My family lives in the Sixth Congressional District in Virginia, represented by Bob Goodlatte.  You know Bob, don't you?  His face has been all over television and his voice all over radio, just in the last six months.  You probably don't know, but he has been in Congress for 25 years.

What?  You have never heard of him until recently?

Many people have never heard of him, even in the Sixth District of Virginia.  You see, Bob is a nondescript, go-along-to-get-along, really nice guy.  Bob doesn't ruffle feathers.  Bob doesn't speak out.  Bob plays it safe.  Bob makes milk toast seem spicy.  And, as a conservative, I have been voting against Bob Goodlatte for the 22 years I have lived in this district.

But lately, everywhere I turn, it's "Heeeeeerrrre's Bob!"  Chairing the House Judiciary Committee, he has been the point man for hearings in the scam Russia investigation.  He's all over media, getting to the truth, not taking it anymore.  Talking about the 2016 election.  Blah, blah, blah.

In full disclosure, I was a delegate to the recent district Republican convention, where Goodlatte's handpicked successor won the nomination.  I opposed this successor-to-milk-toast, but sour grapes are not my purpose in writing this article.  My purpose is to point out another person leaving Congress likely in search of the big payout, the jackpot.

For the last six months, since Bob Goodlatte announced he would retire from Congress, I have been asking myself why I'm seeing him all over television, when for 25 years he was AWOL.  The answer is obvious.  Bob is most probably setting himself up for the next phase of his career, the phase where he pads his exceptional federal pension with public- or private-sector cash.

What could Bob be angling for?  Could be a lobbying job on K Street.  Could be a job shilling for a defense industry company.  Could be a juicy ambassadorship to an island nation where he can work on his tan.

OpenSecrets.org reveals Bob's top contributors over his career.  These include the National Auto Dealers Association, Microsoft, AT&T, the National Beer Wholesalers Association, and the NRA.  If they are listening, I think Bob would be a fine addition to the lobbying team for any of these organizations.  They can be assured that Bob will not offend anyone in any way, trusting that this late spurt of partisan notoriety will fade quickly after his retirement, leaving only Bob's 25 years of connections to be mined for legislative favor.

This all angers me because under Congressman Bob's so-called conservative so-called leadership, our nation's debt has ballooned by a factor of five.  When Bob was elected in 1992, the U.S. national debt was around $4 trillion.  Today, it stands at over $21 trillion.  Bob voted in such a way to ensure that all those deficit budgets passed.  When Bob was elected in 1992, over 28 million babies had already been killed by abortion.  Today, the total stands at more than double that, 60 million.

Bob's legacy as a congressman is $17 trillion in added government waste and 32 million deaths, all while he enjoyed subsidized lunches in the congressional dining room.

With conservatives like Bob, who needs enemies?  And our Congress is packed with these types.

John Adams observed that a republic is a "government of laws, and not of men."  Perhaps we had that in the past, but today, ours is government of bad laws made by corrupt men.  It is an abomination that a man can serve in Congress 25 years and accomplish next to nothing, sitting in the background, under-representing his constituents, holding babies for cell phone photos, and writing letters of recommendation.  I'd wager there's a 120% chance that he'll further the abomination by seeking to cash in on his congressional career, aiding and abetting powerful groups that desire to mold and distort the legislative process.  And it's all 120% legal, thanks to bad laws made by corrupt men.

Bob's intentions are all speculation on my part, I must admit.  Might be that Bob is retiring for family reasons, and he's just going to fade into the background and defend serial parking ticket offenders.  This time next year, we'll know for sure.

Good luck in your future pursuits, Bob.  I can only hope for a lower national debt and abortion death toll after you leave Congress.