Missouri Republican U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer has announced his retirement.
Rep. Luetkemeyer tells The Marc Cox Morning Show the decision was made after thorough discussions with his family.
"I'm going to be 72 years old in May and my health is still good and if I retire with good health I can enjoy my retirement."
Luetkemeyer was first elected in 2008 and says after decades, he still enjoys the work.
"It was a very personal decision. I enjoy my job. I'm not leaving because I don't like going to D.C. every week. Yes, it's challenging. Yes, it's a swamp but I knew that going in and it's not going to change. The founding fathers designed it to be a very difficult system to get things done. But if you're willing to do the work and bring people together you can actually accomplish a few things."
On a successor, Luetkemeyer says there are "some good people seriously considering it" but he's inclined to "let the field decide itself".
Luetkemeyer joins a growing list of House members electively leaving the chamber. He says he's looking forward to the legislative year ahead before stepping away at the end of his term in December.