Republican Sen. Jeff Flake accepted an invitation to give a speech this month at an event in New Hampshire, igniting speculation that the retiring lawmaker is planning to mount a presidential run in 2020, AZCentral reports.
Flake will give a speech titled "Country Over Party" at the "Politics and Eggs" breakfast in Manchester on March 16, forcing the Never Trumper to tamp down speculation that he plans to run for president.
"I got an invitation, and I accepted it," Flake told AZCentral, adding that a presidential run "is not in my plans."
New Hampshire, of course, is where presidential dreams begin.
Regardless, Flake remains concerned by what he calls the "tribal politics" of the Republican party right now, a theme he articulated last fall when he announced that he would not seek re-election to the Senate.
"I'm very concerned about the direction of the party and this kind of tribal politics isn't good for the country," Flake told AZCentral. "Nor, in my view, is it good for the party for Republicans to be engaged this way.
"This is the president's party," Flake told AZCentral, conceding that President Donald Trump is the unambiguous frontman for Republicans.
Flake has been equally unambiguous about how he feels about Trump from the jump, making him the black sheep of Republicans and likely contributing to his low percent approval rating in his home state.