Brown thinks Palin qualified, backs Romney now

WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Scott Brown says he thinks former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is qualified to be president but right now he's supporting former Gov. Mitt Romney for the 2012 Republican nomination.

As for his own ambitions, he say "absolutely in 2012" he's ruling out any run for the presidency. And in an interview broadcast Friday on NBC, Brown said "I'm not even going to jump" at a question about whether he would seek the presidency.

Brown said, "I've been here three months ... and I'm very focused on doing my job." Asked if he regretted bolting the Republican caucus recently to support Democrats on a jobs bill, he said, "I don't really care. .. I'm going to be the independent person I have always been."