Sept. 16 -- A White House bid by retired U.S. Army Gen. Wesley Clark will shake up the Democratic primary race, according to Charlie Cook, MSNBC political analyst and editor of the Cook Political Report.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Sept. 16 — Wesley Clark, the retired general with a four-star military resume but no political experience, decided Tuesday to become the 10th Democratic presidential candidate, officials close to him said.

“HE’S MADE HIS decision and will announce it tomorrow in Little Rock,” said Mark Fabiani, a spokesman for Clark. The announcement will be made at 1 p.m. ET Wednesday in Arkansas, sources said.

Fabiani did not reveal Clark’s decision, but officials close to the former Army general said he told his fledgling campaign team that he’s in the race.

Clark’s decision came as Democratic strategists from around the country gathered at his small, low-slung brick headquarters on the banks of the Arkansas river to discuss strategy for mounting a late-starting presidential campaign.
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Fabiani, who served as spokesman for former Vice President Al Gore’s 2000 campaign, is part of a cadre of former Gore and Bill Clinton advisers, who are now rallying behind Clark. In addition to Fabiani, among those attending the meeting were Ron Klain, a strategist in Al Gore’s 2000 campaign; Washington lawyer Bill Oldaker; Vanessa Weaver, a Clinton appointee; Skip Rutherford, a Clinton fund-raiser who lives here; George Bruno, a New Hampshire activist; and Peter Knight, a Washington lobbyist and longtime Gore fund-raiser. Bruce Lindsey, former White House aide and now an Arkansas lawyer, also backs Clark.

Clinton had urged Clark to enter the race, but neither he nor Gore is expected to take sides in the primary fight.

Clark’s team was exploring several venues in Little Rock for an announcement, including a park named for World War II Gen. Douglas MacArthur, a Little Rock native. This site would underscore what Clark’s advisers consider his greatest strength: his longtime military background.