NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) After months of will-he or won't-he speculation, MSNBC "Hardball" host Chris Matthews has opted not to run for the U.S. Senate in his native Pennsylvania.
Matthews told his producers during a meeting just before Wednesday's "Hardball" that he isn't seeking the Democratic nomination for the seat occupied by moderate Republican Arlen Specter, who is up for re-election in 2010.
He is now said to be mulling a contract renewal offer from MSNBC. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in mid-December, MSNBC president Phil Griffin said he expected Matthews to stay at the news cable channel "for a long time."
Matthews, Griffin and "Hardball" executive producer John Reiss declined to comment Wednesday.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090108/tv_nm/us_matthews