GOP Challengers To Trump 2020 Begin Exploratory Presidential Bids

Former Massachusetts Gov. Williams Weld announced Friday he has launched an exploratory bid to run against President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential primary. Not long after, an aide to former Ohio Gov. John Kasich said Kasich was also "leaning toward a primary run."

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has also reportedly met to explore an option to challenge Trump in 2020.

A Republican incumbent president hasn't faced a notable challenger in the party's primary since George H.W. Bush in 1992, according to the Associated Press.

Weld, 73, made his announcement in New Hampshire at a breakfast event. Though little-known on a national level, Weld may get little support from GOP voters given his history of supporting Barack Obama and a brief stint as a Libertarian, according to the AP.

Weld said Trump has put his own interests ahead of the country's.

"We have a president whose priorities are skewed toward promotion of himself rather than for the good of the country," Weld said. "He may have great energy and considerable raw talent, but he does not use that in ways that promote democracy, truth, justice and equal opportunity for all. To compound matters, our president is simply too unstable to carry out the duties of the highest executive office in the land."

During her briefing on Friday, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to comment on Weld's campaign.

"Who?" Sander asked.

Weld is a former Democrat who hasn't won an election since 1994 when he was re-elected as governor. He's been known as socially liberal, yet fiscally conservative. He ran as a vice-presidential candidate in 2016 on the Libertarian ticket with New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson. They won a little more than 3 percent of the vote.

Last month, Weld registered with the GOP. That struck a nerve with Matt Mayberry, the former vice chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party.

"It bothers me that you left the party, ran for vice president and came back," Mayberry said. "Please talk to me and other Republicans, moderate Republicans, about how, as Republicans, we can trust you to govern as a Republican."

Weld said he preferred to take Trump head on rather than through a third party again.

"I want to not dribble around the court but go right to the hoop. If you want to go one-on-one here, it's got to be as an 'R,' that can't be helped," Weld said. "That's the way this race has to be run. It feels good to be back here with the 'R' on my name."

Bill Kristol, who's behind the driving force to find a top conservative opponent for Trump, applauded Weld for testing waters before they start to get warm.

"I think he deserves a lot of credit for being the first one in the pool," Kristol said. "The water's pretty cool at this point. But he won't be the last."

Kasich aide John Weaver said it's almost certain the former Ohio governor and 2016 presidential candidate will make another run at president.

"All of our options remain on the table, and we're leaning toward a primary run," Weaver told the AP.

Hogan is a two-term governor in Maryland, and he's expected to tackle statewide issues before testing the presidential waters in Iowa and New Hampshire.