Conn. dad recalls loving, creative 6-year-old

NEWTOWN, Conn. Fighting back tears and struggling to catch his breath, the father of a 6-year-old gunned down in Friday's school shooting in Connecticut told the world about a little girl who loved to draw and was always smiling, and he also reserved surprising words of sympathy for the gunman.

Robbie Parker's daughter Emilie was among the 20 children who died in the one of the worst attacks on schoolchildren in U.S. history. He was one of the first parents to speak publicly about their loss.

"She was beautiful. She was blond. She was always smiling," he said.

Parker spoke to reporters not long after police released the names and ages of the victims, a simple document that told a horrifying story of loss.

He expressed no animosity, said he was not mad and offered sympathy for family of the man who killed 26 people and himself.

To the man's family, he said, "I can't imagine how hard this experience must be for you."

He said he struggled to explain the death to Emilie's two siblings, 3 and 4.

"They seem to get the fact that they have somebody they're going to miss very much," he said.

Parker said his daughter loved to try new things — except for new food. And she was quick to cheer up those in need.

36 Photos

Vigils for Conn. school shooting victims

"She never missed an opportunity to draw a picture or make a card for those she around her," he said.

The world is a better place because Emilie was in it, he said.

"I'm so blessed to be her dad," he said.

Read More..

Conn. Victim's Father Remembers 'Loving' Daughter

(Image credit: Emilie Parker Fund/Facebook)

Emilie Parker, the little girl with the blond hair and bright blue eyes, would have been one of the first to comfort her classmates at Sandy Hook Elementary School, had a gunman’s bullets not claimed her life, her father said.

“My daughter Emilie would be one of the first ones to be standing and giving support to all the victims because that’s the kind of kid she is,” her father, Robbie Parker said as he fought back tears, telling the world about his “bright, creative and loving” daughter who was one of the 20 young victims in the Newtown, Conn., shooting.

“She always had something kind to say about anybody,” her father said.  ”We find comfort reflecting on the incredible person Emilie was and how many lives she was able to touch.”

Emilie, 6, was helping teach her younger sisters to read and make things, and she was the little girls would go to for comfort, he said.

“They looked up to her,” Parker said.

READ: Complete List of Sandy Hook Victims

Parker moved his wife and three daughters to Newtown eight months ago after accepting a job as  a physician’s assistant at Danbury Hospital. He said Emilie, his oldest daughter, seemed to have adjusted well to her new school, and he was very happy with the school, too.

“I love the people at the school. I love Emilie’s teacher and the classmates we were able to get to know,” he said.

      (Image Credit: Alex von Kleydorff/AP Photo)

The family dealt with another tragic loss in October when Emilie lost her grandfather in an accident.

“[This] has been a topic that has been discussed in our family in the past couple of  months,” Parker said. “[My daughters ages 3 and 4] seem to get the idea that there’s somebody who they will miss very much.”

Emilie, a budding artist who carried her markers and pencils everywhere, paid tribute to her grandfather by slipping a special card she had drawn into his casket, Parker said.  It was something she frequently did to lift the spirits of others.

“I can’t count the number of times Emilie would find someone feeling sad or frustrated and would make people a card,” Parker said. “She was an exceptional artist.”

The girl who was remembered as “always willing to try new things, other than food” was learning Portuguese from her father, who speaks the language.

(Image Credit: Emilie Parker Fund/Facebook)

On Friday morning, Emilie woke up before her father left for his job and exchanged a few sentences with him in the language.

“She told me good morning and asked how I was doing,” Parker said. “She said she loved me, I gave her a kiss and I was out the door.”

Parker found out about the shooting while on lockdown in Danbury Hospital and found a television for the latest news.

“I didn’t think it was that big of deal at first,” he said. “With the first reports coming in, it didn’t sound like it was going to be as tragic as it was. That’s kind of what it was like for us.”

CLICK HERE for full coverage of the Sandy Hook shooting.

Parker said he knows that God can’t take away free will and would have been unable to stop the Sandy Hook shooting. While gunman Adam Lanza used his free agency to take innocent lives, Parker said he plans to use his in a positive way.

