The notion that one needs to be born in the United States to be president is something of a myth; the Constitution actually requires that candidates be a “natural-born citizen”.
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Trump also raised questions about Cruz’s birthplace early in 2015, but later backed down and said he thought the senator was eligible to run.
For example, when asked who their second choice among GOP presidential candidates would be, just just 11 percent of likely Republican voters name Trump.
“He posted as his response “@realDonaldTrump calling into question my natural-born citizenship”, with a YouTube clip of the character Fonzie from Happy Days “jumping the shark”. The moment has become representative of stunts designed exclusively to get attention. First, there are no questions about Cruz’s legal eligibility for the White House, and there is no legitimate controversy here. “You don’t want to be running and have that kind of thing over your head.”, claimed Donald Trump in an interview, according to the same source.
Cruz, a firebrand first-term senator from Texas who has recently seen his stock in the polls rise, is known as an immigration hardliner whose campaign recently outlined its approach to immigration if he won the presidency. Though his dad is from Cuba, his mother was a US citizen, having been born in Delaware.
But Trump told the Washington Post yesterday (January 5th) that Cruz’s Canadian birthplace and formerly having dual citizenship could be a problem for the Republican party, saying it’s a, quote, “very precarious” issue that “a lot of people are talking about”. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who supported a comprehensive immigration bill, by putting up his picture briefly next to one of Cruz.
But Trump has been ratcheting up his attacks on Cruz in recent weeks. Cruz’s mother, Eleanor Darragh, was born in DE, lived most of her life in the United States, and gave birth to little Rafael Edward Cruz in her 30s.
Asked how many he thought would turn out, veteran caucus organizer Doc Ennenberg answered “God only knows”.
While the calendar has flipped to a new year, the results of the latest NBC News/SurveyMonkey weekly election tracking poll suggest the status quo remains intact in the race for the presidential nominations.
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Trump then vowed that his wall would be built better, bigger, stronger and cheaper. New Hampshire holds its primary, the first in the nation, on February 9.
