Former Gov. Vilsack Announces Close to Presidential Campagin

Des Moines, Iowa, Feb. 21, 2007

VILSACK: I want to thank everyone for spending a few minutes with us this morning.

When Christie, Jess and Doug and I were considering whether or not I would run for president, Christie suggested it was similar to Magellan's decision. The boat was at the dock, it was ready to be launched, and what would you do, would you just simply walk away from it or would you get in the boat and see where it took you?

Well, we got in the boat. We took a great journey. But it's time to bring the boat back to the dock. So today, I'm announcing that we are ending this presidential campaign.

Before I explain the reasons for that, I want to take an opportunity to thank some folks, starting with my family. The support and love of my wife Christie, who is my best friend, and our two sons, Jess and Doug, who are our best work, has meant so much to me, and I'm extraordinarily proud of the love and support that they've given to us during this campaign.

I'm extraordinarily proud of the friends, particularly from my home town, from my home state and from my birthplace who have been so instrumental in this campaign. And I want to thank them from the bottom of my heart.

I want to say a special thank you to the staff. There are a lot of young men and women who changed their lives, in some cases made significant decisions to uproot themselves from their families to come here and work on this campaign, because they believed in me and they believed in the ideas that we were going to put forward.

They built the strongest organization in the history of the caucuses at this point in time and it was a organization that I'm convinced would have been sufficient to have won the Iowa caucuses were we to continue.

But the reality is that we are not going to be able to continue.

I also want to thank all those who have financially contributed to the campaign. They were supportive with their resources and with their advice and their friendship.

The reality, however, is that this process has become to a great extent about money -- a lot of money. And it is clear to me that we would not be able to continue to raise money in the amounts necessary to sustain not just a campaign in Iowa and New Hampshire, but a campaign across this country.

So it is money and only money that is the reason that we are leaving today.

This has been an extraordinary journey for me and for Christie.

Walter Mondale suggested I would learn a lot about myself and a lot about the country were I to do this, and he was absolutely right.

VILSACK: I learned that we are a great nation. We are a nation that has challenges, but great opportunities.

I'm proud of the campaign that we ran. I'm proud of the ideas that we put forward.

I'm particularly proud of the stance we've taken on the war in Iraq. It is a war that needs to end now, not six months from now, not a year from now.

And I believe as a result of the strong stand that we've taken that my hope and prayer is that this war does, in fact, end sooner rather than later and that lives of American soldiers are saved.

I'm proud of the comprehensive energy plan that we put forward; the most comprehensive energy plan I think has ever been put forward by any presidential campaign. It is the domestic issue, and I suspect that those who remain in this race will continue to talk about energy in a meaningful way, and I hope that we've contributed to that debate.

I'm proud of the stance we've taken on education reform. Clearly, this country needs to have creative and innovative thinkers, not just standardized test-takers.

And so I'm proud of the ideas that we've put forward.

Some may suggest that this has been a failed enterprise. I would say it has not been a failure. It may not have been as successful as I had hoped and wanted, but I have grown as a person and I have grown in my fondness and appreciation for the greatness of this country.

And for those who see this as a failure, let me simply quote Theodore Roosevelt, who once said that, "The credit doesn't belong to the critic, the person who says where things could have done better. The credit really belongs to the person who's in the arena, who if he fails, fails while daring greatly, so that his soul is never with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

I've been privileged to know both, and I've been lucky to know both.

And I appreciate the opportunity that all of the people who have been supportive of this campaign (inaudible) and particularly the people of Iowa have given me. And now we move on to bigger and better things.

Thank you all.

(APPLAUSE)

Christie reminded me of one other group of people that I want to mention. And there are three specific individuals, but there are a number of people in this group. There were people who are currently holders of political office who were particularly supportive.

VILSACK: And I want to specifically mention Senator Tom Harkin. No candidate for president has ever had a better friend or better supporter than I had in Tom Harkin. And I appreciate very much his support and his friendship and his confidence.

Secretary of State Mike Morrow was also extremely supportive. And Senator Mike Gronstal and a number of members of the State Senate, including Senator Kibbie, and others were particularly supportive. And I really do appreciate their friendship and support.

STAFF: We'll take a few questions; not many, but a few.

QUESTION: Governor, are you going to endorse anybody else?

VILSACK: You know, today is a day to think about the people who have been supportive, to think about the staff, to make sure that we take the steps necessary to make sure we pay our bills and do everything that we're supposed to do.

Today is not a day to think about endorsements or other candidates.

QUESTION: And what sort of changes do you think the country needs to make in campaign finance law so candidates such as yourself can compete?

VILSACK: Well, I think we have to have a real debate about public financing and the ability to enable the primary and the caucus process to be about ideas, about moving and challenging the nation and challenging the people of this country, not simply about a money primary.

That's the game that's being played today, and it's a game that, obviously, I was unable to play as successfully as I wanted to.

That's one piece of advice.

And to those who remain in this race, you know, you're going to come to Iowa. And here's my hope and my prayer: that you understand that it isn't just about large crowds. It isn't just about the cameras. It's about ordinary folks in living rooms and kitchens and church basements, who genuinely care about this country, who need to be listened to, and who need to have an opportunity to interact with candidates.

I sincerely hope that we have that kind of campaign in Iowa, that that's the beauty and the wonderful nature of retail politics that Iowa, New Hampshire have done so well, that Nevada is prepared to do well, and South Carolina.

That's the process that's really important. And I hope that that's not lost. And I would encourage those who remain in the race to make sure that they go to those small towns and those Main Street shops, those church basements and listen.

VILSACK: Because I had an extraordinary experience that I've been sharing with people of a 5-year-old child -- a 5-year-old child -- in Seattle who approached me and asked me if a hundred more troops in Iraq would make a difference. And then he asked me if a thousand more troops in Iraq would make a difference. This is a 5-year-old child.

And then he looked at me and he said, "You know, I'm frightened every day. I'm frightened every day."

And it turns out that his uncle's in Iraq. And this is how this little 5-year-old fella is trying to cope with the stresses that his family feels.

That's the kind of contact that you have to have if you want to be a great president.

QUESTION: Governor, how did you decide that this is your time to get out?

VILSACK: It's really about money. We have a debt that we're going to have to work our way through.

And, honestly, this is a time for campaigns to ramp up staff and it gives the young people who are part of our campaign an opportunity to land on their feet. And I have an obligation, a serious obligation, to those folks who have worked so hard for us and care so deeply.

So a combination of those two factors.

QUESTION: What changed between that fund-raiser in December where you raised a $1 million and today?

VILSACK: You know, it's difficult to explain to folks outside the state that you're not the prohibitive favorite in the caucus process. And that's the way it normally is in the process, but it's hard to explain that.

You know, we worked hard. And the people that we talked to were supportive. I mean, they were supportive. The problem was that it takes more than that. It takes a lot more than that.

And I came up against something for the first time in my life where hard work and effort couldn't overcome.

You know, when I ran for governor, it was hard work and effort, and we overcame whatever challenges or barriers we faced. I just couldn't work any harder, couldn't give it any greater effort, and it just wasn't enough.

QUESTION: Do you have any regrets about (inaudible)?

VILSACK: No.

(LAUGHTER)

QUESTION: Would you have done anything different?

VILSACK: No.

(END OF COVERAGE)