“I’m not mad because I have my  [free] agency to use this event to do whatever I can to make sure my family and my wife and my daughters are taken care [of],” he said. “And if there’s anything I can do to help to anyone at any time at anywhere, I’m free to do that.”

(Image credit: Emilie Parker Fund/Facebook)

Friday night, hours after he learned of his daughter’s death, Parker said he spoke at his church.

“I don’t know how to get through something like this. My wife and I don’t understand how to process all of this,” he said today. “We find strength in our religion and in our faith and in our family. ”

“It’s a horrific tragedy and I want everyone to know our hearts and prayers go out to them. This includes the family of the shooter. I can’t imagine how hard this experience must be for you and I want you to know our family … love and support goes out to you as well.”

Read More..

Zebrafish made to grow pre-hands instead of fins

PERHAPS the little fish embryo shown here is dancing a jig because it has just discovered that it has legs instead of fins. Fossils show that limbs evolved from fins, but a new study shows how it may have happened, live in the lab.

Fernando Casares of the Spanish National Research Council and his colleagues injected zebrafish with the hoxd13 gene from a mouse. The protein that the gene codes for controls the development of autopods, a precursor to hands, feet and paws.

Zebrafish naturally carry hoxd13 but produce less of the protein than tetrapods - all four-limbed vertebrates and birds - do. Casares and his colleagues hoped that by injecting extra copies of the gene into the zebrafish embryos, some of their cells would make more of the protein.

One full day later, all of those fish whose cells had taken up the gene began to develop autopods instead of fins. They carried on growing for four days but then died (Cell, DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2012.10.015).

"Of course, we haven't been able to grow hands," says Casares. He speculates that hundreds of millions of years ago, the ancestors of tetrapods began expressing more hoxd13 for some reason and that this could have allowed them to evolve autopods.

If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to.

All comments should respect the New Scientist House Rules. If you think a particular comment breaks these rules then please use the "Report" link in that comment to report it to us.

If you are having a technical problem posting a comment, please contact technical support.

Read More..

SCDF, police conduct checks at commercial premises, Marina Square fined

SINGAPORE: A joint enforcement blitz by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and the police was conducted on shopping malls, hotels and public entertainment outlets on Friday night.

Marina Square Shopping Centre was issued three notices of Fire Safety Offence which carried a total fine of up to S$1,500. The shopping centre had fire safety works without approval plans at two levels of its carpark.

The SCDF statement said Marina Square changed the use of vehicle parking lots and the vicinity to a storage area which caused the existing fire safety measures to become inadequate.

In addition, the shopping centre was issued eight Fire Hazard Abatement Notices which served as a warning for not observing fire safety measures as some escape routes were obstructed.

Centrepoint Shopping Centre was issued a fine of up to S$500 for a Fire Safety Offence for changing the use of carpark area to a storage area which would cause the existing fire safety measures to become inadequate. The mall was also issued four Fire Hazard Abatement Notices for flouting fire safety measures.

Concorde Hotel received three Fire Hazard Abatement Notices; Top 5 @ Orchard Towers was issued two such notices; Peyton Place @ Orchard Towers was issued one and Ipanema @ Orchard Towers received three such notices.

- CNA/ck

Read More..

Pearlman: I think Bobby Petrino is slime

Bobby Petrino was named head coach at Western Kentucky, months after being embroiled in scandal at University of Arkansas

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Bobby Petrino was named the new football coach at Western Kentucky this week


• Hiring came just months after he was fired from Arkansas amid scandal


• Jeff Pearlman says, sadly, this is no surprise in big-time college sports


• He says the vast majority of players are ultimately hurt by the behavior of coaches and administrators

Editor's note: Jeff Pearlman is the author of 'Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton.' He blogs at jeffpearlman.com. Follow him on Twitter.

(CNN) -- I have a dog named Norma.

She is a small beige cockapoo who barks at the mailman.

I would not trust Bobby Petrino to watch her.

Jeff Pearlman

I also would not trust Bobby Petrino to take my car in for a tire change. I would not trust Bobby Petrino to deposit my Aunt Ruth's Social Security check. I wouldn't trust him to clean my bowling ball, shop for a Christmas ham, change a twenty for two tens, tell me the time or recite the proper lyrics to Blind Melon's "No Rain."

This is not because I am a particularly untrusting person.

