EXCLUSIVE — Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming has no plans to drop his Senate primary challenge against Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) even after President Donald Trump preemptively endorsed another possible Republican contender.

Fleming, who has long courted Trump’s blessing, criticized Rep. Julia Letlow’s (R-LA) impending candidacy as an attempt to be “anointed” the nomination through Trump with a late entry into a crowded primary set for May.