Jackson to Tell Today Whether He’ll Run for President Again

The Rev. Jesse Jackson today will end speculation on whether he will run again for the presidency, announcing his decision at a crime-ridden housing complex that would be an odd choice for a launching pad for anyone but him.

Jackson, America’s best-known black politician and civil rights crusader, has often visited the Potomac Gardens area in his “Let’s rebuild America” drive to upgrade ghetto districts, and he chose it as the backdrop for his announcement.

He planned meetings Friday night and this morning with supporters of his 1984 and 1988 campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination before his scheduled noon announcement.

Aides refused to speculate on what Jackson’s decision will be, but many political analysts doubt that he will make a third run for the presidency in 1992.

The New York Times, quoting “a highly placed (Democratic) party strategist,” said in today’s editions that Jackson had decided not to run again.

Officials of the Democratic Party could not be reached by Reuters Friday night for comment on the newspaper’s report.

Jackson, 50, has been considering an offer to be host of a television talk show on CNN, and the cable network contract precludes him from running for President if he accepts it.

When asked by a reporter recently whether he would run, Jackson replied: “Of course, the question is when.”

The housing complex, near the U.S. Capitol, has been a center of violence and drug peddling.

Residents and neighborhood activists are trying to clean it up. Jackson, who represents the District of Columbia in the U.S. Senate as a non-voting “shadow congressman,” has made several visits in support of their drive.