Hatch's decision to withdraw came after he finished sixth and last Monday night in the GOP's Iowa caucuses, behind even Sen. John McCain, who was not competing there.

"Now that I am out, I think Governor Bush is the only person who can get things done, cut marginal tax rates so that we can keep this economy going, improve our schools," Hatch said.

"I think he can reach across partisan lines," Hatch said. In the campaign battle, he said, "I've seen a really fine man over these subsequent weeks. I thought he was fine before, and I thought he'd make a good president."

Bush, in New Hampshire, said, "Senator Hatch took a long look at all of us running, and I am most appreciative."

As for ending his own campaign, Hatch said at a news conference, "It is now clear that there will not be time to build sufficient support for my candidacy."

Hatch, 65, had hoped his nearly quarter-century in the Senate would vault him to the top of the crowded GOP field. But he got into the race far later than his rivals -- last summer -- and few voters seemed interested.

He acknowledged today that the odds were "extremely long" from the start, and joked that his standing in the polls rose as other candidates dropped out.

"I kind of liked the trend," he said, but "unfortunately, the other candidates are not doing their part to keep this trend going."

He said all the other Republicans in the hunt were good men.

"I think each of them would be a dramatic improvement over the current occupant of the White House," said Hatch. He said he had entered the race to "repudiate the immediate history" of what he has described as a scandalous Clinton presidency.

All the remaining Republicans also are preferable, he said, to Democratic contenders Al Gore and Bill Bradley.

He encouraged the five men who remain in the GOP contest to run fair and positive campaigns, saying Americans are sick of attack politics.

"We have one thing in common," Hatch said of himself and his former opponents, "we share a belief in the promise of this nation and a fervent belief that the best days lie ahead."

Hatch began his upbeat news conference, held in the Senate chamber where he chairs the Judiciary Committee, by joking: "A funny thing happened on the way to the White House."

He said he could have continued his bid, but didn't want to rely on taxpayer subsidies for what was sure to be a losing fight.

Hatch got 1 percent of the vote in the Iowa Republican caucus Monday night, finishing sixth in the six-man field, and has low single-digit support in most public opinion polls.

"All these other (GOP candidates) are making grandiose promises, but three of them have never been elected to anything," Hatch said last week, referring to fellow conservatives Steve Forbes, Alan Keyes and Gary Bauer. "They have no clue how to work with Congress."

Hatch remains a candidate for re-election to the Senate, where he has represented Utah since 1977.

A GOP strategist in Hatch's home state said he doubted the failed presidential bid would hurt Hatch in national Republican circles or with Utah voters.

"His stature in the party has always been based on his personal character and his influence, and neither one of them are affected by this," said John Maddox, a former adviser to Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign. "He's still chairman."