Susan Rice, an Obama administration-era national security adviser and United Nations ambassador, will not be adding the title “senator” to her resume just yet.
Rice told Alyssa Mastromonaco, a fellow Obama alum who served as deputy White House chief of staff for operations, during an appearance at Thursday’s 10th Annual Women in the World New York Summit that she would not run as a Democratic senatorial candidate next year in Maine, avoiding a potential race against Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins.
Rice first raised a prospective race against Collins during the fall 2018 confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Collins ended up voting in favor.
“I’ve given this a lot of thought and, in the course of weighing it all, I’ve decided with my family that the timing really isn’t right for us. Sorry,” Rice said, referring to her daughter who is a high school junior in D.C.
“I don’t rule out running for office in the future. I don’t rule that out at all, in Maine or beyond. But after all my family has done to support me and as much as they have sacrificed over many years to enable me to serve as I have, I’ve got to put them first,” she added.
Rice used the platform on Thursday to bemoan the country’s sliding global standing, saying she was also worried about the state of affairs at home.
“To have so many key positions vacant or with actings is quite disconcerting,” she said.
Rice’s announcement comes as Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said during an interview for CSPAN’s “Newsmakers” program that he would endorse Collins. Collins did not return the favor to the moderate Democrat amid his reelection efforts in 2018.
