I am leading by so much he must.
Advertisement
Asked about choosing Trump or Cruz, 2008 nominee Sen.
In the modern ratings-based media world we live in, where candidates get attention off fundraising numbers and sensationalism, we often miss the politics brewing below the surface.
According to the latest national poll for NBC and the Wall Street Journal, Trump still leads the pack with 27 per cent support, but Cruz is now trailing by just five points, on 22 per cent.
Texas U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has solidified his lead among Republican presidential contenders in the politically crucial state of Iowa, a new poll showed.
At center stage will be front-runner Donald Trump, fending off a challenge from Ted Cruz.
Two polls in the key battleground state of Iowa show Carson’s greatest erosion. Ad campaigns in Iowa and New Hampshire by PACs for Jeb Bush and Ohio Gov. John Kasich are hinting at disaster if Trump ends up in the Oval Office.
Cruz is emerging rapidly as the favorite in Iowa’s caucuses.
Mr Trump is not the first to make the claim, which arose out of a 2014 statement by the Muslim Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Barr, Khalid Mahmood, that there were around 1500 British jihadists and 560 Muslims in the Armed Forces.
That represents a 12-point gain for Cruz since the end of October, when the same pollster last tested the race.
Cruz’s long-term campaign strategy has focused on a coalition of conservatives, over half of the Republican primary voters: Tea Partyers, evangelical whites and far-right conservatives.
Since Friday, Trump has taken aim at Cruz for opposing ethanol subsidies and alienating his colleagues in the Senate.
GOP leaders and top donors have been huddling in recent weeks, strategizing on how to cut Trump out.
“If you talk to my peers around town, collectively it’s an appreciation the guy is smart as hell”, explained a senior Washington Republican who is backing another candidate. And, tonally, Cruz comes across as aggressively and unapologetically conservative – a less controversial and more electable version of real estate magnate Trump.
“There is no way that I, or anybody else who is running, is an expert in every area”, he said, and pointed to the way chief executives run their companies.
Image:U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) (R) greets businessman Donald Trump onstage as they address a Tea Party rally against the Iran nuclear deal at the U.S. Capitol in Washington September 9, 2015.
Furthermore, Iowa is not essential for a Cruz victory, but it is essential for Trump. The two candidates have similar views on the issues, including immigration and security, so it might not be far-fetched to expect likely Trump voters to take a long look at Cruz.
Nine Republicans hopefuls meet Tuesday in the next prime-time presidential debate, with a familiar slate of candidates looking to wrangle over what to do about the threat of terrorism and who has the right temperament and judgment to lead the nation.
Advertisement
The last mile of this drawn-out early state primary campaign will be hard for Trump. “And that is exactly why we have a democratic election to make that determination”.
