Doolittle set to retire

Embattled Rep. John Doolittle (R-Calif.) is expected to announce his retirement this afternoon, according to GOP sources and published reports.

Doolittle, who has been ensnared in the Jack Abramoff scandal, has scheduled an announcement this afternoon at 1:30 EST at the Maidu Community Center in his California district.

{mosads}His retirement would be welcome news to many Republican operatives. They fear Doolittle’s involvement with the shamed lobbyist who pleaded guilty to public corruption charges could damage the party’s chances of retaining the seat.

Doolittle has served for nine terms, but his credibility has been called into question in the last year.

Rumors of his departure began to surface shortly after FBI agents raided his Virginia home on April 13, 2007. Days later, he met with Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and volunteered to relinquish his seat on the House Appropriations Committee. However, sources close to the talks acknowledged that leadership was prepared to remove him.

GOP sources have suggested that rising legal fees have been one reason Doolittle has held on to the seat since the raid.

Doolittle’s office could not be immediately reached for comment, but was insisting as of Monday that the lawmaker would stay.

He faced a potentially difficult primary and an arduous general election rematch.

He defeated Democrat Charlie Brown 49-46 in 2006, but that was before the FBI raid. Brown is running again and started almost immediately after the election.

Brown raised a half-million dollars through the third quarter and was outpacing Doolittle. He launched his first radio ads last month.

On the GOP side, Doolittle’s 2006 primary opponent, former Auburn Mayor Mike Holmes, has already entered the race, as has Iraq veteran and political newcomer Eric Egland. Doolittle defeated Holmes 67-33. Neither Holmes nor Egland has raised a significant amount of money for the race.

Doolittle’s decision to step down could clear the way for State Assemblyman Ted Gaines, who has formed an exploratory committee but has not officially entered the race. He has said he would wait for Doolittle to make a final decision.

Former state legislator Rico Oller has said he is planning to run if Doolittle retires. Speculation has been that Doolittle would back Oller if he were to retire.