Lincoln Project's Steve Schmidt floats Senate run against Mike Lee in 2022, Lee camp responds: 'LOL'

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Outspoken anti-Trumper Steve Schmidt is openly mulling a run for Senate against Utah Republican Mike Lee in 2022. 

Schmidt, a MSNBC contributor and co-founder of The Lincoln Project. was responding to a suggestion from a Twitter user who said that he should "replace Mike Lee."

"Thinking about it," Schmidt reacted on Thursday night. "Would be a fun race. Hard to win. I wouldn’t go into it to win so much as I would be to strip his sanctimony, BS and hypocricy [sic] bear [sic]."

He added, "Old Utah vs. New Utah. Would be fun. Maybe."

It is unclear if Schmidt would run as a Democrat or challenge Lee in a GOP primary despite publicly renouncing his Republican registration in 2018. 

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Regardless, Lee does not appear to be threatened by Schmidt. According to The Salt Lake Tribune, Lee's campaign responded, "LOL."

Schmidt was a longtime GOP operative best known as a top aide on Sen. John McCain's failed 2008 presidential campaign. In 2019, Schmidt was briefly recruited by former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, who was mulling an independent run for president at the time.