John Kerry considering presidential run in 2020: report

Former Secretary of State John Kerry is considering a second run for president in 2020 to take on President Trump, according to comments reported by the Israel newspaper Maariv.

According to the report, Kerry told Palestinian officials that he was strongly considering a run in 2020 and hinted that Trump will likely not be in office much longer in strongly worded conversation Wednesday.

“Hold on and be strong,” Kerry told the interviewer, a close associate of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, adding that he should tell Abbas “that he should stay strong in his spirit and play for time, that he will not break and will not yield to President [Donald] Trump’s demands.”

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The former top U.S. diplomat also commented on the ongoing efforts of the Trump administration to negotiate a peace plan between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and suggested that Abbas present his own peace plan in the wake of the White House’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December.

“Maybe it is time for the Palestinians to define their peace principles and present a positive plan,” Kerry suggested.

Kerry previously ran for president in 2004, against President George W. Bush, who was running for reelection. Kerry lost the general election with 251 Electoral College votes to Bush’s 286. He later became the final secretary of State to Bush’s successor, Barack Obama.

In December, Kerry admitted that he considered running for president in 2016, but eventually decided against it.

“For a minute or two, maybe somewhere along the line, it crossed my mind — possibly,” Kerry, a former senator from Massachusetts, told the Boston Globe.

“But there are a number of reasons why I dismissed the idea. And I’m glad. I think it was right. I never really thought that seriously about it.”