Michigan businessman and Iraq war veteran John James announced he will seek the Republican Party’s nomination for U.S. Senate in 2020.

James, 37, announced he filed to run “after careful consideration and thoughtful prayer” during a Thursday morning appearance on “Fox & Friends.” The announcement comes on the 75th anniversary of the D-Day operation in WWII.

“We need the courage that was exhibited to us on D-Day,” James said. “We need politicians who will go into Washington and ... understand that this country is broken because career politicians continue to run on the issues without any inkling or desire to fix them. They are working on getting re-elected.”

We are heading in the wrong direction as a country and our leaders in Washington are failing to lead us toward a better and brighter future. I believe I can help lead Michigan toward that future we deserve, and that’s why I am running for US Senate: https://t.co/OuKL4FfSjv 🇺🇸🚁 — John James (@JohnJamesMI) June 6, 2019

James said he feels called to service, and promised to donate 5-cents of every fundraising dollar to charity. The campaign announced an official kickoff “early next year" in an email Thursday morning.

James earned President Donald Trump’s endorsement during an unsuccessful challenge to U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, in 2018. Stabenow beat James by 6.5 percentage points.

Incumbent U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township is already marshaling its resources for a 2020 re-election campaign. A memo released by the campaign this week touted the strongest first-quarter fundraising numbers in the state’s history, with $3 million in cash on-hand for the race.

““I’m focused on continuing to deliver results for Michigan,” Peters said in a statement Thursday. "I’ll keep working with anyone to improve life for Michiganders, whether it’s to expand training programs so everyone has the skills needed to find good-paying jobs, protect our Great Lakes or lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs.”

The freshman senator ran unopposed in the 2014 Democratic primary and went on to beat Republican Terri Lynn Land by 14 percentage points. Peters, a veteran of the U.S. Navy Reserve and son of a World War II veteran, is one of two Democratic senators facing re-election in a Trump state.

The president’s re-election could hinge on Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, said Kyle Kondik at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics. Trump never visited Michigan to stump for James in 2018 -- Vice President Mike Pence did -- but James earned the president’s endorsement before the Republican primary.

James kept his political ambitions silent before teasing a special announcement Wednesday, despite reports he had met with Trump and Pence. His campaign website displayed a message “officially” announcing his 2020 run Wednesday evening.

The Farmington Hills resident tweeted a passage from the Bible, Psalm 91, before his appearance on Fox Thursday.

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty,” the passage reads. “I will say of the Lord, 'he is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

The West Point graduate and U.S. Army veteran positioned himself as a political outsider with fresh ideas. James called himself a “battle-tested" leader, shaped by building his father’s business and surviving the Iraq War.

James returned to Michigan after being honorably discharged to work at James Group International. He is president of the family business, and served on boards for former Gov. Rick Snyder and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan.

Thursday, James said his experience as a “job creator” will help him protect the economy from socialism. James promised to put the interests of Michigan voters ahead of any party or ideology.

Stabenow earned a third term by beating James by 6.5 percentage points, a smaller margin than her 20-point win in 2012. The performance “turned a lot of heads” in Washington D.C., said National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Chris Pack.

He was introduced on “Fox & Friends” Thursday as a candidate who “almost beat Stabenow.”

After the election, James was considered a rising star. The president twice considered James for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, but he was not nominated.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee told MLive.com this week it was recruiting James to take another run for Senate. Congressional Republican recruitment organizations actively tried to convince James to run for Senate or try to win back Michigan’s 11th House District, which had turned blue in 2018.

The NRSC expects James to enter the Senate contest as a well-established candidate, allowing him to build on momentum generated during his last campaign.

Michigan Republican Party Chair Laura Cox said James will offer a better alternative to Peters’ “failed leadership.”

Meanwhile, Peters’ seat is rated likely to remain Democratic, according to ratings by Cook Political Report, Inside Elections and University of Virginia publication Sabato’s Crystal Ball. A statement from his campaign named Peters a “champion" of critical issues in Michigan, including efforts to protect drinking water from toxic PFAS compounds.

Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson Stewart Boss criticized James for scrubbing hundreds of materials from his campaign website. Boss said James will have to answer for Trump’s agenda, especially steel and aluminum tariffs affecting Michigan’s automotive industry.

The Michigan Democratic Party also suggested James will have to answer for Trump’s tariffs in a June 5 tweet. Peters spoke out against the negative impact those tariffs have on Michigan industry during the Mackinac Policy Conference last month.

Peters’ campaign expects Trump to be a liability for Republicans in 2020, according to a staff memo. Trump won Michigan by 0.03%, a margin the Michigan Democratic Party said is slim enough to overcome.

Still, a statement from the campaign highlighted legislation authored by Peters that Trump signed.

Peters is statistically tied with James in a March poll of Michigan voters conducted by Emerson College. Surveys were taken with 743 registered voters, and the poll’s margin of error is 3.5%.

Peters has a slight edge over a generic Republican, according to a May poll of 600 likely Michigan voters by Vanguard Public Affairs and Denno Research.

It found 42% respondents would vote for Peters, while 36% said they would vote for any Republican and 21% were undecided. The poll had a margin of error of 4%.

Michigan political analyst and former state legislator Bill Ballenger said James impressed Republicans, but another Senate loss could end his political career.

“He’s got to realize that sometimes in politics, two strikes and you’re out ... If he runs for something again and loses, he’s going to lose a lot of luster. He may not ever be able to recover.”