The Bayh Enigma

The ink was barely dry on my juvenile last post when Newsweek’s Howard Fineman came out with a piece explaining why Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh’s retirement was on the up and up. As Fineman points out, any unexpected retirement in Washington generates questions about scandal that would make even Bill Clinton blush.

Fineman points to six reasons why Bayh chose to exit the political scene, after first divulging his friendship with the Senator:

1. Nastiness of the [pending] Indiana race.
2. Strains with Obama.
3. Disgust with the family line of work [politics].
4. Ideology.
5. Timing.
6. The boys.
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Taken together (or in isolation) it is difficult to disagree with any of the above. And trust me, disagreeing with Howard Fineman on anything is something I would prefer to do.

For starters, even though Bayh was well-positioned for re-election, there remained little doubt that the race would get nasty. So, nasty in fact that Bayh via the DNC aired the first attack ads in the race against presumptive Repuglican nominee Dan Coats, one week before the Senator announced his retirement.

That the personal relationship between Bayh and Obama was cold is probably a sever understatement – at least as outlined by Fineman. But for those who don’t wade deep into the political weeds, the more collegial Bayh was passed over for the more choleric Joe Biden for the Veep slot late in the summer of 2008 campaign. Before this, even, Bayh endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton over now President Obama in the Democrats hotly contested primary. Such a snubbing from both camps doubtless says a lot for the personal relationship between Sen. Bayh and President Obama. As a result, such a strained relationship would also pose significant challenges for Bayh to be effective as a centrist vis-a-vis the far-left Democrat establishment.

Finally, Fineman talks a lot about the timing of the exit, the age of the Senators sons, and the fact that Bayh, at his core, is a family man. From the extreme outside looking in, I have little reason to doubt Fineman. And more importantly, it’s simply not my place to do so. So, taking Fineman and the Senator at their word, it marks a man with vastly different priorities than many of those living inside the Beltway.

What makes the family aspect of the entire story interesting is that Bayh’s decision is consistent with recent statistics about happiness. On her blog “Brazen Carrerist”, blogger Penelope Trunk explores happiness and fulfillment with a series of questions that explain how recent studies show that relationships tend to trump even personal ambition on the greater spectrum of happiness.

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All of which is to say, even politicians can get tired of politics.