Thompson Drops Out of Republican Race
Republican Fred Thompson officially withdrew his candidacy for president today. In a prepared statement, Thompson said, "I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort."
Thompson's decision came after he finished third in the Jan. 19 South Carolina primary, a vote that he had once hoped to win, according to a New York Times report.
The Times cited Thompson's advisors as saying the former Tennessee governor would not endorse one of his rivals in the race.
The newspaper report said Thompson's withdrawal could help Mike Huckabee, who has competed with Thompson for conservative votes. "Some Republicans suggested that Mr. Huckabee came in second in South Carolina precisely because Mr. Thompson had siphoned off much of his support, permitting Sen. John McCain of Arizona to win," the report stated.
The Associated Press reported that Huckabee suggested during an interview today that he would have beaten McCain in South Carolina if Thompson had dropped out earlier.
"The votes that he took essentially were votes that I would have most likely had, according to the exit polls and every other analysis," Huckabee said on MSNBC.
But with Huckabee conducting a scaled-back campaign in Florida leading up to that state's Jan. 29 primary, Thompson's withdrawal could also help Mitt Romney, the Times report added. Romney has been aggressively courting conservatives in the Florida race.