Congressman Nathan Deal (R-GA) is resigning from the House of Representatives to focus on his gubernatorial run in Georgia. At least that is what he is saying.

At a time that every vote counts on health care, Deal resigning means the Democrats have one less vote they have to pick up to take over 1/6th of our economy.

There is a larger issue here that I think people are missing. Nathan Deal is under an ethics investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives relating to questionable contracts between a business Deal owns and the Georgia state government.

The Ethics Committee found Charlie Rangel in breach of ethics rules and never likes to just find on party at fault. The odds are really good that the Ethics Committee would use Deal to show it was bipartisan and evenhanded.

Because Deal is resigning his seat, the investigation into his business *poof* goes away. He won’t have to deal with a finding that he breached ethics rules to complicate his gubernatorial run.

What he will have to deal with, however, is upending Georgia politics to make it all about himself.

There will now be a special election to fill the rest of his term. Under Georgia law, if an elected official runs for another seat with a term starting before the existing office’s term ends, the candidate must resign from his present seat. Two state representatives are running for Deal’s congressional seat. If they decide to run in the special election too, they will have to resign from Georgia’s legislature while it is in session. That would raise the costs of special elections.

And to bring this all home, it also means the Democrats have one less vote they have to struggle to get to pass health care. Nathan Deal decided to make it all about himself and in the process is making it easier for Democrats to pass Obamacare and harder for Georgia to save money.

Well played. Deal, by the way, was a Democrat who jumped to the GOP in order to save himself back in the mid-90′s.

RedState supports Karen Handel and you should too.