Stark Won't Take Ways And Means
Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) won't take the helm of the House Ways and Means Committee after top Dems expressed worry he would become a lightening rod for controversy and GOP criticism.
Stark was in line to take the post from Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY), who stepped down yesterday amid ethics controversies. In his place, Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI), the third-ranking Dem on the panel, will take over.
Stark has a history of making controversial statements. In '90, he called George H.W. Bush's HHS secretary, who was African American, a "disgrace to his race. Last year, during a town hall meeting, he told a constituent who opposed health care reform that he wouldn't "dignify you by peeing on your leg. It wouldn't be worth wasting the urine."
In private meetings yesterday, DCCC chair Chris Van Hollen and other Dems expressed their concern to Stark and openly wondered whether he would be able to win a vote of the full Dem caucus. Stark agreed to step aside after those meetings, sources told Hotline OnCall.
Levin, by the way, will have some help as he figures out how to wield his first gavel over a full committee. His brother, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), chairs the upper chamber's Armed Services Committee.