Trump Has a GOP Challenger

A former Massachusetts governor is officially challenging President Trump for the 2020 Republican nomination—and it's not Mitt Romney. Bill Weld, who was the Libertarian candidate for vice president in 2016, announced the longshot bid during a CNN appearance Monday, the Washington Post reports. The 73-year-old described himself to Jake Tapper as a Republican "who works across the aisle and gets things done. Donald Trump is not an economic conservative. He doesn’t even pretend to be," Weld said. "The country deserves to have some fiscal constraint and conservatism." In a campaign video, he lists his achievements as governor of Massachusetts from 1991 to 1997, including "cutting taxes 21 times."

Weld's entry "changes the narrative of the entire race" because it means Trump will not run for the GOP nomination unopposed, ABC reports, but few expect him to make Trump the first sitting president to fail to win renomination from his own party since Chester Arthur in 1884. Polls show that Trump has the support of 89% of Republican voters. "Any effort to challenge the president's nomination is bound to go absolutely nowhere," the Republican National Committee said in a statement. Weld, who is running under the slogan "A Better America Starts Here," might not be the only Republican to challenge Trump, the BBC reports. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich are also seen as potential challengers. Jeb Bush has also called for a Republican to defeat Trump in the primaries, though he is unlikely to seek a rematch himself. (More Bill Weld stories.)