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President Donald Trump criticized longtime Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler on Friday, mocking the New York lawmaker’s decision to retire after more than three decades in Congress.
“Jerry Nadler, one of the most disgusting Congressmen in USA History is, at long last, calling it ‘quits’,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“He’s finally leaving Congress! I’ve been beating this bum for 40 years, first as a New York City developer, where he opposed me, for no reason, at every corner, but could NEVER stop me from getting the job done, and then, as your President,” he added.
Trump went on to call Nadler a “psychopathic nut job” who twice moved to impeach him, adding, “It will be a great day for the U.S.A. when Nadler, a pathetic lightweight, is out of office and leaves our beautiful, and NOW VERY SAFE, Washington, D.C.”
Nadler, 77, is serving his 17th term and has represented Manhattan since 1992. He announced this week that he will not run for re-election, saying it was time for new leadership.
“Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party and I think I want to respect that,” Nadler told the New York Times. He added that a younger Democrat taking over his seat “can maybe do better, can maybe help us more.”
“I’m not saying we should change over the entire party,” he said. “But I think a certain amount of change is very helpful, especially when we face the challenge of Trump and his incipient fascism.”
Nadler, a veteran progressive and former chair of the House Judiciary Committee, was a leading figure in Trump’s first impeachment inquiry in 2019. His departure next year will mark the end of one of the most enduring political rivalries in New York politics.
Bill and Hillary Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea Clinton, will not pursue Nadler’s congressional seat, her spokesperson said on Wednesday, rejecting speculation that she might enter the race.
At the same time, Jack Schlossberg, grandson of President John F. Kennedy, told The New York Times on Tuesday that he is considering a run for the Manhattan district, saying a campaign is “certainly a possibility.”