No, it's because I think Bobby Petrino is slime.

In case you missed the news, two days ago Western Kentucky University held a press conference to announce that Petrino, undeniably one of the nation's elite football minds, had agreed to a four-year, $850,000 per year deal to take over the Hilltoppers.

With nearly 400 giddy sports fanatics in attendance, Petrino, standing alongside Todd Stewart, the school's athletic director, spoke of honor and loyalty and love and redemption. The ensuing press release, issued by Western Kentucky's sports information department, was straight out of Disney: 101. It made Petrino sound like a cross between Vince Lombardi, Martin Luther King and Gandhi; God's gift to young men seeking to better themselves.

Petrino fired as Arkansas head football coach

What it failed to mention—and what the school desperately wants everyone to fail to mention—is that Petrino may well be the least ethically whole man in the, ahem, ethically whole-deprived world of Division I collegiate sports.

Why, it was only seven months ago that Petrino, at the time the University of Arkansas' head coach, was riding his motorcycle when he crashed along Highway 16 near Crosses, Arkansas.

When asked by school officials to explain what had happened, he failed to mention that, eh, also on the bike was Jessica Dorrell, a 26-year-old former Razorbacks volleyball player who worked as the student-athlete development coordinator for the football program. It turned out that Petrino, a married father of four, was not only having an affair with Dorrell (who was engaged at the time), but was a key voice on the board that hired her for the position when she wasn't even remotely qualified.

During an ensuing university investigation, it was determined that Petrino made a previously undisclosed $20,000 cash gift to Dorrell as a Christmas present.

Ho, ho, ho.

To his credit, Jeff Long, the school's athletic director, defied the wishes of every pigskin-blinded Razorback fan and fired Petrino. In a statement, he rightly wrote that, "all of these facts, individually and collectively, are clearly contrary to character and responsibilities of the person occupying the position of the Head Football Coach—an individual who should serve as a role model and a leader for our student-athlete."

Now, ethics and morals and character be damned, Bobby Petrino has returned, spewing off nonsense about second chances (Ever notice how garbage men and bus drivers rarely get the second chances we are all—according to fallen athletic figures—rightly afforded as Americans?) and learning from mistakes and making things right.

Western Kentucky, a school with mediocre athletics and apparently, sub-mediocre standards, has turned to a person who lied to his last employer about the nature of an accident involving the mistress he allegedly hired to a university position she was unqualified to hold. Please, if you must, take a second to read that again. And again. And again.

Bobby Petrino, holder of a Ph.D. in the Deceptive Arts (he also ditched the University of Louisville shortly after signing a long-term extension in 2007, and quit as coach of the Atlanta Falcons 13 game into his first season later that year. He informed his players via a note atop their lockers), will be the one charged with teaching the 17- and 18-year-old boys who decide to come to Bowling Green about not merely football, but life. He will be their guide. Their compass. Their role model.

Bobby Petrino and social media prove a bad mix

Sadly, in the world of Division I sports, such is far from surprising. This has been a year unlike any other; one where the virtues of greed and the color of green don't merely cloak big-time college athletics, but control them. In case you haven't noticed, we are in the midst of a dizzying, nauseating game of Conference Jump, where colleges and universities—once determined to maintain geographic rivals in order to limit student travel—have lost their collective minds.

The University of Maryland, a charter member of the ACC, is headed for the Big Ten. The Big East—formerly a power conference featuring the likes of Syracuse, Georgetown, St. John's and Connecticut—has added Boise State, San Diego State, Memphis, Houston, Southern Methodist and Navy. Idaho moved from the WAC to the Big Sky, Middle Tennessee State and Florida Atlantic went to Conference USA, the University of Denver—a member of the WAC for approximately 27 minutes—joined the Summit League. Which, to be honest, I didn't even know existed.

Rest assured, none of these moves (literally, nary a one) were conducted with the best interests of so-called student-athletes in mind. New conferences tend to offer increased payouts, increased merchandising opportunities, increased exposure and increased opportunities to build a new stadium—one with 80,000 seats, 100 luxury boxes, $20 million naming rights, $9 hot dogs and the perfect spot for ESPN to broadcast its Home Depot pregame show.

