https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/apr/28/bill-weld-larry-hogan-john-kasich-opening-trump-ch/
Fergus Cullen, a GOP fixture in New Hampshire politics, sent out 150 invites to his house party for Bill Weld, the first Republican to announce a primary challenge to President Trump.
No fan of the president, Mr. Cullen didn’t go out of his way to invite diehard Trump supporters, and some simply couldn’t make it. But more than 60 people showed up and — most notably — only three declined with some version of “Thanks, but I’m with Trump.”
“I thought I’d get more,” Mr. Cullen said of Trump die-hards. “It confirmed for me that people are open to an alternative. Doesn’t mean they’ll all vote for an alternative, but they are open to hearing from someone else.”
New Hampshire is critical ground for the “Never Trumpers” who hope to defy the odds and mount an intra-party challenge to a sitting president.
Mr. Weld says he’s running because America “deserves better” than Mr. Trump, citing his belligerent manner, his attitude toward Russia and other eyebrow-raising moments, such as his comments after the riots in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Speaking at St. Anselm College, he said he’s not in a rush to beat New Hampshire’s filing deadline this November, and said he has no interest in launching a “suicide mission” while he holds his day job as governor.
Any challenge to Mr. Trump is definitely a long shot. National polls suggest he enjoys support from 90% of the party.
“President Trump received more primary votes than any nominee in Republican Party history and he now enjoys the highest approval rating in his party of almost any president in modern history,” RNC spokesman Steve Guest said. “The RNC and the Republican Party are firmly behind the president. Any effort to challenge the president’s nomination is bound to go absolutely nowhere.”