Rep. David Dreier Steps Down

David Dreier announced his resignation Wednesday morning

House Rules Committee Chairman David Drier (R-Calif.) announced his retirement Wednesday morning after more than 30 years in office as a Congressman.

Dreier, whose 26th Congressional District spans the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley from La Canada Flintridge to Rancho Cucamonga, gave his announcement on the floor of the House.

"I take the unusual step of announcing this from the floor of Congress for two reasons. First, this is where my fellow Californians sent me to represent them. Second, I am a proud institutionalist, and I believe that this institution is as great as it has ever been," he said in a prepared statement.

Californians saw Dreier's name appear on the ballot 16 times. First, in 1978 when he ran for a seat in the House of Representatives at the mere age of 25 when he was still living in the dormitory of his alma mater Claremont McKenna College. He lost that year to then incumbent James Frederick Lloyd.

Dreier ran again in 1980 and won the seat he would hold for the next 30 years with 15 consecutive wins. He intends to continue his work outside of congress, he said.

"This work is far from over, and I intend to spend this year working toward greater bipartisan progress," Dreier said in his statement. "Our economy and our job market remain in peril, and the effort to rein in the deficit has only just begun. Having cleared out the backlog of trade agreements, we must embark on a renewed trade liberalization agenda to revitalize the worldwide marketplace. The endeavor to ensure that American workers and entrepreneurs are able to grow our economy and increase our standard of living is an ongoing one. It is an endeavor that I look forward to pursuing as vigorously outside of Congress as I have here."

The 26th congressional district was re-drawn as part of the new senate map taking effect in 2012. Voters will have to decide in the Nov. 6 election who will take the place of Drier in the re-mapped district.

Prop Zero: Dreier's Legacy

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