My fellow Americans:
It has been my great fortune to be of service to this country for much of my life. As a very young man I was chosen a member of the Senate of the United States . I was still wet behind the ears, not yet having reached my 30th birthday. A father of two young children at that moment. With a wife who told me to follow my passion. From the first day I walked onto that Senate floor until today that commitment to cause has burned within me.
I come before you today not to champion my accomplishments, not to tell stories of what I did to help move mountains, or at least nudge a few from the other side of the aisle to agree, however reluctantly to some important victory not for me, not even for my party, but for you my fellow Americans.
None of us is exempt from dark moments, for it comes with the territory. I have known the deepest of pains, have suffered the greatest of losses. I still grieve for loved ones taken far too soon and for loved ones who have battled their own demons. I am scarred and the hurt has been overwhelming at times.
But it has only strengthened my resolve to care for those among us who have been knocked down whether it be by a tragedy, by poverty, by prejudice, by a country that has sometimes treated them with disdain, with incomprehensible harshness. Pain is pain wherever it is found and I have pledged once and always to do what I can within my power to alleviate the hurt, to right the wrongs, to make the existence of all those within my sight better, easier, happier.
Because my sworn obligation is not first to my own welfare but yours. You, all of you, are my family. I am just a regular guy who has had the amazing good fortune to find myself in position through these years to help. To do what I was meant to do. What I have been chosen to do.
In recent days questions have been raised repeatedly whether I am still up to the task. Still capable of pursuing my life's work with the necessary skills required of the office I would be retaining if reelected this November. Let me be clear that I fully believe the answer is yes. I understand that some of my outer trappings may have frayed around the edges, that to some I am, politically speaking, past my expiration date. But I can tell you with certainty that I am still, at my core, that same young man who first stepped on to that Senate floor so long ago. With the same ideals, the same ideas. Still stepping up and raring to go.
But I understand that perception is reality and no matter how long I stand here and make my case, no matter if I jump around this stage or recite the Declaration of Independence from memory, I will never convince far too many of you of what I still have left in the tank.
And I must think of country before self. I am clear that this election cannot afford to be lost by my party if democracy is to remain strong and vibrant. And I cannot, on my watch, allow that to happen. Thus, with a heavy heart but with the knowledge that this is the best and only course to take, I now announce that I will not seek to be the Democratic candidate in the 2024 presidential race and will release all the delegates who would otherwise select me as the nominee at the party convention.
There are others in my party fully capable of taking the reins. I am excited for them and for our collective future as I know I will be leaving the hard work ahead in good hands.
In the final analysis, this is not a sad day for me but a day to be thankful for having been given the honor of helping to protect and preserve the greatest nation in the world.
God bless you all and God bless America
So excellent. But with a few changes, this could be the "staying in the race" speech.--RE