MIAMI — As former President Donald Trump, his team of lawyers, and members of his 2024 Republican primary campaign descended on Miami this week to mount a legal and political defense against federal criminal charges, the city's mayor was stoking anticipation regarding his own bid for the White House.

But Francis Suarez has his own problems to overcome if he hopes to stop Trump from becoming the Republican nominee next year.

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Suarez, 45, Miami's two-term mayor, has been described by Trump 2016 campaign manager and former presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway as a potential commander-in-chief who has a "natural ability to connect with and listen to people.

"I've not been shy about telling President Trump that Suarez should be on the shortlist for VP should Trump be the nominee," Conway said last month.

Suarez, the son of Miami's first Cuban-born mayor, leveraged that pedigree last and this week as Miami prepared for Trump's arrest and arraignment, granting several national news outlet interviews, convening a press conference to ease public safety concerns, and dropping by Miami's federal courthouse downtown before the former president arrived.

"Today was about keeping people safe. We achieved it," he tweeted Tuesday.

What was not included in his video?

“We’ve got a swamp monster, folks!” one Trump supporter shouted as he was swarmed by reporters.

While Trump grapples with allegations he illegally retained classified documents, conspired against the government to keep them, and lied about it, Suarez is reportedly facing his own federal investigation. The FBI and SEC are looking into whether $10,000 monthly payments to Suarez from Miami real estate developer Rishi Kapoor's subsidiary company Location Ventures were made for permits or other favors regarding a $70 million Coconut Grove mixed-use project. Both Suarez and Kapoor have denied any wrongdoing, but the inquiry has reignited calls for him to release his tax returns, which he did not do during his mayoral campaigns.

A Suarez presidential campaign also sets up the prospect of a home state rivalry between the mayor and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), the only other candidate who is polling in double digits, even though he is still, on average, 31 percentage points behind Trump, 52% to 22%. Suarez, who voted for Florida Democratic gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum in 2018, has complained about DeSantis's pandemic policies in the past and last week indirectly criticized the governor's new immigration laws.

"We don't usually get involved in the federal immigration system, we never have as a city," he told CBS. "This entire debate and discussion screams for a national solution. And I think that's what we should be focused on as a country."

Suarez additionally teased his Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute "A Time For Choosing" speaker series address Thursday and his likely campaign, based on his outreach to potential campaign aides and donors, as well as traveling widely as the immediate past head of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

"It's got to be soon because the first debate is August [23]," he said. "So the clock is ticking. It's a soul-searching process with my family and every single day we talk about it, my wife and I. And we're getting much, much closer to making a final decision."

Suarez is a Trump critic who voted for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) in 2016, but he has recently softened his stance with respect to the former president. He asserts he is "aspirational and inspirational" because he represents "something different," referring to his age, Hispanic background, and electoral record.

"It's flattering to be in any discussion for the vice presidency or the presidency," he said. "My parents came to this country at 12 and 7 from Cuba, exiled from their country of birth. I never thought in a million years that I would ever be on Face The Nation with you, talking about the possibility of running for president. I think that demonstrates the greatness of this country, that this country provides opportunities to everyone who cares about the American dream."

Suarez does not have "much of a chance" to win the Republican nomination, according to University of Central Florida politics professor Aubrey Jewett.

"[Miami] is an area that has really trended Republican and so he might be able to use those points as part of a national campaign. As for his lane, perhaps a somewhat more moderate Hispanic Republican compared to Trump or DeSantis," Jewett told the Washington Examiner. "And of course, although well known in Miami, he has almost no name recognition outside of South Florida and probably will have a hard time raising money."

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University of South Florida government professor emeritus Darryl Paulson quipped he is "one of the few people in Florida familiar with ... Suarez."

"Although he was named as one of the 50 greatest leaders in the world by Fortune Magazine, the more people know about Suarez, the less popular he is perceived," he said. "In 2021, he proposed abolishing taxes in Miami. Although this may have appeal, the problem becomes in how you finance city government. Suarez proposed mining Miami Coin, which led one observer to call Suarez Mayor Ponzi Postalita."