Cabinet nominee Gregg bows out

WASHINGTON - Saying "I made a mistake," Republican Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire abruptly withdrew yesterday as commerce secretary nominee and left President Obama's White House suddenly coping with a third cabinet withdrawal.

Gregg cited "irresolvable conflicts" with Obama's policies, citing the $789 billion stimulus bill and 2010 census in a statement released without warning by his Senate office.

Later, at a news conference in the Capitol, Gregg, 61, sounded more contrite. "The president asked me to do it," he said of the job offer. "I said yes. That was my mistake."

Obama offered a somewhat different account.

"It comes as something of a surprise, because the truth, you know, Mr. Gregg approached us with interest and seemed enthusiastic," he said in an interview with the Springfield (Ill.) Journal-Register.

Later, Obama said he had spoken with Gregg on Wednesday but "wasn't sure whether he'd made a final decision."

On Air Force One, Obama told reporters that he was glad Gregg had "searched his heart" and changed course now before the Senate confirmed him. He said Gregg's exit would not deter him from working with Republicans and trying to change Washington's partisan ways.

"Clearly he was just having second thoughts about leaving the Senate, a place where he's thrived," Obama added.

The withdrawal came just three weeks into Obama's presidency and on the heels of other cabinet troubles. Obama is in the midst of expending political capital for his economic package and is seeking to move forward with an ambitious agenda amid an economic recession and continuing threats abroad.

Now he also finds himself needing to fill two vacancies - at Commerce and at Health and Human Services. Former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination for HHS amid a tax controversy. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was confirmed despite disclosures that he had not paid some of his taxes on time.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Obama's first choice for Commerce, withdrew in January amid disclosure that a grand jury was investigating allegations of wrongdoing in the awarding of contracts in his state. Richardson has not been implicated personally.

Gregg was one of the Republicans Obama had picked for his cabinet to emphasize his campaign pledge to be an agent of bipartisan change.

White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said Gregg told the White House early this week that he was having second thoughts and talked with Obama about them during an Oval Office meeting Wednesday. "He realized over time it wasn't going to be a good fit," Emanuel said.

Gregg said he had always been a strong fiscal conservative, and told the Associated Press: "For 30 years, I've been my own person in charge of my own views, and I guess I hadn't really focused on the job of working for somebody else and carrying their views, and so this is basically where it came out."

Gregg said he realized he wasn't ready to "trim my sails" to be a part of Obama's team. He also said he probably would not run for a new Senate term in 2010.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) called Gregg a friend and said, "I respect his decision." Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John D. Rockefeller 4th (D., W. Va.) said he wished Gregg "had thought through the implications of his nomination more thoroughly before accepting this post."

Gregg said he had foreseen conflicts over health care, global warming and taxes. He also cited the stimulus and census as areas of disagreement with the administration.

Conservatives in both houses of Congress have been relentless critics of the centerpiece of Obama's economic-recovery plan, arguing it is filled with wasteful spending and won't create enough jobs.

Commerce has jurisdiction over the Census Bureau, and the administration recently moved to assert greater control. The outcome of the census has deep political implications, since congressional districts are drawn based on population.

Gregg's announcement also undid a carefully constructed chain of events. He had agreed to join the cabinet only if his departure from the Senate did not allow Democrats to take his seat.

New Hampshire's Democratic governor, John Lynch, in turn, had pledged to appoint a Republican, Bonnie Newman, and she had agreed not to run for a full term in 2010. Lynch said he respected Gregg's decision to remain in the Senate and thanked Newman for her willingness to serve.