There's a good deal of misguided gloating and glee in Tea Party and other circles that claim credit for prompting the decision of nine-term Congressman Bart Stupak to call it quits.

Republican National Chairman Michael Steele contends Stupak was "absolutely afraid to run" for a 10th term in the wake of his pivotal role in passage of the health care legislation.

I don't buy that. I accept what Stupak said when he called me on the eve of his Friday announcement: "I'm just getting tired being gone all of the time. I have trouble getting up for the count. ...I'm just burned out."

He called it "a decision in the making for six years."

It was a decision that was contrary to an earlier recent conversation in which he told me that during the Easter congressional recess he planned to "decompress" in the Upper Peninsula and then gear up for re-election.

Stupak told the Associated Press:

"The tea party did not run me out. If you know me and my personality, I would welcome the challenge."

Stupak has been one of the most effective members of the Michigan congressional delegation, a champion on Great Lakes issues, and a hard-nose chairman of the Oversight and Investigation Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

In his remarks at Northern Michigan University announcing his decision to not seek reelection, Stupak called it "the most fascinating subcommittee in all of Congress."

While that's a debatable claim, Stupak said: "Over the last four years, we have launched investigations into high-profile issues such as border security, nursing home safety, security breaches at nuclear weapons labs, food and drug safety investigations, excessive energy speculation, discriminatory practices of the health insurance industry, and the recent Toyota sudden unattended acceleration problems."

U.S. Representative Dave Camp (R-Midland) said: "Representative Stupak and I have worked together on many issues as we represented the state and northern Michigan. Over the years he's been a very hard working and dedicated individual, and he's been a tremendous advocate for the Great Lakes. I wish he and his family the best."

Who's Next?

Stupak said there "are a lot of potential Democrats" to run for his seat. He said "a natural" would be term-limited state Senator Mike Prusi of Ishpeming, a former state representative, mine worker, and president of a Steelworkers local. He's the current Senate minority leader.

Stupak said another top contender could be state Senator Jim Barcia of Bay City, who represented the 5th Congressional District in 1993-2002 before redistricting.

Other Democrats mentioned by Stupak were state Representatives Joel Sheltrown of West Branch, Andy Neumann of Alpena and Gary McDowell of Rudyard, who recently announced as a candidate for the seat now held by term-limited state Senator Jason Allen (R-Traverse City).

Allen, reached by phone as he drove back to Traverse City from a family vacation in Florida, said he is "working through the issues" involved in running for Congress and will make a decision in the next week or so. He called it "a unique opportunity."

Allen, who represents seven counties in Stupak's 31-county district, has been mentioned as a potential contender for Stupak's seat, although he does not currently live in the congressional district. He lives in Grand Traverse County, just south of Antrim County, which is in Stupak's district.

House Minority Leader Kevin Elsenheimer (R-Kewadin), who is termlimited and has planned to run for a district judge position in Antrim, Grand Traverse, and Leelanau counties, told the Petoskey News-Review he is "taking a serious look" at running for Congress.

Already in the congressional race is Democrat Connie Saltonstall, a former Charlevoix County commissioner. Representative Michael Lahti (DHancock) is running for the state Senate but may consider running for Congress.

Also running are Upper Peninsula Republicans Dan Benishek, an Iron Mountain surgeon who is mounting a well-financed media campaign and has been getting considerable coverage in conservative media outlets; attorney Linda Goldthorpe of Curtis; and former trucking executive Don Hooper of Iron River, who was the GOP nominee against Stupak in 2004 and 2006.

Republican Tom Stillings of Antrim County's Torch Lake Township also is running.

With Stupak's decision, three Democratic seats are now in play in the Michigan congressional delegation that currently has seven Republicans and eight Democrats. Republicans are targeting the seats of two Democrats who in 2008 defeated Republicans, 7th District Representative Mark Schauer of Battle Creek and 9th District Representative Gary Peters of Bloomfield Township.

George Weeks retired in 2006 after 22 years as political columnist for The Detroit News. His weekly Michigan Politics column is syndicated by Superior Features.