Tom Daschle has somewhat unexpectedly taken himself out of the running for 2004. (Thanks to DavidNYC and Bulldog for the tip).

The primary quote is "After careful reflection, I've concluded that at this moment in our history, with so many important decisions to be made about our nation's future, my passion lies here in the Senate." Is it possible that Daschle felt that too many of his fellow Dem Senators were already off to the races or after his job? Or is he really planning to retire after this term, as some have suspected?

Or perhaps, as Kevin A, Cal Political Junkie, and Matt S have sensibly noted in posts subsequent to my original posting, we should accept his reasons as stated, as well as see a desire to keep the seat from John Thune and the GOP. But given the fact that these reasons could have been true all along, at least as far back as the reelection of Johnson, what explains the recent chatter about Daschle wanting to run?

Steve Soto