GOP candidate insurgency may bring 2020 speculation early and often as WH buffoonery continues, and as GOP Congress members bail from their incumbency, either because of intrinsic failings or because like fantasy football, it will be about match-ups.
Assuming that the Kochs and Mercers haven’t yet made up the GOP mind, there will be insurgent movement like no other as #TrumpRussia moves forward.
The Russians may still have a dog in the hunt since who gains more even if Trump turns everything around and the Russians throw some cash (again) at…. Paul Ryan?
Note also that presidential campaigns have started much earlier as we approach only 1000 days left in the Trump debacle. And even more unrealistic celebrity match-ups have emerged, Kanye West and Dwayne Johnson among them.
October 2017
...who could challenge Trump in a primary, with No. 1 being the most likely to succeed — albeit still quite unlikely at this point.
5. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.): Flake made big news this week for his stemwinder against Trumpism, but he's been a consistent critic, not backing Trump in 2016 and authoring a book highly critical of him. Flake also left open the possibility of running in 2020 this week, saying “that's a long time away.” But judging by his media appearances this week, I'm not sure Flake is the strongest messenger in a race that may demand a big personality with a quick wit to counter Trump.
4. Mitt Romney: The other four names on this list were pretty easy to assemble. This one is more outside-the-box. But hear me out: Romney was a huge Trump critic dating back to the 2016 campaign, delivering a major speech against him. He also considered running again in 2016, before stepping aside for Jeb Bush. And he's still clearly got the bug, given he's considering a 2018 Senate campaign in Utah if Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R) retires. Romney would basically walk into the Senate, and would immediately have a platform for speaking out against Trump.
3. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.): Cruz has been conspicuously quiet ever since the 2016 Republican National Convention, when he declined to speak positively about Trump during his speech and later said he would not be Trump's “servile puppy dog.” His numbers in Texas sank afterward, and he's got a 2018 reelection campaign to worry about, which is perhaps why he's been so quiet. In some respects, Cruz appears to have reconciled with the Trump team: Cruz and his family dined with Trump at the White House in March, and former White House chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon reportedly says he's the lone Republican incumbent in 2018 against whom he won't back a primary challenge. But I wouldn't be so sure he's not still available for 2020, under the right circumstances. And if he ran, he'd be formidable.
2. Ohio Gov. John Kasich: Like Flake, Kasich has left the door cracked to a run in 2020. And unlike a lot of these Trump critics, he hasn't seen it damage his personal image, which remains strong on Ohio. Kasich didn't win anywhere in the 2016 GOP primary, though, besides his home state. So the environment -- or the candidate himself — would need to be quite different.
1. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.): Among Trump's critics, none are as gifted a messenger as Sasse. Few Republicans across the country probably know who he is, but Sasse seems to have carefully and gradually crafted a reputation as a thoughtful conservative who is not enamored of where Trump is taking the country. He also went to Iowa a few months back. (Yes, he's from neighboring Nebraska, but still.) If I had to keep my eye on one potential Trump challenge, it would be Sasse.
www.washingtonpost.com/...
(Nov 2017) Business Insider’s Top Ten Democrats for 2020:
Bernie Sanders
Joe Biden
Kirsten Gillibrand
Elizabeth Warren
Kamala Harris
Sherrod Brown
Cory Booker
Terry McAuliffe
Chris Murphy
Andrew Cuomo