vote to lose until reinforcements arrive from other special elections in California, Ohio, and Colorado.
Johnson urged Gallagher to stay, the Washington Examiner reported. Yet Gallagher remained firm, making Johnson’s herculean task of governing with such a small margin even more difficult.
Donald Trump, who is holding a rally in Gallagher’s Wisconsin district Tuesday in advance of the state’s Republican presidential primary, did not mince words on Gallagher’s early and lucrative sprint for the exit.
“Never forget our cowards and weaklings! Such a disgrace,” Trump posted on Truth Social in reply to a Washington Examiner article on Gallagher resisting pleas from Johnson to stay.
The House returns to session Tuesday, April 9, and Johnson says the first item on the docket will be a yet-to-be-seen bill to aid Ukraine in its long-deadlocked war against Russia. That bill, unpopular among Republicans, will require Johnson to suspend the rules as he continues walking a tightrope to continue the work of Congress while avoiding being ejected from the speakership by his own party.
The following week, the House is expected to consider another controversial topic as it focuses on passing a FISA extension with modest reforms before the April 19 deadline – and Gallagher’s exit.
Gallagher has not been a reliable Republican vote. He refused to vote to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in February despite significant arm-twisting from leadership, denying the slim Republican majority a rare election year win by a single vote.
Days after that vote, Gallagher announced he would not run for reelection. His announcement he would quit in the middle of his term came two months later.
Despite no special election, the contest to replace Gallagher is heating up. A recent Cygnal poll shows Trump-aligned Alex Bruesewitz, CEO of X Strategies, leads the race with 36 percent, followed by state Sen. Andrew Jacque with 15 percent and former state Sen. Roger Roth with 12 percent.
Bruesewitz, the Trump-aligned favorite, has repeatedly criticized Gallagher.
“Mike Gallagher betrayed the Republican Party and the American people with his vote to side with Mayorkas. And I think that issue alone could help somebody win an election, whether it’s me or somebody else that wants to challenge him,” Bruesewitz said.
Bruesewitz also has taken aim at Roth, the son of former nine-term Rep. Toby Roth (R-WI) and who declined to endorse Trump during Roth’s failed 2022 run for Lieutenant Governor. “It’s evident that the people of Wisconsin are sick of career politicians like Mike Gallagher,” Brusewitz said, calling Roth “his hand-picked replacement” who “is getting absolutely crushed.”
Gallagher’s announcement he would quit says it “has been the honor of a lifetime” to spend “[f]our terms serving Northeast Wisconsin in Congress,” although by quitting he will not serve those full four terms.
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.
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