U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks announced Friday, March 1 he is retiring from elected office, and will not run for re-election in the fall, capping off a career of 30 years serving in Congress.
Dicks (D-Belfair), was first elected to Congress in 1976. He sits on the House Appropriations Committee and the Hosue defense appropriations committee, and is the ranking Democrat on each committee.
On his website, Dicks wrote:
“I am announcing today my intention to complete my service in the House of Representatives at the end of the current session but not to be a candidate for re-election to the 113th Congress. After 18 terms representing the people of the 6th Congressional District of Washington, preceded by eight years on the Staff of Senator Warren G. Magnuson, Suzie and I have made the decision to change gears and enjoy life at a different pace.
“The privilege of serving in the House of Representatives, with the endorsement of the voters every two years, is indeed an honor unlike no other profession in our country and I have truly enjoyed every day here and have cherished all of the friendships we have made with many of the finest public servants in the nation. I am proud that many of these friendships have crossed the ideological and party lines that tend to separate us, and I have always believed that we can achieve greater results if we leave politics aside when the election season and the floor debates are over.”
