You do have to read his entire Facebook post endorsing Donald Trump in order to get there, and while many may be unwilling to do that, it’s not really on Cruz if people are cherry-picking his statement. Ted Cruz on Saturday repeatedly refused to say whether he thinks the flamboyant and controversial NY tycoon is fit to serve in the nation’s highest office.
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It was not the first time that Lee’s “best friend” had flummoxed him. “I mean the whole thing is ridiculous”, Trump said in an interview on “Fox and Friends” the day of the in primary in May. “It is simply incorrect to say that this suddenly releases a bunch of violent criminals”, said Lee, watching the bipartisan reform effort begin its long, election-year slide into oblivion.
And the Cruz endorsement only led to replays of the old insults in media yesterday. The attacks hit a crescendo, with the real estate mogul and his supporters relentlessly badgering his rival with the nickname: “Lyin’ Ted”.
The comments underscore a dramatic U-turn for Cruz, who has referred to Trump as a “trainwreck” and a “pathological liar” who could not be trusted in the White House. On issue after issue, Cruz encouraged Texans to “vote their conscience” – as he termed it when he memorably snubbed Trump at the Republican National Convention earlier this summer.
Cruz ended his presidential campaign in May.
Cruz had held off on endorsing Trump for months after dropping out of the Republican primary for president.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said this week that Cruz could be “left in the rearview mirror of the Republican Party” if he didn’t come around on Trump.
“At the end of the day, it’s not about me”, he told Smith. “Maybe it is time to go to the mountains for a while”.
The thawing of the pair’s relationship has anxious Cruz supporters, who felt that Trump lacked the conservative gravitas necessary to bring the nation forward.
Cruz did offer a litany of reasons as to why he chose to endorse Trump in a lengthy Facebook post-principal among them being the Supreme Court. An hour later, he amended his remarks: “It does become nearly impossible to claim “self-interested Ted” is a caricature after this”. “I think it’s the worst political miscalculation of my lifetime”, Deace wrote in one of a series of tweets. “Additionally, he wrote that, although he has “significant disagreement” with Trump, he is still “#NeverHillary”. “That’s the toughest part of this for me”. It’s a state of being in this line of work.
“You’re doing such a fine job saying that”, Cruz responded.
In response to those questions, Cruz was steadfast in his belief that this year’s election in a choice between either Trump or Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. “I am truly grateful for his endorsement of our ticket and look forward to working with him to advance Donald Trump’s agenda to make America great again”.
The distinction may matter little to voters, but helps Cruz save face among those supporters still unwilling to forgive Trump’s heated attacks during their ugly and often intensely personal primary campaign.
“Donald, you’re a sniveling coward and leave Heidi the hell alone”, Cruz told reporters in Wisconsin, pointing his finger at the cameras for emphasis. “I don’t want his endorsement”, Trump had said after the convention snub. Today, a rote news release informed reporters that Trump was “greatly honored” by the endorsement. Gallup tracking surveys found that Cruz’s net favorable rating among Republicans fell by a jarring 35 percentage points in the weeks after the convention, dipping into negative territory.
Mr Trump also backed Mr Cruz’s position in a congressional squabble over internet regulation. In both instances, Cruz fired back.
The next questioner mentioned Cruz’s two young daughters. CNN/ORC polling conducted before and after the RNC showed Cruz’s favorability among Republicans drop from 60% to 33%.
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Many Republicans, including those sympathetic to Cruz, expressed incredulity at his planned announcement. No. 1 on the list was Trump’s vow to appoint conservative justices to the U.S. Supreme Court.
