WASHINGTON — Rep. Patrick Kennedy has decided not to seek re-election after eight terms in Congress, saying his life is "taking a new direction" just months after the death of his father and mentor, Sen. Edward Kennedy. The Rhode Island Democrat taped a message with his decision to be aired on Rhode Island's television stations Sunday night. The Associated Press viewed the message Thursday, ahead of the announcement.
"Now having spent two decades in politics, my life is taking a new direction, and I will not be a candidate for re-election this year," Kennedy says.
The decision comes less than a month after a stunning upset by Republican Scott Brown in the race for the Massachusetts Senate seat his father held for almost half a century. Last week, as Brown was sworn into the seat, Patrick Kennedy called Brown's candidacy a "joke" and predicted Brown would betray his union supporters.
Kennedy did not give a reason for his decision, but he began the message by saying it had been a difficult few years for many people, then segued into the death of his father.
"Illness took the life of my most cherished mentor and confidante, my ultimate source of spirit and strength," he said, as a black-and-white photo of him as a boy sailing with his father appeared on the screen. "From the countless lives he lifted, to the American promise he helped shape, my father taught me that politics at its very core was about serving others."
Kennedy said he remained committed to public service, and he thanked Rhode Island voters for supporting him through ups and downs.
He has been in and out of treatment for substance abuse since crashing his car outside the U.S Capitol in 2006. Still, he has been comfortably re-elected twice since then, after making mental health care his signature issue in Washington.
"When I made missteps or suffered setbacks, you responded not with contempt, but compassion," he said. "Thank you for all the times you lifted me up, pushed me forward."