(Haven't seen it diaried yet - obligatory apology for the "breaking" and the thin content.)
Just coming in on the wires: Wexler will announce his resignation at 10 a.m. tomorrow in Boca. Rumors are that he's going to be the next administrator of USAID Ambassador to Israel head of the Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation.
The seat is safe D.
(Also, he enjoys cocaine because it's a fun thing to do.)
Sun-Sentinel report, in full:
U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, who represents Broward and Palm Beach counties, plans to resign from Congress.
He plans to announce his plans at a news conference Wednesday at 10 a.m. in Boca Raton.,
A Democratic source with knowledge of Wexler's plans said he is likely to take a public policy job that deals with the Middle East.
Wexler, a senior member of the House Foreign Relations Committee, has long been involved in issues involving Israel and Turkey.
Politico is hinting that he's not going to USAID, but might instead be heading a project at Center for American Progress.
Not too much information yet. Anyone want to get the mid-term replacement guessing game started?
[UPDATE - 8:15 by JR] Counter to other sources, Foreign Policy is reporting that Wexler is going to a job within the administration, and that it isn't USAID:
"The White House is keeping a tight lid on this one, but it's definitely not USAID," one well placed congressional source said.
(Gotta love those anonymous sources with juicy quotes, dontcha? :) )
And, just FYI, Obama has still not named an ambassador to Israel, leaving Bush pick James B. Cunningham in the post. Hmm...
[UPDATE 2 - 8:20 by JR] The Washington Independent is also hearing buzz about the ambassadorship to Israel.
This I will miss:
[UPDATE 3 - 8:31 by JR]The Sun-Sentinel provides a rundown of some likely candidates to replace Wexler when the Special Primary gets underway:
Ceasar and others expect lots of participants in that match. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve got 10 people tonight investigating it,” said state Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Parkland. “This could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Ring said he’s considering a race. State Sen. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, mentioned by Democratic activists as a likely candidate, declined to discuss his thoughts until after Wexler makes his announcement.
Broward Mayor Stacy Ritter, a former state representative, said she would consider running.
[UPDATE 4 - 9:15 by JR] Miami Herald now has a story up. A reminder: in addition to his years in Congress advocating for Israel, Wexler was Obama's lead adviser on Israeli issues during the campaign and was a very vocal advocate for Obama with Jewish voters. An ambassadorship to Israel would be fitting given his obvious expertise and his role during the campaign. It would also make the "Fire-Breathing Liberal" the most prominent Ambassador to Israel we've had in ages, possibly ever.
[UPDATE 5 - 10:30 by JR] Ben Smith at Politico says that a Miami Herald reporter has Tweeted that Wexler will "become director of Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation founded by Slim Fast Foods Chair Dan Abraham." Not nearly as cool as Ambassador to Israel, and it leads one to wonder who the "well placed Congressional source" that Foreign Policy quoted was, and why they invoked the White House in their story. The plot thickens.