The worst good-paying job in America
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene attends President Trump's address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on March 4. Photo: Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images
Death threats and infighting are spurring House Republicans to contemplate whether they want to stay in Congress — or even leave early.
Why it matters: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-Ga.) scathing resignation has rattled her colleagues. Some are questioning whether the job is still worth it when the work is drowned out by censures, violent threats and loyalty tests to President Trump.
- 41 members have already announced they plan to call it quits at the end of their term, with more expected to follow. Most House lawmakers make $174,000 a year.
What they're saying: Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who is retiring in 2027, told Axios he was "so angry" at the Trump administration's proposed 28-point Russia-Ukraine peace plan last week that he "thought about" resigning early.
- The White House did not reply to a request for comment on Bacon's comments.
- Another House Republican, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Axios that while they are not likely to resign, "the thought has crossed my mind" and "I know I'm not the only one."
State of play: Since July, House members have spent only a handful of days in Washington. They returned from a seven-week recess to a schedule dominated by punitive resolutions targeting their own colleagues.
- Rank-and-file members of both parties are relying on procedural workarounds, like discharge petitions, to force votes on broadly popular bills. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) would like to limit those workarounds, as Axios first reported.
- With a razor-thin majority (currently at 219-213), a few defections can derail everything, making legislating more difficult.
Threats against lawmakers have surged, and after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, members say the atmosphere feels even more volatile.
- Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) told Axios on Monday the threats have been a factor in members' decision to leave. "It takes a toll on people," he said.
- Retiring Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) and Greene both said the uptick in political violence was part of their decisions to leave Congress.
The big picture: Greene said Congress has been "sidelined by Johnson under full obedience" to the White House.
- Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) echoed Greene's sentiment, writing on X, "I can't blame her for leaving this institution that has betrayed the American people."
- Axios has reached out to Johnson's office for comment. The speaker has long acknowledged the difficulty of working with slim majorities. "We have nothing to spare," he said last December.
- Trump "has control over this chamber," said Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), but "he doesn't have control of the base."
The bottom line: Lawmakers in both parties have fumed for years that serving in the House is becoming a lackluster job.
- "We don't ever seem to be doing anything," Burchett told Axios of the House.
- "Trump gets that. He realizes the enormous nature of Congress, that something needs to be done, and he's going to do it, and I applaud him for it."
