Kinzinger says he would ‘love’ to run against Trump in 2024

Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) said in a new interview that he “would love” to run against former President Trump in a GOP primary election.

Kinzinger, who announced last year that he would not seek reelection, told HuffPost that he might run to be the Republican nominee for president in 2024, and when asked if he would like to face off against Trump, he replied, “I would love it. I really would.”

“Even if he crushed me, like in a primary, to be able to stand up and call out the garbage is just a necessary thing, regardless of who it is. … I think it’d be fun,” added Kinzinger. Trump is expected by many to run for president again.

Kinzinger also spoke about the likelihood he will run for the White House, explaining, “I’ll make a decision when we get there, if there’s a need and a desire. It’s truly not anything I’m planning right now, but I’m not going to rule it out.” 

 “Look, if we’re in a position, if it’s just terrible candidates and the country’s in a worse place? Maybe. But there’s no grand plan right now,” the Illinois representative added.

Kinzinger, who has been a vocal critic of Trump and voted to impeach the former president, did say for certain that he does not want to run for a seat in the House again, telling HuffPost he is “exhausted.”

He also explained that he doesn’t know what’s next in his career, but is open to several possibilities.

“I don’t know. Maybe I would have run for governor. Maybe I would have run for Senate. Who knows? But yeah, my time in the House is, mercifully, coming to an end.”