Ballance (D-NC) Resigns From House, Effective Friday

[WilliamPitt]

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http://www.rollcall.com/issues/1_1/breakingnews/5820-1.html

Ballance Resigns From House, Effective Friday

By Lauren W. Whittington
Roll Call Staff

Tuesday, Jun. 8; 01:10pm

Freshman Rep. Frank Ballance (D-N.C.) tendered his resignation from Congress today, citing ongoing health problems. The 62-year-old lawmaker, who will leave the House on Friday, had already announced he would not seek re-election in November.

In a short statement, Ballance said his declining health makes it impossible for him to continue to serve. “I made this decision because I am no longer able to carry out the responsibilities of this office due to my current health condition,” Ballance said. “It has indeed been an honor for me to represent the constituents of the First Congressional District of North Carolina.”

His office delivered a letter informing Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) of his resignation today. The decision comes just one month after Ballance withdrew his candidacy having previously filed to run for re-election.

At the time, he said he had been diagnosed in early February with myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular disease. He said he began to reconsider his re-election plans after suffering a setback that required him to seek treatment at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

He had recently been hospitalized again in North Carolina and missed votes in the House last week. He was resting at his home in the district Tuesday. Ballance spent much of his time in Congress under the shadow of an ethics cloud. Since November 2003, a federal grand jury and the FBI have been probing a nonprofit substance-abuse prevention program run by a foundation Ballance founded and once chaired.

...more...

[wysimdnwyg]

1. So what's the REAL story?

Is he resigning now because of his illness, or is he trying to help the Dems by getting a successor set up as a quasi-incumbent?

[stevedeshazer]

2. Ouch.

That hurts. We're so close to being able to "take back the House."

[Frodo]

5. I don't think so.

1) I think that seat was called "safe" when he announced he wasn't running a few days ago.

2) We aren't "close" to taking back the house. It's going to take an historic sweep (a la 1994) to give us a chance. We have to win EVERY race that leans our way, EVERY race rated a "tossup" and about two thirds of the ones rated "leans republican". That's HUGE.

[AndyTiedye]

7. It Would Take a Bigger Sweep than 1994

because of all the gerrymandering the Repubs have done since then.

[stevedeshazer]

12. 11 seat swing out of 435?

Doesn't seem out of reach.

[sleipnir]

16. It's pretty hard....

Because we will lose some seats, there are 6 current Dem seats that are now "Leaning" Repug. So, there's no possible way in reality that the net gain will be 11 seats. The best outlook, as of today, is +9 for the Dems. That still means the Repugs control the House, but only by 2 votes. And with 435 people, resignations, defections, jail time, ect, often figure into a session. So, it's not beyond the realm of possibility that we could gain control of the House mid-session.

[Frodo]

19. I know. it doesn't "seem" out of reach.

But it comes close in reality. It's eleven seats plus the five or six they pick up (almost automatically) in redistricting.

There just aren't enough competitive seats out there.

That may change, and there MAY be a big year in the offing, but nothing indicates taht yet.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

3. Is this a safe seat?

[RememberTheCoup]

4. I'm sorry he's sick.

How serious is myasthenia gravis?

[hyphenate]

8. It's a progressive illness

I believe it's the same thing Aristotle Onassis had.

[notadmblnd]

9. isn't that the same disease that bags.. oops I mean babs suffered

from? the one that make the eyes look like they are buldging out?

[KamaAina]

13. No, that's Graves' disease

a thyroid condition. Myasthenia gravis causes progressive muscle weakness. It's serious.

Then again, Wellstone had MS (a different neurological disease) and was 99% better than anyone else in the Senate. (Yeah, Coleman, I'm talking to you!) Barbara Jordan had MS, too. Meanwhile, Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI 2nd) has quadriplegia; they had to make the House floor accessible for him! So, a disability in and of itself need not interfere with service in Congress.

[comsymp]

14. That's a thyroid thing, IIRC-

Can't remember if it's Graves or not.... always confuse hyper and hypo conditions.

[Eurobabe]

23. graves can cause TED (thyroid eye disease)

[carolinayellowdog]

6. Safe seat

Hey,

My house is in Warren County where Ballance lives, although I vote in VA where I rent an apt. Warren and most of the other counties in the district have black majorities, so the seat may be safe not only for the Dems but for African Americans. Ballance succeeded Eva Clayton, also an African American from Warren County.

CYD

[swinney]

10. Democratic Governor will replace with a Democrat.

[comsymp]

11. Not here

State law calls for a special election

[Frodo]

20. It's actually the Constitution.

Governors don't replace representatives. They have to be elected. Only Senators can be replaced by Governors (or by whatever process the state designates by law).

[comsymp]

21. True, dat-

State law cited actually refers to terms under which Gov will call the SE-

[struggle4progress]

15. Seven candidates eye Ballance's House seat

<snip>
Seven candidates, five Democrats and two Republicans, want to replace Ballance. The Democrats are former Superior Court Judge G.K. Butterfield, Snow Hill Mayor Don Davis, former Pasquotank County Commissioner Sam Davis, Wilson County School Board member Christine Fitch and Wilson attorney Darryl Smith, who served as former U.S. Rep. Eva Clayton's press secretary.

The Republican candidates are Greg Dority of Washington, who ran in 2002 and works as managing partner of Sterling Security in Washington, and Oxford nurse Jerry Williford.
<snip>

Ballance is facing a joint federal-state investigation into activities of a drug and alcohol counseling program at the Warrenton facility. It was the subject of a stinging state audit in October for conflicts of interest and $325,000 in questionable payments.
<snip>

http://www.rockymounttelegram.com/news/newsfd/auto/feed/news/2004/05/09/1084159838.02632.5620.1000.html;COXnetJSessionID=AGEFJzTSFyY3uAPyCtFXI9y2vriROTcvkb7cAri1SfmFeg3HaxDa!-974727151?urac=n&urvf=10867190457470.5978728085748453

[goobergunch]

17. NC-1 (Eastern NC) voted 57% for Gore

It ought to be safe.

As for the special election:

Democratic sources indicated that North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley (D) is likely to call a special election to fill the vacancy in the 1st district, a solidly Democratic seat that spans much of northeastern North Carolina.

The sources said Easley is currently looking at the possibility of holding the special on July 20 or Aug. 17, the dates of the state’s primary and runoff elections, respectively.

[dsc]

18. that might be my aunt and grandma's distrcit

The live in Wilson.

[bluestateguy]

22. District vote in 2000: 57% Gore, 42% Bush

They'll hold on to it.