Romney exits presidential race

updated 4:10 p.m. ET Feb. 7, 2008

WASHINGTON - John McCain effectively sealed the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday as chief rival Mitt Romney suspended his faltering campaign. "I must now stand aside, for our party and our country," Romney told conservatives.

"If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign, be a part of aiding a surrender to terror," Romney told the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

Romney's decision leaves McCain as the top man standing in the GOP race, with Mike Huckabee and Texas Rep. Ron Paul far behind in the delegate hunt. It was a remarkable turnaround for McCain, who some seven months ago was barely viable, out of cash and losing staff. The four-term Arizona senator, denied his party's nomination in 2000, was poised to succeed George W. Bush as the GOP standard-bearer.

Commenting on his front-runner status - a title he had and lost last year - McCain told the conference, "This time I now have that distinction and I prefer to hold onto it for quite a while."

McCain and Romney spoke by phone after Romney's speech, though no endorsement was requested nor offered, according to a Republican official with knowledge of the conversation.

Super Tuesday troubles
McCain prevailed in most of the Super Tuesday states, moving closer to the 1,191 delegates needed to win the nomination at this summer's convention in St. Paul, Minn. Overall, McCain led with 707 delegates, to 294 for Romney, 195 for Huckabee and Paul at 14.

Video Romney steps aside Feb. 7: Fearing a fight to the convention would make a Democratic victory more likely, Mitt Romney bowed out of the presidential race. NBC's Ron Allen reports. Nightly News

Romney suspended his campaign, allowing him to hold onto his delegates. However, if McCain secures their support — combined with his own delegates — he would be nearly at the magic number and Huckabee would be mathematically eliminated. It is unlikely Romney would throw his support to Huckabee; the animosity between the two has pervaded the GOP race.

Romney launched his campaign almost a year ago in his native Michigan. The former Massachusetts governor and venture capitalist invested more than $40 million of his own money into the race, counted on early wins in Iowa and New Hampshire that never materialized and won just seven states on Super Tuesday, mostly small caucus states.

McCain took the big prizes of New York and California.

"This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose. My family, my friends and our supporters ... many of you right here in this room ... have given a great deal to get me where I have a shot at becoming president. If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America," Romney said.

There were shouts of astonishment, with some moans and others yelling, "No, No."

Romney responded, "You guys are great."

Interactive Super Dashboard Super Tuesday state results, statistics, stories and video. NBC News

Romney claimed he was the true conservative in the race while McCain has been criticized by some on the right. McCain acknowledged the rocky relationship.

"I am acutely aware that I cannot succeed in that endeavor, nor can our party prevail over the challenge we will face from either Senator Clinton or Senator Obama, without the support of dedicated conservatives," McCain said in prepared remarks to the same conference.

Romney acknowledged the obstacles to beating McCain.

"As of today, more than 4 million people have given me their vote for president, that's of course, less than Senator McCain's 4.7 million, but quite a statement nonetheless. Eleven states have given me their nod, compared to his 13. Of course, because size does matter, he's doing quite a bit better with the number of delegates he's got," Romney said.

The long and windy road
The Huckabee campaign said the former Arkansas governor would push on.

"We're still in the race and we're still competing for delegates, and today demonstrates how long and windy to the White House this is," said Chip Saltsman, Huckabee's campaign manager.

Romney's departure from the race came almost a year after his formal entrance, when the Michigan native declared his candidacy on Feb. 12, 2007, at the Henry Ford Museum of Innovation in Dearborn, Mich.

Video Tim Russert on Romney Feb. 7: NBC's Tim Russert offers analysis on Mitt Romney's decision to suspend his presidential campaign. Nightly News

Over the ensuing 12 months, Romney sought the support of conservatives with a family values campaign, emphasizing his opposition to abortion and gay marriage, as well as his support for tax cuts and health insurance that would benefit middle-class families.

"We need to teach our children that before they have babies, they get married," he told voters at his campaign events.

But he was dogged by charges of flip-flopping, a criticism that undermined the candidacy of another Massachusetts hopeful - John Kerry in 2004. In seeking to unseat Sen. Edward M. Kennedy in 1994, Romney said he would be a better advocate for gay rights than his rival and he favored abortion rights.

Throughout his campaign, Romney was questioned by voters and the media about his Mormon faith. Hoping to assuage voters skeptical of electing a Mormon president, Romney spoke on Dec. 6 in College Station, Texas, explicitly recalling remarks John F. Kennedy made in 1960 in an effort to quell anti-Catholic bias. He vowed to serve the interests of the nation, not the church, if elected president.

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