Facing Challenge At Home, Kucinich Drops His White House Bid

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), facing primary challenges back home, has ended his quixotic campaign for president, according to a story in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. This leaves Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) as the only House member still left in the race.

Kucinich plans to make a formal announcement on his decision on Friday.

Kucinich faces primary challenges from Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman and North Olmstead Mayor Thomas O'Grady, and Democratic insiders have quietly been suggesting for several weeks that Kucinich could lose his House seat if he doesn't start paying more attention to local politics rather then seeking the White House.

The 61-year-old Kucinich, a former mayor of Cleveland, was first elected to the House, and he has built a record as one of the most liberal Democrats on Capitol Hill since that time. He has repeatedly urged the impeachment of Vice President Dick Cheney over Cheney's support for the Iraq war.