Conservative pundit Bill Kristol is courting Mitt Romney to run as a third-party candidate against Donald Trump.
Trump secured the Republican nomination when both Ted Cruz and John Kasich suspended their campaigns, leaving him as the last man standing.
Kristol, who is the editor of the Weekly Standard, met with Romney last week to discuss the possibility of an independent campaign. The Washington Post reports if Kristol is unsuccessful at recruiting Romney, he is at least hoping to secure the former GOP nominee’s support for another third-party candidate.
“He came pretty close to being elected president, so I thought he may consider doing it, especially since he has been very forthright in explaining why Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton should not be president of the United States,” Kristol said in a phone interview Friday, during which he confirmed that he and Romney had a “little meeting in Washington.”
“Obviously, if there were to be an independent candidacy, Romney’s support would be very important,” Kristol said. “I wanted to get his wisdom on whether it was more or less doable than I thought.”
