Lamar Alexander made it official at two o’clock this afternoon when heannounced his withdrawal from the Republican presidential race. Former IowaRepublican party chairman Brian Kennedy has worked the past two years asAlexander’s national political director. Kennedy watched Alexander’sannouncement on television.Alexander expressed hope other candidates would endorse two ideas headvanced during the campaign: an increase in the “dependent child” taxcredit was one. The other was a 15-hundred-dollar “Hope Scholarships”low-income parents could use to send their kids to a better school.Kennedy has no regrets saying Alexander ran a quality campaign and madepeople feel good about politics.The Alexander campaign had hoped to finish third in last Saturday’s IowaStraw Poll. Alexander finished sixth.Alexander did not endorse any other candidate in the race.