Another Massachusetts moderate Republican for president? Former Sen. Scott Brown visited the Iowa State Fair over the weekend and said he is considering a presidential run in 2016.
Former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts sits at a table during the 11th Annual "Keeping the Dream Alive" dinner commemorating the anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s death, Thursday, April 4, 2013 in Nashua, N.H. Credit: AP
Brown was an iconic figure in the Republican party for a time after winning the U.S. Senate seat long held by the late Ted Kennedy in a special election. However, he lost in a special election last year to Democrat Elizabeth Warren.
"I want to get an indication of whether there’s even an interest, in Massachusetts and throughout the country, if there’s room for a bi-partisan problem solver,” Brown told the Boston Herald. “It’s 2013, I think it’s premature, but I am curious. There’s a lot of good name recognition in the Dakotas and here – that’s pretty good.”
If Brown runs, he will likely be joining a crowded field of possible GOP White House hopefuls, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, among others.
Brown has met with top party officials nationally and hosted a meeting of Republican National Committee members at Fenway Party last week, the Herald reported.
Brown passed on running in a special election for the Senate seat vacated by John Kerry, who became Secretary of State. Brown is also reportedly considering a run for Massachusets governor in 2014.
Massachusetts is known as one of the nation's most liberal states. The 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney is a former Massachusetts governor from 2003 through 2007, but was soundly defeated by President Barack Obama for the Bay State's 11 Electoral Votes.
