Uncle Sam
02-11-2004, 08:48 AM
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4236413/
Wesley Clark, the novice politician with four-star military credentials, abandoned his presidential bid Tuesday after two third-place finishes in the South.
The retired Army general will return to Little Rock, Ark., on Wednesday to announce his departure from the race, said campaign spokesman Matt Bennett. Clark will pledge to work closely with the Democratic Party to support the presidential nominee and other candidates across the country.
'Very difficult decision'
“He made this decision after discussing it with his family and his staff,” Bennett said. “It was a very difficult decision to make obviously. He did it after the final results were in for Tennessee and the decision is final.”
He is the fifth Democrat to drop out of the race. Five remain: Front-runner John Kerry, John Edwards, Howard Dean, Dennis Kucinich and Al Sharpton.
The news of Clark’s departure broke shortly after he spoke to supporters, promising to keep waging fights on behalf of Democratic causes. Clark didn’t know at the time he had finished third in Tennessee, along with his third-place finish in Virginia. The results sealed his fate.
New to politics, Clark may still have a future. At 59, he is young enough for another race and, with his military experience, he might fit on a wartime Democratic ticket.
Clark entered the race in September, a late start for a neophyte campaigner, but he quickly rose to the top of polls of Democrats and others considering an alternative to President Bush. He decided to skip the Iowa caucuses to focus all of his efforts on New Hampshire, a move that some friends and family now call a mistake.
Wesley Clark, the novice politician with four-star military credentials, abandoned his presidential bid Tuesday after two third-place finishes in the South.
The retired Army general will return to Little Rock, Ark., on Wednesday to announce his departure from the race, said campaign spokesman Matt Bennett. Clark will pledge to work closely with the Democratic Party to support the presidential nominee and other candidates across the country.
'Very difficult decision'
“He made this decision after discussing it with his family and his staff,” Bennett said. “It was a very difficult decision to make obviously. He did it after the final results were in for Tennessee and the decision is final.”
He is the fifth Democrat to drop out of the race. Five remain: Front-runner John Kerry, John Edwards, Howard Dean, Dennis Kucinich and Al Sharpton.
The news of Clark’s departure broke shortly after he spoke to supporters, promising to keep waging fights on behalf of Democratic causes. Clark didn’t know at the time he had finished third in Tennessee, along with his third-place finish in Virginia. The results sealed his fate.
New to politics, Clark may still have a future. At 59, he is young enough for another race and, with his military experience, he might fit on a wartime Democratic ticket.
Clark entered the race in September, a late start for a neophyte campaigner, but he quickly rose to the top of polls of Democrats and others considering an alternative to President Bush. He decided to skip the Iowa caucuses to focus all of his efforts on New Hampshire, a move that some friends and family now call a mistake.