story, breaking news story. this is coming from kevin bond, our cnn senior producer here. this is a statement, donald trump announcement saying, after considerable deliberation reflection, i've decide not to pursue the office of the presidency. this is donald trump's statement from a person in his office saying let me just read a bit of it here. it says after considerable deliberation, reflection, i've decided not pursue the office of the presidency. this decision does not come easily or without regret especially when my potential candidacy continues to be validated by ranking at the top of the republican contenders in polls across the country. he says -- goes on to say, i maintain the strong conviction that i if i were to run i would be able to win the primary and ultimately the general election. i have spent the past several months unofficially campaigning and recognize that running for public office cannot be done half-heartedly. ultimately, loufhowever, busines

my greatest passion and i am not ready to leave the private sector. he goes on to personally thank -- he says i want to personally thank the millions of americans who have joined the various trump grassroots movements and written me letters and e-mails encouraging me to run. my gratitude for your faith and trust in me could never be expressed properly in words, so i make you this promise -- that i will continue to voice my opinions loudly and help to shape our political thoughts. my ability to bring important economic and foreign policy issues to the forefront of the national dialogue is perhaps my greatest asset and one of the most valuable services i can provide to this country. i will continue to push our president and the country's policymaker to address the dire challenges arising from our unsustainable debt structure and increasing lack of global competitiveness. issues including getting tough on china and other countries that are methodically and systematically taking advantage of the united states were seldom mentioned before i brought them to the forefront of the

country's conversation. they are now being debated vigorously. i will also continue to push for job creation and initiative that should be this country's top priority and something that i know a lot about. i will not shy away from expr s expressing the opinions that so many of you share, yet don't have a medium through which to articulate. i look forward to supporting the candidate who is the most qualified to help us tackle our country's most important issues and am hopeful that when this person emerges, he or she will have the courage to take on challenges of the office and be the agent of change that this country so desperately needs. thank you and good bless america. this statement coming from donald trump. we have seen and heard a lot from donald trump over the last weeks or so, promoting the whole birther controversy around president obama, taking full credit for that after the president released a long-form

birth certificate an then, beyond that, we have heard from donald trump talking about policy, very critical of u.s. policy regarding china, the wars and other matters. but this making it very clear now that donald trump who has flirted with the