Romney not running
2012 nominee tested waters for 3 weeks
Former Republican presidential nominee says he’s out of 2016 race
WASHINGTON — Mitt Romney ended his roller coaster return to presidential politics on Friday, declaring his party would be better served by the “next generation of Republican leaders” and concluding his unlikely comeback as suddenly as it began.
Aides said it was a deeply personal and even painful decision for the 2012 Republican presidential nominee. He insisted he could win the next election if he ran, but his announcement followed a three-week fact-finding effort that revealed significant resistance to a third campaign.
“I believe that one of our next generation of Republ ican leaders, one who may not be as well-known as I am today, one who has not yet taken their message across the country, one who is just getting started, may well emerge as being better able to defeat the Democrat nomi- nee,” Romney told supporters on a conference call. “In fact, I expect and hope that to be the case.”
The remark was both a recognition of his own limitations and an indirect swipe at the man who created the urgency behind Romney’s brief flirtation with a third presidential campaign. That is former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, the son and brother of former presidents, who is speeding toward a campaign of his own.
Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie would have served as Romney’s most likely rivals for the support of the GOP establishment, and both men felt an immediate impact. The announcement sparked a rush of activity by Romney loyalists — operatives and donors alike — suddenly freed to support another White House hopeful as the crowded 2016 field begins to take shape.
Devoted Romney supporter Bill Kunkler, part of Chicago’s wealthy Crown family, said he was disappointed by Friday’s news but now was all in for Bush.
“I’ll work for Jeb. Period. And no one else,” Kunkler said, noting that he planned to attend a Feb. 18 Chicago fundraiser for Bush hosted by former Romney backers.
Bobbie Kilberg, a top GOP fundraiser based in Virginia, quickly settled on Christie.
“We had long and deep ties and friendship with Mitt,” she said. “That has changed obviously, at 11 o’clock this morning.”
Romney’s aides insist there was no specif ic incident that caused Friday’s abrupt announcement, which came during a late morning conference call with close supporters and former staffers.
The former Massachusetts governor, who is 67, shocked the political world three weeks earlier, when he signaled interest in a third presidential run during a private meeting with former donors in New York.
That followed what aides describe as several months of strong encouragement from Republicans as he toured the country raising money and energy for GOP colleagues.
The surprise announcement of Romney’s interest three weeks ago was the first public step in a fact-finding mission meant to assess the 2016 outlook.He and his most trusted advisers plunged into phone calls and personal visits with key GOP officials and activists across the country.
At the same time, Romney tested a new stump speech focused on the poor and middle class in three public appearances. Critics jabbed the new focus as an insincere shift designed to shed his image as an out-of-touch millionaire.