Rep. Hastert Likely Will Not Seek a 12th Term in 2008
Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who served as House Speaker from 1999 to 2007, on Friday likely will announce that he will not seek a 12th congressional term in 2008, the Wall Street Journal reports.
According to the Journal, from a "policy standpoint, Mr. Hastert's greatest impact was in expanding private market alternatives in health care coverage, including health savings accounts and the Medicare prescription drug vote, which he kept open for nearly three hours" (Rogers, Wall Street Journal, 8/15).
During the vote, Hastert convinced Rep. C.L. Otter (R-Idaho) to switch his vote in favor of the 2003 Medicare law after "chasing him down in a hallway," CQ Today reports. Otter became one of two House Republicans who switched their votes to ensure passage of the law.
Hastert has scheduled a press conference on Friday at Kendall County Courthouse in Yorkville, Ill., his hometown, to make an announcement about his future plans (Allen/Ota, CQ Today, 8/15).