John Kennedy

Senator John Kennedy, the Louisiana Republican, is considering running for president.

The 74-year-old, whose term will end as the next president's begins, said Sunday he'd launch a campaign to succeed President Donald Trump if a "goober" is well positioned to do the same.

"On my side of the aisle, if a bunch of goobers run, and I think they're goobers and one of the goobers might win, and I think I could do a better job, I would consider running," Kennedy told NBC News's "Meet the Press."

The senator would join a Republican field expected to be led by Vice President JD Vance or State Secretary Marco Rubio, though their involvement in the Trump administration's unpopular governance could weigh them down.

"What’s the old Judds song? 'Why not me on a rainy day? Why not me to love your blues away?'" Kennedy added.

His charm plays well during interviews and in the Senate, but it's unclear whether he'd be able to convince enough Republican primary voters to abandon Trump's hand-picked heir. The president's base is unshakably loyal, and despite Kennedy's red record in Congress, MAGA voters would assuredly fall behind Trump's preferred successor.

Trump has only teased his top choice, though, often discussing the strengths of Vance and Rubio but stopping short of making an endorsement.

"They're sort of similar in a lot of ways, but they're very talented," he said this past summer. "And I think the two of them running together as a team would be very unbeatable."

The pair of potential candidates has a problem: their administration's approval rating is abysmal. Republican voters in states across the country have turned against Trump as his economic and foreign policies hit hard at home, leaving midterm candidates backed by the president vulnerable to Democratic challenges.

Kennedy, should the GOP's image continue to tarnish, could attract donors with a campaign of change from the party's struggles.

Even if he secured the nomination, the senator would have to face a potentially younger Democratic opponent as voters sour on aging politicians. Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Governors Gavin Newsom and Josh Shapiro and lawmakers Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jon Ossoff all have a ready attack line should Kennedy ascend to the top of the GOP.

Some Democrats have already begun practicing.

"We need a new generation of leaders across the board," Senator Elissa Slotkin, the Michigan Democrat and budding national figure, recently told The Bulwark. "We need House, Senate, White House, governor, local leaders, like, we want that next generation coming into these positions and shaking things up."