Why, within 24 hours of quarterback Johnny Manziel winning the Heisman Trophy, Texas A&M was hawking Heisman T-shirts for $24 on its website (Or, for a mere $54.98, one can purchase his No. 2 jersey).

Percentage of the dough that winds up in Manziel's pocket? Zero.

After another spectacular exit, Petrino eyes football return

That, really, is the rub of it all; of Petrino's crabgrass-like revival; of coaches bounding from one job for another (even as players can only do so after sitting out a year); of Rutgers moving west and San Diego State moving east and athletic department officials moving on up (to a penthouse apartment in the sky); of $54.98 jerseys.

It's the athletes ultimately getting screwed.

Sure, for the 0.5% of Division I football players who wind up in the NFL, the deal is a sweet one. The other 99.5%, however, are mere pawns, sold a dizzying narrative of glory and fame and lifelong achievement, but, more often than not, left uneducated, unfulfilled and physically battered.

They are told a coach will be with them for four years—then watch as said figure takes a $2 million gig elsewhere but, hey, only because it was right for him and his family.

They are told they will receive a great education, then find themselves stuck on a six-hour flight from California to Newark, New Jersey. They are told that these will be the greatest years of their life, that the college experience is a special one, that only the highest of standards exist.

Then they meet their new coach: Bobby Petrino.

Follow @CNNOpinion on Twitter

Join us at Facebook/CNNOpinion

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Jeff Pearlman.

Read More..

Hundreds pack Conn. church for vigil after rampage

Updated 9:13 PM ET

NEWTOWN, Conn. A vigil Friday night for the victims of a school massacre in western Connecticut brought out hundreds of community members, including some parents who were struggling with mixed emotions after their own children survived the massacre.

With the church filled to capacity, hundreds spilled outside, some of them holding hands in circles and saying prayers. Others lit prayer candles and sang "Silent Night."

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was among the speakers at the service inside the St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic church.

"Many of us today and in the coming days will rely on what we have been taught and what we believe, that there is faith for a reason," Malloy said.

The residents were gathered to mourn those killed Friday, when a man killed his mother at their home and then opened fire inside the elementary school where she taught, massacring 26 people, including 20 children, as youngsters cowered in fear to the sound of gunshots reverberating through the building and screams echoing over the intercom.

The 20-year-old killer, carrying at least two handguns, committed suicide at the school, bringing the death toll to 28, authorities said.

At the vigil, the priest said the altar holds 26 candles, all of which were lit in memory of the victims. Lyrics of the last hymn of the ceremony rang out: "I will raise him up on eagle's wings."

The parish priest, Robert Weiss, said he spent much of Friday with victims of the families but he could not give them any answers about what happened.

After receiving word of the shooting, Tracy Hoekenga said at the vigil that she was paralyzed with fear for her two boys, fourth-grader C.J. and second grader Matthew.

"I couldn't breathe. It's indescribable. For a half an hour, 45 minutes, I had no idea if my kids were OK," she said.

She said she was wrestling with many emotions as she attended the vigil.

Her son Matthew said a teacher ordered students to their cubbies and a police officer came and told them to line up and close their eyes.

"They said there could be bad staff. So we closed our eyes and we went out. When we opened our eyes, we saw a lot of broken glass and blood on the ground."

David Connors, the father of three triplets at the school, said at a vigil that his children were taken into a closet during the lockdown.

"My son said he did hear some gunshots, as many as 10," he said. "The questions are starting to come out. `Are we safe? Is the bad guy gone?"'

Read More..

Conn. Shooter Adam Lanza: 'Obviously Not Well'

Adam Lanza of Newtown, Connecticut was a child of the suburbs and a child of divorce who at age 20 still lived with his mother.

This morning he appears to have started his day by shooting his mother Nancy in the face, and then drove her car to nearby Sandy Hook Elementary School, armed with two handguns and a semi-automatic rifle.

There, before turning his gun on himself, he shot and killed 20 children, who President Obama later described as "beautiful little kids" between five and 10 years of age. Six adults were also killed at the school. Nancy Lanza was found dead in her home.

A relative told ABC News that Adam was "obviously not well."

Family friends in Newtown also described the young man as troubled and described Nancy as rigid. "[Adam] was not connected with the other kids," said Barbara Frey, who also said he was "a little bit different ... Kind of repressed."

