PAUL RYAN: I'm Not Running For President
Jan 13, 2015, 02:50 IST
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"I have decided that I am not going to run for president in 2016," Ryan told NBC News on Monday.
Ryan, the GOP's 2012 vice presidential nominee, made the announcement just days after Mitt Romney, the 2012 presidential nominee, revealed that he's seriously considering a third bid for the White House.
But Ryan insisted he arrived at his own decision on the race before last Friday, when Romney told a group of donors about his interest in another presidential campaign.
"It is no secret that I have always thought Mitt would make a great president," Ryan said. "As for his plans for 2016, I don't know what he is ultimately going to do and the last thing I want to do is get ahead of his own decision making process." Despite his announcement that he won't run for the White House, Ryan, the 44-year-old chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, did not close the door to future campaigns for higher office. He told NBC News that he intends to "keep my options open." Ryan's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider as to whether he would consider another vice presidential campaign.