October 04, 2007

Wilson, Possibly Udall To Seek Domenici's Senate Seat

UPDATED.

After 35 years of service, Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., is announcing that he will retire when his term is up next year.

None of the networks are airing it, but according to an earlier draft of his announcement obtained by AP, the senator is revealing that he has "a progressive disease that can cause dysfunction in the parts of the brain important for organization, decision-making and control of mood and behavior." The statement said that the progression of the disease is unpredictable, but Domenici is "not willing to take a chance that the people who have so honored me with their trust for 40 years might not be served as well as they deserve in the United States Senate." (AP has more details on the condition, known as frontotemporal lobar degeneration, or FTLD.)

Speculation about who would replace him was well under way even before Domenici made it official. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., made known her intention to replace the aging senator earlier today. Now it looks as if Democratic Rep. Tom Udall could be her opponent.

The Albuquerque Journal's Michael Coleman reports that Udall, who had been urged by Democrats to run against Domenici before it became clear the elder lawmaker would resign, is now "seriously considering" getting into the race.

Wilson has topped the list of potential Republican successors to Domenici. She has won re-election to the House in several hard-fought campaigns in a swing district that supported Democratic presidential candidates in 2000 and 2004.

However, like Domenici, Wilson has potentially been tainted by the U.S. attorney firings scandal. David Iglesias, the federal prosecutor in New Mexico who was fired along with seven of his colleagues, alleged that Domenici and Wilson put undue pressure on him to investigate Democrats for corruption ahead of the 2006 election cycle.

Recently, Wilson has distanced herself from the Bush administration by supporting an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Yesterday, she encouraged her Republican colleagues to override President Bush's veto of the bill.

CNN has details on what Domenici's resignation means for the GOP's '08 Senate prospects in general and CongressDailyAM (subscription) floats the names of several other potential successors.

Posted at 6:10 PM
Posted to: Attorney Scandal, Senate
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