State and federal authorities believe his mother may have once worked at the elementary school where Adam went on his deadly rampage, although she was not a teacher, according to relatives, perhaps a volunteer.

Nancy and her husband Peter, Adam's father, divorced in 2009. When they first filed for divorce in 2008, a judge ordered that they participate in a "parenting education program."

Peter Lanza, who drove to northern New Jersey to talk to police and the FBI, is a vice president at GE Capital and had been a partner at global accounting giant Ernst & Young.

Adam's older brother Ryan Lanza, 24, has worked at Ernst & Young for four years, apparently following in his father's footsteps and carving out a solid niche in the tax practice. He too was interviewed by the FBI. Neither he nor his father is under any suspicion.

"[Ryan] is a tax guy and he is clean as a whistle," a source familiar with his work said.

Police had initially identified Ryan as the killer. Ryan sent out a series of Facebook posts saying it wasn't him and that he was at work all day. Video records as well as card swipes at Ernst & Young verified his statement that he had been at the office.

Two federal sources told ABC News that identification belonging to Ryan Lanza was found at the scene of the mass shooting. They say that identification may have led to the confusion by authorities during the first hours after the shooting. Neither Adam nor Ryan has any known criminal history.

A Sig Sauer handgun and a Glock handgun were used in the slaying and .223 shell casings – a round used in a semi-automatic military style rifle -- were also found at the scene. Nancy Lanza had numerous weapons registered to her, including a Glock and a Sig Sauer. She also owned a Bushmaster rifle -- a semi-automatic carbine chambered for a .223 caliber round. However, federal authorities cannot confirm that the handguns or the rifle were the weapons receovered at the school.

Numerous relatives of the Lanzas in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, as well as multiple friends, are being interviewed by the FBI in an effort to put together a better picture of the gunman and any explanation for today's tragedy.

"I think the most important thing to point out with this kind of individual is that he did not snap this morning and decide to act out violently," said former FBI profiler Mary Ellen O'Toole. "These acts involve planning and thoughtfulness and strategizing in order to put the plan together so what may appear to be snap behavior is not that at all."

With reporting by Pierre Thomas, Jim Avila, Santina Leuci, Aaron Katersky, Matthew Mosk, Jason Ryan and Jay Shaylor

MORE: 27 Dead, Mostly Children, at Connecticut Elementary School Shooting

LIVE UPDATES: Newton, Conn. School Shooting

Click Here for the Blotter Homepage.

Read More..

CERN becomes first pure physics voice in UN chorus

Lisa Grossman, physical sciences reporter

(Image: UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras)

If CERN observes the proceedings of the United Nations, will it change the outcome?

The international particle physics laboratory, based near Geneva, Switzerland, has been granted observer status in the General Assembly of the United Nations, CERN officials announced today. 

The lab joins environmental groups and public health agencies as the first physical sciences research organization in the ranks of UN observers. Observer status grants the right to speak at meetings, participate in procedural votes, and sign and sponsor resolutions, but not to vote on resolutions.

In some ways, CERN's addition seems a natural move - and a long time coming.

The facility was founded in 1954 under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Its initial mission was to provide collaborative projects for researchers from Allied countries and former Axis countries after the second World War.

Arguably the lab's most high-profile project, the Large Hadron Collider, made headlines worldwide this year when it revealed detection of a new particle that appears to be the elusive Higgs boson.

"Through its projects, which bring together scientists from all over the world, CERN also promotes dialogue between nations and has become a model for international cooperation," CERN states in a press release. The lab says it may use its new status with the UN to help shore up scientific education and technological capabilities in developing countries, particularly in Africa.

But just as observing a quantum particle can change its state, can CERN's involvement truly collapse the UN's wavefunction and trigger better global science and technology policies? Only time will tell.

Read More..

More land released for sale in early 2013

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of National Development (MND) has announced the Government Land Sales Programme for the first half of 2013 (1H2013).

In a statement issued on Friday, MND said it will provide an adequate supply of private housing to meet continued demand from home buyers.

There will be 12 private residential sites, including five executive condominium (EC) sites and a commercial and residential site on the Confirmed List.

These sites can yield about 6,900 private residential units, including 3,100 EC units and 33,000 square metre gross floor area (GFA) of commercial space.

