Mac Thornberry, a Panhandle Republican representing Texas’ 13th Congressional District, announced on Monday that he will not run for reelection. That makes him the sixth House Republican from the state to announce their retirement, a collective scramble for the exits that has become known as Texodus.
Electorally speaking, his retirement isn’t as big of a loss for Republicans as, say, Will Hurd’s. Thornberry’s district is one of the reddest in the country and the GOP should have no problem winning it again. But it is a big blow to the hawkish wing of the party, to the defense contractor industry, and to the military industrial complex at large.
