The Wall Street Journal reports that a record-breaking number of Congressmen are choosing not to run for re-election this year. Will you miss them?

If your political leanings are conservative, I know you’ll be as sad as I am to know that the House of Representatives will no longer see the likes of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. But Democrats are not the only reps headed for the exits. In fact according to the latest WSJ scorecard there are 34 Republicans leaving, against only 21 Democrats.

Why would anyone voluntarily leave a job that provides an attractive salary, unmatched perks, near-total absence of oversight, and no heavy lifting? A job that mysteriously enables a newcomer to put away several hundred thousand dollars in savings a year, on a base salary of $174,000?

Yes, I know (having studied Political Science at the graduate level) that the Constitution gives these legislators heavy responsibility for enacting the country’s laws. But in practice Congress has outsourced that role to the Administrative State. Even now the House is shirking its crystal-clear responsibility to vote, yes or no, on a declaration of war.

Consequentlyi, instead of the responsibilities listed in that dusty old Constitution, the solons can focus on more pressing matters, such as trading stock options and raising money for their re-election campaigns— with the latter work giving them a huge advantage over potential challengers, who, unless they are already fabulously wealthy, are saddled with the challenge of raising millions of dollars while holding down a real job.

So why, again, are so many Congressmen quitting? Which of the following seem l likely (choose as many as you like):

• They are old and tired, have soaked up all the fame and fortune they can handle, and just want to relax.

• They have clashed with President Trump, and/or been redistricted out of a safe seat, and don’t like their chances in the midterms.

• They aren’t having fun anymore. The atmosphere in DC is toxic; the work of politics has become too nasty.

• They are worried about what might come out if and when the swamp is drained; they don’t want to be convenient targets.