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Rep. Adam Putnam of Florida, who won re-election to his House seat Tuesday, says he’s stepping down from his internal party role as conference chairman, the No. 3-ranked Republican in the U.S. House.
The move comes as House Republicans, who lost their majority hold on the chamber in the 2006 elections, registered another dismal showing in congressional races Tuesday, losing at least a dozen more seats.
Anger by rank-and-file Republicans over the party’s direction had already been leading to speculation there would soon be a shake-up of the House GOP leadership team. New leadership elections are set for Nov. 17.
But Putnam made no mention of that in a letter to Republican colleagues, released late Tuesday.
“I have enjoyed every minute as Conference Chairman, but I believe it is time to step off the leadership ladder and return my focus to crafting public policy solutions for America’s generational challenges – the very reason I ran for Congress in the first place,” wrote Putnam.
“With the issues before us today come bipartisan opportunities and partisan differences. My current role obligates me to the latter and too often excludes me from the former. I want to fight the battles worth fighting and lock arms to strengthen our nation whenever possible,” he wrote.
-- Billy House, Media General News Service
The move comes as House Republicans, who lost their majority hold on the chamber in the 2006 elections, registered another dismal showing in congressional races Tuesday, losing at least a dozen more seats.
Anger by rank-and-file Republicans over the party’s direction had already been leading to speculation there would soon be a shake-up of the House GOP leadership team. New leadership elections are set for Nov. 17.
But Putnam made no mention of that in a letter to Republican colleagues, released late Tuesday.
“I have enjoyed every minute as Conference Chairman, but I believe it is time to step off the leadership ladder and return my focus to crafting public policy solutions for America’s generational challenges – the very reason I ran for Congress in the first place,” wrote Putnam.
“With the issues before us today come bipartisan opportunities and partisan differences. My current role obligates me to the latter and too often excludes me from the former. I want to fight the battles worth fighting and lock arms to strengthen our nation whenever possible,” he wrote.
-- Billy House, Media General News Service