Mitt Romney suspends presidential campaign

The former governor of Massachusetts is dropping out of the race, giving John McCain a clear path to the Republican nomination.

Published February 7, 2008 5:41PM (EST)

Looks like the race for the Republican presidential nomination is all but over. Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, is going to announce today that he'll be suspending his campaign, effectively handing the nomination to John McCain.

According to the Associated Press, while speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C., Romney will say:

"If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror ... This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose. My family, my friends and our supporters ... many of you right here in this room ... have given a great deal to get me where I have a shot at becoming President. If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America, and because I love America, I feel I must now stand aside, for our party and for our country."


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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