Rick Santorum announced today that he is suspending his campaign bid for the Republican presidential nomination.
The former Pennsylvania senator gave up his White House aspirations after spending the weekend at the hospital bedside of his 3-year-old daughter Isabella.
With his family standing beside him on Tuesday, he announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, we made the decision to get into this race around our kitchen table, against all odds.”
He went on to say, “We made a decision over the weekend that … I will suspend my campaign effective today.”
Their daughter Bella was born with Trisomy 18, a serious chromosomal condition that interferes with development. Half of patients with the condition do not survive past the first week of life.
This was the second recent medical setback for Santorum’s youngest child. She was hospitalized in late January – family photos here.
View Santorum’s withdrawal announcement below:
Photo: Video Screen Grab