Governor Barbour To Skip 2012 Presidential Race

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour announced Monday that he will not pursue the Republican nomination for president in 2012. 

“This has been a difficult, personal decision,” Barbour said in a statement. “I will not be a candidate for president next year.”

Barbour, a two-term governor and former chairman of the national Republican Party, previously said he would make a formal decision before the end of April.

In his statement, Barbour acknowledged that he was not yet willing to commit the time and effort required by entering a presidential campaign. 

“A candidate for president today is embracing a ten-year commitment to an all-consuming effort, to the virtual exclusion of all else,” he said. “His (or her) supporters expect and deserve no less than absolute fire in the belly from their candidate. I cannot offer that with certainty, and total certainty is required.”