Ex-Rep. Joe Walsh makes GOP challenge to Trump

Associated Press

Joe Walsh, a former Illinois congressman and tea party favorite turned radio talk-show host, announced a challenge Sunday to President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination in 2020, saying the incumbent is unfit for office and must be denied a second term.

“He’s nuts. He’s erratic. He’s cruel. He stokes bigotry. He’s incompetent. He doesn’t know what he’s doing,” Walsh told ABC’s “This Week.” The longshot portrayed himself as a legitimate alternative in a party where he said many are opposed to Trump but are “scared to death” of saying so publicly.

His campaign slogan: “Be brave.”

Polls shows Trump is backed by most Republican voters, and the lone rival already in the race is former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, the 2016 Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee who is regarded as fiscally conservative but socially liberal.

Undeterred from pressing ahead with his candidacy, Walsh said, “I think this thing ... will catch on like wildfire.” The former Trump booster added: “I’m a conservative. And I think there’s a decent chance to present to Republican voters a conservative without all the baggage.”

The one-word response from Trump’s campaign to Walsh’s entry: “Whatever.”