New York Rep. Peter King said Wednesday that he would not seek the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.
"The reality is as far as money, the fact that I have a full-time job now on the Intelligence and Homeland Security committees, it's just not in the cards,"
King told Wolf Blitzer on CNN. "I don't want to be taking up other people's time."
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There are currently 13 candidates for the GOP nomination. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie announced his intentions on Tuesday. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is expected to disclose his candidacy later this month.
First elected to Congress in 1992, King, 71, has chaired the House Homeland Security Committee and now serves as head of the panel's Counterterrorism and Intelligence Subcommittee. He also sits on the House Intelligence Committee.
An Army veteran, King has long advocated a strong national security — and has opposed such conservative Republicans as Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul on the issue.
"They were getting out what they thought was their Republican message. I wanted to counter that," King told Blitzer of his original reasons for seeking the White House. "I think I’ve been somewhat successful in doing that.
"There are candidates in the race who are raising national defense issues."
King said he was considering whether to endorse former Govs. Jeb Bush of Florida and George Pataki of New York, as well as Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Mediaite reports.
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