Congresswoman Jane Harman announced this week that she will resign from her seat in the U.S. Congress in order to take the helm of a Washington D.C. think tank.
Harman, a Democrat who was reelected just three months ago to her ninth term representing the 36th Congressional District, sent a letter to constituents on Monday revealing that she will likely take a position as president and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
“I send this note because a decision is imminent and I wanted you to hear the news from me first,” Harman wrote. “This is an excruciating decision because the distinction of representing the smartest constituents on earth will never be surpassed — nor will my relationships with my exceptional staff and colleagues in Congress. But shaping and leading the Wilson Center is a thrilling new challenge.”
Within hours, two candidates had announced their candidacy to replace Harman – Secretary of State Debra Bowen and L.A. City Councilwoman Janice Hahn. Republicans considering a run for the seat include Redondo Beach City Attorney Mike Webb and Hermosa Beach City Councilman Kit Bobko.
Hahn and Bowen would likely be the frontrunners.
“This is a district I know well,” Hahn said in her announcement. “The two main economic engines on either side of the district — the port and the airport — have been two of my biggest focuses on the City Council, as I have worked hard to create jobs and economic opportunity for everyone.”
Bowen, a former Redondo Beach resident who represented the area in both the state Senate and Assembly, has not formally announced. She did, however, inform the California Democratic Party that she intended to run for the seat.
“The only candidate that has officially informed the California Democratic Party that they are running in the 36th congressional District is Debra Bowen,” state party chair John Burton wrote in an email Monday.
Marcy Winograd, who challenged Harman twice previously and won 41 percent of the vote in last year’s primary, now resides outside the district. Because there is no residency requirement for Congress, however, she is still eligible to run. Winograd wrote in the L.A. Progressive blog that she would consider entering the race depending on what positions Bowen and Hahn take in their campaigns. She said she told Hahn as much after receiving a courtesy call Monday morning.
“I told her I had two concerns – that we needed a voice that would challenge preemptive wars, regardless of whether the wars were waged by Republicans or Democrats, and that we needed a congressperson who would advocate for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, someone who would not be afraid to criticize Israel, to fight for equal rights for both Palestinians and Jews,” Winograd wrote.
Harman’s resignation comes at a time of vast political change both in Washington D.C. and in California.
The Congresswoman was the Democrats’ ranking member on the influential House Intelligence Committee – making her one of the so-called “Gang of Eight” who receive the highest level daily intelligence briefings — from 2003 to 2006. She helped forge bipartisan support for several post 9/11 reforms, including the reorganization of the intelligence services and the creation of the position of Director of National Intelligence. She currently serves on the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence.
Harman, 65, would have possessed substantially less influence now that the Republicans control the House.
She nonetheless remained a popular and respected lawmaker. She was a member of the moderate “Blue Dog” Democrats and was known as “G.I. Jane” for her embrace of military issues, a fact that was particularly crucial in this district, home to several aerospace companies. She is particularly credited with helping save the Los Angeles Air Force Base from closure.
But her moderate credentials – which included initial support for the Iraq war and controversial support for the Bush Administration’s wiretapping program – also created a chasm between herself and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is more left-leaning and bypassed Harman for leadership of the Intelligence Committee when the Democrats took the House in 2006.
Harman’s letter to constituents hinted at the partisan divide now endemic in Congress. She praised the Wilson Center for its inclusive approach.
“I have always believed that the best solutions to tough problems require a bipartisan approach, and bipartisanship is the center’s ‘brand,’” Harman wrote. “Serving at its helm provides unique opportunities to involve the House and Senate, top experts and world leaders in ‘great debates’ about the most pressing foreign and domestic policy matters.”
California, meanwhile, is on the cusp of congressional redistricting that will be completed later this year and is likely to change the map of the 36th District, which currently includes El Segundo, Manhattan, Redondo, and Hermosa Beach, Marina del Rey, Venice, Palms, Mar Vista, San Pedro, Wilmington, and parts of Torrance, Carson and Lomita.
Meanwhile, the state last year voted to change its election system to a so called “jungle primary” in which all candidates – regardless of party – run against one another. If nobody wins 50 percent, the top two square off in a runoff election.
