mike sodrel: truck drivin' man

shakespeare's sister links to an AP story about what various deposed congressmen will do with their lives now that they've been voted out. it begins with indiana's mike sodrel, who lost to baron hill in the 9th:

Some already have settled on new careers. Or old ones, as the case may be.

"I'll probably go home and drive a truck for a couple of weeks to get centered again," Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-Ind., a 60-year-old freshman who was defeated, said in an interview.

that sounds really folksy, until you remember that sodrel is "a millionaire who owns three trucking and bus companies". so i don't know how many of those trucks sodrel drives himself, but i'm betting it's not a lot.

but he spun a different version for the star's mary beth schneider:

Sodrel's immediate post-Congress plans include a trip to Israel and Jordan with his wife before figuring out what to do next.

"I doubt that I'll completely disappear from public life. I think the stakes are too high," Sodrel said. "A lot of important things (are) going on in the country. A lot of important things (are) going on in the world, issues of war and peace. And the American culture is under attack as well."

oh noes! the american culture is under attack! save us, millionaire mike!

Sodrel won his seat in 2004 in his second attempt at defeating Democratic Rep. Baron Hill. Hill took the seat back this year, and Sodrel left open the possibility of a fourth match between the two.

"I haven't ruled out anything at this point," he said.

When he was running for Congress, Sodrel turned over the daily running of the family trucking and transportation company to his son and says it would be unfair to take it back now. But Sodrel pointed out that his commercial driver's license is good through 2009.

"I might even go home and drive a truck for a couple weeks to just kind of get the cobwebs out," he joked. "I kept my day job."

he busts out the same cheesy line about drivin' that truck, but schneider pegs it as a joke, where the AP took it as a serious statement. i'm inclined to agree with schneider that there is no chance sodrel will honestly drive any trucks full of cargo anytime soon. he might've driven a truck during the 2004 campaign, but like mitch daniels going around in an RV in 2004 and eric dickerson doing the same this year, it was just a stunt to make a republican seem more down-to-earth.

schneider also gives us the lowdown on what's going on with john hostettler, which is that... nobody knows what's going on with john hostettler:

Rep. John Hostettler was never a fan of the news media during his 12 years in Congress and apparently saw no reason to become friendlier after his November defeat.

Hostettler has declined media requests to talk about his congressional experience and plans for the future.

"The people have spoken," said Hostettler spokesman Matthew Faraci, "and that's kind of the end of the story."

okay then. once a dick, always a dick, i guess. at least hostettler's staff apparently play well with others.

to find out what's next for chris "the count" chocola, we need to turn to last wednesday's chicago tribune:

Rep. Chris Chocola (R-Ind.) stood behind a chair in the speaker's lobby of the House of Representatives, speaking quietly and seriously, even philosophically, while holding a cigar in his left hand.

"I'm going back home to Indiana," he said when asked his plans, without realizing his line sounded like a show-tune sentiment. "I think anybody would have mixed emotions when you leave."

Defeated in his bid for re-election after two terms in office, Chocola, a fiscal conservative, said he has no intention of getting back into politics, but he still respects the political system and wishes he could have accomplished more.

no word on what the count actually plans to do when he's back home again. perhaps he'll just retire and collect that fat congressional pension.¶