The "impressive" independent candidate The Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol tweeted about over the weekend is a constitutional lawyer named David French, Bloomberg Politics reports, citing "two Republicans intimately familiar" with Kristol's efforts.
The sources confirmed that French is open to running for president against Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, but hasn't made a final decision. French is a National Review staff writer, recipient of the Bronze Star, a veteran of the 2003 Iraq War, and the author of several books.
A source said some conservative donors are excited about the prospect of French joining the race. Kristol and French, who lives in Tennessee with his wife and three children, declined to comment to Bloomberg Politics, but in the June 6 issue of The Weekly Standard, Kristol wrote, "To say that [French] would be a better and a more responsible president than Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump is to state a truth that would become self-evident as more Americans go to know him." During a press conference Tuesday, Trump said any independent candidates would be "fools."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
'Is it OK to be happy when the world is falling apart?'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Will online age checks doom internet freedom?Today's Big Question Or do they protect children from harm?
-
At least 800 dead in Afghanistan earthquakespeed read A magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit a mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan
-
Trump crypto token launch earns family billionsSpeed Read The World Liberty Financial token is now the Trump family's 'most valuable asset'
-
RFK Jr. names new CDC head as staff revoltSpeed Read Kennedy installed his deputy, Jim O'Neill, as acting CDC director
-
DC prosecutors lose bid to indict sandwich throwerSpeed Read Prosecutors sought to charge Sean Dunn with assaulting a federal officer
-
White House fires new CDC head amid agency exodusSpeed Read CDC Director Susan Monarez was ousted after butting heads with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccines
-
DOGE put Social Security data at risk, official saysSpeed Read DOGE workers made the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans vulnerable to identity theft
-
Court rejects Trump suit against Maryland US judgesSpeed Read Judge Thomas Cullen, a Trump appointee, said the executive branch had no authority to sue the judges
-
Trump expands National Guard role in policingSpeed Read The president wants the Guard to take on a larger role in domestic law enforcement
-
Trump says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa CookSpeed Read The move is likely part of Trump's push to get the central bank to cut interest rates