The district currently leans solidly Democratic, with 45 percent of voters registered as Democrats versus only 28 percent Republican. But some Republicans believe the new primary system – as well as the country’s mood – makes a GOP victory more possible.
Jane Barnett, chair of the Republican Party of L.A. County, criticized Harman for resigning so soon after winning reelection and vowed the party would strongly contest the seat.
“Jane Harman’s resignation comes just one month into her new term and shows that she has put her own self-interest in front of the interests of the constituents she has sworn to serve,” Barnett said. “The Republican Party of Los Angeles is looking forward to a special election in the near future.”
No Republicans have formally announced. Bobko, Webb and Mattie Fein, the GOP challenger who lost to Harman 60 to 35 percent in November, all said they are considering entering the race.
Harman’s decision sent shock waves through local Democratic circles.
“I’m caught completely off guard by her resignation,” said Jim Hall, a longtime local Democratic activist. “I don’t know anyone who saw this coming.”
Fein, who worked as a political consultant in D.C. before moving to this district last year specifically to run against Harman, said it was an open secret in the Capital that Harman was looking for an opportunity to do something else.
“I can’t say I’m really surprised, because I told you so,” she said. “I think there were several dynamics going on throughout the entire 2011 election – one was there have so many convulsions in both parties, Republicans and Democrats in California and nationally. And certainly I had been hearing for months that she had been job shopping. I knew, in this race, her heart was not into it.”
“The saddest thing is that she went through motions when she had no intentions of sticking around,” Fein added. “Whether people voted for Marcy or for me, in March, at least you had candidates who were willing to serve.”
Bobko said he has been asked to campaign for Harman’s seat.
“I did not seek this out, and this is unexpected. But I think our country is at a crossroads and fresh, young leadership is needed. I come from a family that believes in serving if we are called upon,” the former U.S. Air Force captain said.
Bobko said it would be “an uphill battle,” but not an impossible one, for a GOP candidate to win the seat. He pointed to November’s strong run for the 53rd Assembly seat by 27-year-old Republican Nathan Mintz, who lost by only 7 percentage points to Democrat Betsy Butler.
“The only reason he lost the election is that he didn’t win Venice,” Bobko said.
Webb likewise acknowledged that prospects for a Republican win in the district remain “an uphill climb” but said he felt conditions might be right. He said it was “very likely” he would run, in part because as a father of six children he is concerned with the direction the country is taking.
“As a father, I am concerned we may be the first generation to leave our next generation less well off than we are,” Webb said. “I look at the issues – the deficit and debt in the trillions of dollars – and we have obligations to Social Security and Medicare…We need to take a practical approach to making sure we make our obligations and don’t steal from our kids’ future.”
Webb touted his homeland security credentials as a city prosecutor and then city attorney who helped create several programs that bridged local law enforcement and federal anti-terrorism efforts.
“The Port of LA and LAX have been targets in the past and unfortunately still are in today’s world,” Webb said. “My work in counter-terrorism since 9/11 has been recognized as a model approach taught throughout the state and even throughout the nation. I think it’s important we do everything we can to protect the residents of the 36th Congressional District.”
According to the secretary of state’s office, the governor must call a special election within 14 days from the date the office is vacated. The election would then be held within at least 112 days but no more than 126 days. If it is a consolidated election – a strong likelihood, given the possibility of a special election in California this June – then the election can be held within 180 days.
Harman, in a formal announcement Tuesday, said that she would take over at the Wilson Center on Feb. 28. The center, which was created by Congress in 1968 as a presidential memorial and part of the Smithsonian Institution, is among the most prestigious think tanks in the nation. Its board of directors includes Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and its outgoing president is respected former Congressman Lee Hamilton.
“The time is right for a new challenge, and this is the right challenge,” Harman said Tuesday. “The privilege of representing the people of California’s 36th Congressional District will likely never be surpassed, and I am grateful to my constituents, staff, and colleagues in the House. But the opportunity to lead and shape the direction of the country’s premier policy incubator — one with international reach and influence — is a thrilling next step for me.” ER
