President Donald Trump has discussed forming a new political party in recent days, hoping to continue his influence after leaving the White House, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday night.
It is unclear how serious Trump is in his intentions, sources told the Journal, but he said he would want to call such a party the Patriot Party, the sources told the paper.
The president reportedly discussed the idea with several aides and others last week.
The news comes after Trump has fought publicly with several fellow Republicans in the wake of the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. Several have laid blame at least partially on him for his fiery rhetoric at the rally preceding the riot and for the days and weeks preceding the event.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday took to the Senate floor to blame the president and others for sparking the flames that fueled the deadly break-in of the Capitol building as lawmakers were certifying Democrat Joe Biden's election win.
As noted by the Journal, third parties rarely have an effect in national politics, and Republicans are likely to take an even dimmer view of Trump for attempting to pull away candidates and voters from their party.
Still, the paper noted, many of Trump's supporters were not aligned with the GOP before they backed him in 2016 or 2020.