WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. Rep. Doug Bereuter, a Nebraska Republican who was first elected to Congress in 1978, said Tuesday his current term would be his last.
House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., praised the veteran legislator, calling him "a serious legislator who worked hard for his constituents, and always brought thoughtful insights into the legislative process."
After the 2000 election Bereuter, a moderate from the state's 1st Congressional District, was passed over for the vacant chairmanship of the House International Relations Committee, which he had long hoped to lead, in part because of inter-party politics.
Most of Nebraska is, by area, located in the 1st C.D., from which Bereuter has been easily re-elected in recent years. George W. Bush carried the district, 59 percent to 36 percent for former Vice President Al Gore, in the 2000 presidential election.
