Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO) filed for reelection on Tuesday, giving House Republicans some room to breathe following the departure announcements of several chairpeople in the last month.
Smith filed for reelection in Missouri‘s 8th Congressional District, where he is touting the House’s recently passed tax relief bill as a “huge win.” The congressman faces a relatively easy reelection campaign for his sixth full term, as a Democrat has not represented his district in nearly 45 years.
The Missouri Republican is one of three committee chairmen, along with Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY), spearheading the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden over an alleged criminal scheme involving the Biden family and foreign business dealings. Most recently, House Republicans interviewed James Biden, the president’s brother, whom Smith, in an interview with Fox News, said was focused on protecting the family brand.
Fellow Ways and Means members have applauded Smith’s decision to stay in Congress. Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) said in a statement to the Washington Examiner that he looked forward to Smith continuing as leader of the committee.
“Chairman Smith is a strong advocate for policies that support American families and the American economy,” Feenstra said. “Under his leadership, we passed vital legislation to lower taxes for our families, help our businesses grow, and ensure our farmers can compete with and win against China. We’ve also voted to establish a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Taiwan — which was crafted in the Ways and Means Committee and signed into law — and protected pregnancy resource centers from President Biden’s efforts to defund them.
“I’m glad that Chairman Smith is running for re-election and I look forward to his continued leadership on the Ways and Means Committee,” Feenstra concluded.
Smith’s decision to stay another term comes off the back of several high-ranking chairpeople opting to retire from Congress, leaving powerful committees in disarray. In a single week, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (R-TN), and Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) all announced they were stepping down from Congress at the end of this year.
The departures of committee leaders, coupled with the overall mass exodus of general House members, has pointed to the layers of infighting and how the levels of chaos within the lower chamber could be driving out some of the most powerful and promising Republicans.
Some are leaving well before they have to. House Republican Conference rules dictate that members can serve as chairperson and/or ranking member for six years. In McMorris Rodgers’s case, she still has another two-year term. Green and Gallagher, who became chairmen in 2023, would have had several more years to serve as chairman or ranking member.
However, Green is now reconsidering his retirement from the House as some members of the Tennessee delegation, such as Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), have pushed him not to resign. He would not be the first to reverse course, as Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN) announced in February 2023 that she would retire after her term ended — but she launched a reelection bid almost one year later.
A number of members who would have been eyed as replacements for the departing chairs are also choosing to retire from Congress, leading to a dramatic loss in institutional knowledge that only comes from years in office. From the Energy and Commerce Committee alone, 12 members are retiring or seeking an alternative office.
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Over 40 House incumbents have announced they will not seek reelection this November, marking one of the highest rates of departures at this point in an election year over the last decade.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Smith for comment.