MND said most of the private residential sites, including the five EC sites, are located in the suburban areas or in the city fringe where more affordable private housing is expected to be built.

In addition to the sites on the Confirmed List, MND said 19 sites will be available under the 1H2013 Reserve List.

These include 11 private residential sites, one commercial and residential site, two commercial sites, one "white" site and four hotel sites.

"White" sites are those which developers are allowed to decide on a mix of uses for the site and respective quantum of floor space for each use, as long as the total permissible GFA for the whole development is not exceeded.

Sites on the Reserve List can yield about 7,100 private residential units, 281,000 square metre GFA of commercial space and 1,740 hotel rooms.

In all, the programme is expected to yield about 14,000 private residential units, including 3,100 EC units.

- CNA/xq

Read More..

Susan Rice: My withdrawal is better for the country

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: Sen. Harry Reid: Republican attacks on Rice's character were "shameful."


• Susan Rice withdraws from consideration as secretary of state


• Nomination would be "be lengthy, disruptive, and costly," she says in letter to president


• Republican critics "respect" Rice's decision, vow to continue Benghazi inquiry

(CNN) -- Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who drew heavy criticism from Republicans over her statements after the September attacks on a U.S. diplomatic mission, withdrew her name from consideration for secretary of state on Thursday.

In a letter to President Barack Obama, she said "the confirmation process would be lengthy, disruptive, and costly -- to you and to our most pressing national and international priorities. That trade-off is simply not worth it to our country."

Obama acknowledged her letter in a statement that described her as "an extraordinarily capable, patriotic, and passionate public servant." He will meet with Rice Friday at the White House, National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said.

Read Rice's letter to the President

She was thought to be a frontrunner for the post, which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she would vacate as soon as a successor is confirmed.

But Rice drew criticism for her description of the September 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, which killed four including the U.S. Ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens. On several television programs several days after the attack, she described a protest of an anti-Islam video outside the mission buildings.

She said her comments were based on declassified talking points, and sources within the intelligence community said the talking points were not modified by any other body, such as the White House.

She further explained her decision to withdraw and defended herself Thursday in a piece for the Washington Post, writing: "I have never sought in any way, shape or form to mislead the American people. ... Even before I was nominated for any new position, a steady drip of manufactured charges painted a wholly false picture of me."

Obama had defended her, describing the criticism from several key Republicans as "outrageous." "If Senator (John) McCain and Senator (Lindsey) Graham and others want to go after someone, they should go after me," Obama said at a White House news conference in late November. "When they go after the U.N. ambassador, apparently because they think she's an easy target, then they've got a problem with me."

She visited Capitol Hill in an attempt to answer what the legislators called "unanswered questions," but her visit there appeared to backfire. Senators who sat in on the meetings said her appearances raised more questions than they answered.

5 questions on Susan Rice

Her closed-door meetings "really hurt her," one knowledgeable Democratic source said. "She probably underestimated the club."

The longer Rice went un-nominated, the source said, the worse her prospects appeared. It was "better to get out now" so that Obama could begin announcing a national security slate as early as next week.

In a statement, Clinton called Rice "an indispensable partner over the past four years."

"From the National Security Council to the State Department to the United Nations, Susan has worked tirelessly to advance our nation's interests and values. I am confident that she will continue to represent the United States with strength and skill," Clinton said.

After Rice's Thursday announcement, Graham said in a statement: "I respect Ambassador Rice's decision. President Obama has many talented people to choose from to serve as our next secretary of state."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid described Republican opposition to Rice's possible nomination as "shameful."

"Ambassador Rice is eminently qualified to serve as Secretary of State and she could have been confirmed by the Senate. The politically motivated attacks on her character from some of my Republican colleagues were shameful," the Nevada Democrat said in a statement. "Their behavior was a disgrace to the Senate's tradition of bipartisan cooperation on national security issues and beneath the stature of senators with otherwise distinguished records on national security."

Rice's decision to not seek the post now leaves Sen. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, as the presumed frontrunner for the spot. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and other high-ranking officials are also expected to depart soon.

Kerry praised Rice as "an extraordinarily capable and dedicated public servant" in a statement after her announcement.

