Jessica Estepa

USA TODAY

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who failed to make a mark in the 2016 GOP primaries, said it was "very unlikely" that he would run for president in 2020 — but he didn't rule it out.

Speaking at a CNN town hall on Monday night, the Republican insisted that his new book, Two Paths: America Divided or United (out Tuesday), has nothing to do with a future presidential race.

"Very unlikely that I would run for public office," he told CNN's Anderson Cooper of 2020.

"You wouldn't close the door on it," Cooper retorted.

"How do you close the door on anything?" Kasich replied. "If I start closing the door and all of a sudden, I see some duty that I have to perform...Now, my wife is going to be double checking my duty, believe me, because she doesn't want me to be doing these things. But if I see something that I need to do to help my country that I really believe that I have to do, you know, I would think that I would probably do it."

Kasich made similar comments to USA TODAY this week, when he said, "You never know if you feel, like, a call to arms."

Watch the entire exchange here: