WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., the outgoing Senate Majority Leader, has announced that he will not run for president in 2008.
"In the Bible, God tells us for everything there is a season, and for me, for now, this season of being an elected official has come to a close. I do not intend to run for president in 2008," Frist said in a statement released by his office.
The announcement Wednesday came after Frist spent several years laying the groundwork for a presidential bid -- including visiting key presidential states, creating a field operation, and raising money for national, state and local candidates in several states.
Frist said he and his wife would take "a sabbatical from public life," which would allow him to return to his profession as a physician.
"Twelve years ago, I pledged to the people of Tennessee that I would serve two terms in the Senate -- to serve as a true citizen legislator -- and then return home," Frist said. "I said I'd ... spend 12 years serving in Washington, then go right back to Tennessee to live where I grew up. I've never deviated from that commitment. And I will do just that."
