Kristol's Pick David French Passes on Presidential Run

By Eric Garcia

Posted June 6, 2016 at 7:49am

Well, that was quick.

Less than a week after he had emerged as Bill Kristol’s independent candidate for president, conservative writer David French announced that he’s not running .

“First, the independent path is wider than people understand. Second, I’m not the right person to walk it,” French tweeted Sunday night after he had posted a piece on the National Review.

After much thought and prayer: I’m Not Running for President https://t.co/lqWQtPL5Q5

— David French (@DavidAFrench) June 6, 2016

Unhappy with the likely nomination of Donald Trump as the Republican presidential nominee, Kristol, editor of the conservative Weekly Standard, tweeted about a potential independent candidate emerging after the Memorial Day weekend.

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Eventually, Bloomberg reported that French, an Iraq War veteran and constitutional lawyer, was the pick. That news was met with a near-universal “Meh.”

French wrote that he had spoken with political experts about a potential candidacy and appreciated efforts to draft him, but he didn’t have what it took to run.

“Given this reality, it would be tempting to say that when it comes to confronting this national moment, ‘somebody’ stepping up is better than nobody,” French said. “I believe others could run and win, and would make excellent presidents.”

“But given the timing, the best chance for success goes to a person who either is extraordinarily wealthy (or has immediate access to extraordinary wealth) or is a transformational political talent,” he wrote.

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After French’s announcement, Kristol tweeted in response .

David French would have been a fine alternative to Clinton and Trump. But the path is open, and a better choice remains necessary.

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) June 6, 2016

French came under criticism on Twitter recently for allegedly prohibiting his wife Nancy from using Facebook or having phone conversations or exchanging e-mails with men while he was deployed in Iraq.

Nancy French responded on Monday several hours after her husband’s announcement in an opinion piece titled “Politico Reporter Mocked and Lied About My Marriage to David French ” on The Christian Post website.

“We set some boundaries,” she wrote. “I decided not to drink alcohol while he was gone, I wasn’t going to develop or encourage intense relationships with other men, and I would tell David if I ran into any ex-boyfriends or was contacted by them on Facebook. It was a way to make sure our marriage survived the deployment, while others sadly didn’t.”

Contact Garcia at

EricGarcia@cqrollcall.com

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@EricMGarcia

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