"I've known and worked closely with Susan Rice not just at the U.N., but in my own campaign for president. I've defended her publicly and wouldn't hesitate to do so again because I know her character and I know her commitment," he wrote. "We should all be grateful that she will continue to serve and contribute at the highest level. As someone who has weathered my share of political attacks and understands on a personal level just how difficult politics can be, I've felt for her throughout these last difficult weeks, but I also know that she will continue to serve with great passion and distinction."

Kerry's road to the State Department, should he be nominated, would appear to be smoother than Rice's. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said after Rice's announcement that Kerry would be a "popular choice with the Senate."

Another Senate Republican, Rob Portman of Ohio, named Kerry as one of Obama's "better choices" for the spot, according to The New York Times.

But despite his lauded role assisting Obama in preparing for the presidential debates this fall, Kerry is understood to be less of an Obama confidante than Rice.

Kerry is a decorated veteran who served two tours of duty in Vietnam before his career as a lawyer and then in the U.S. Senate. His assignments there include the chairmanship of the Foreign Relations Committee.

Should Kerry step down before his term ends in 2014, Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, would appoint a temporary replacement to hold the seat until a special election could be held. The special election race would likely include Sen. Scott Brown, who won in a special election three years ago but lost his bid for a full term, as well as Democratic Rep. Ed Markey, who is seriously considering a bid should Kerry's seat open, a Democratic source said.

On Thursday, Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-New Hampshire said she had "respect" for Rice's decision, "however, my concerns regarding the terrorist attack in Benghazi go beyond any one individual. I remain deeply troubled by the continued lack of information from the White House and the State Department. With four of our public servants murdered, it is critical that we get to the bottom of what happened."

Ayotte told CNN after the late November meeting with Rice, Graham, and McCain, "Certainly she misled the American public."

Former CIA Director David Petraeus, who resigned last month after admitting to an extramarital affair, returned to Capitol Hill to testify on the attacks, and Clinton is scheduled to testify next week.

Sen. Susan Collins, the moderate Republican from Maine, said through a spokesman that the Senate Homeland Security Committee, where she serves as ranking member, would continue its investigation into the Benghazi attack. She had raised her own questions about Rice's potential nomination after a private meeting with the ambassador.

The Thursday decision was Rice's own; she was not asked to step aside in the consideration process, a former administration official who had knowledge of her decision said.

"She has got a lot of honor, a lot of dignity, a lot of patriotism. This was a completely manufactured distraction, and she was determined to put her country first," the former official said. "No nominee for secretary of state has been subjected to such a sustained campaign of politicization and slander. And it is really troubling."

Madeleine Albright, who was the first woman to serve as secretary of state and has known Rice for decades, said Rice is "brilliant" and described her withdrawal from consideration as "sad."

"I think it is genuinely, genuinely sad because she is one of the smartest people that I know and completely dedicated to serving the United States," Albright told CNN. Rice "put the country and the president ahead of her own ambition. It just shows what a tremendously thoughtful and good and responsible person she is."

In her letter to Obama, Rice wrote "the position of secretary of state should never be politicized."

"As someone who grew up in an era of comparative bipartisanship and as a sitting U.S. national security official who has served in two U.S. administrations, I am saddened that we have reached this point, even before you have decided whom to nominate," she wrote. "We can not afford such an irresponsible distraction from the most pressing issues facing the American people."

Rice served in President Bill Clinton's administration on the National Security Council, eventually leading African affairs for the council and serving as a special assistant to the president.

She was confirmed by the Senate as the top diplomat to the U.N. in January 2009.

If Rice had been nominated, she would have faced criticism from religious leaders about her role in the Clinton administration's handling of the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s.

U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said on CNN that Rice's decision was "probably for the best."

"I think Ambassador Rice was facing an uphill battle in the senate for any confirmation she may have received," he said.

Asked in an interview Thursday on NBC whether she wanted the top diplomatic post, Rice replied that she "would have been very honored to serve in that job."

She added, "But yeah, sure. How can you not want to -- in my field -- serve at the highest possible level?"

CNN's Jessica Yellin, Jim Acosta, Dana Bash, Gloria Borger, Elise Labott, Jamie Crawford, Paul Steinhauser and Gregory Wallace contributed to this report

Read More..