Former Rep. Mark Sanford, R-S.C.,  who lost the GOP gubernatorial primary last June mostly due to President Donald Trump’s criticism,  said he’s mulling a GOP primary challenge to the president.

In an interview on NBC News’ “Meet The Press,” Sanford who said "I am a core Republican," discounted suggestions he run as an independent and reinforced that the president needs to be challenged on the core Republican ideas of trade, government growth and character.

"A lot of people said, 'If you're going to run, run as an independent.' I said no. I'm a Republican. The Republican Party has a lineage of historically doing some great things, but it's gone off the tracks as of late," Sanford said. 

Sanford defended his own possible challenge of Trump.

“This conversation began the day after my primary loss last June,” he said. “A friend called and said ‘God just cleared your calendar for a reason. I know what it is. You need to primary the president.’ … there’s been a drumbeat over the last year… [from those] who say we need to have this conversation.”

“The idea of going out and possibly being human piñata is hardly a vanity project,” he said. “But it is a project on behalf of my own four sons… every young person’s ability to sustain the American Dream. if you look at deficit numbers now, we are in troubling waters.”

Sanford said despite Trump taking the country in the wrong direction, during the general election, he’d vote for President Donald Trump over a Democrat despite the president’s previous attacks on him. "Everything is relative in politics."

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