Gregg withdraws nomination

U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) has announced that he is withdrawing his nomination to become the next Secretary of Commerce.

Gregg said in a press release that he has “irresolvable conflicts” with President Obama over the stimulus bill and the attempt to have the White House oversee the Census.

Below are excerpts from the Gregg release:

“I want to thank the President for nominating me to serve in his Cabinet as Secretary of Commerce. This was a great honor, and I had felt that I could bring some views and ideas that would assist him in governing during this difficult time. I especially admire his willingness to reach across the aisle.

“However, it has become apparent during this process that this will not work for me as I have found that on issues such as the stimulus package and the Census there are irresolvable conflicts for me. Prior to accepting this post, we had discussed these and other potential differences, but unfortunately we did not adequately focus on these concerns. We are functioning from a different set of views on many critical items of policy.”

Gregg added, “As a further matter of clarification, nothing about the vetting process played any role in this decision. I will continue to represent the people of New Hampshire in the United States Senate.”