Pence announced his support for the Texas senator this afternoon in a radio interview (on The Garrison Show on WIBC-FM.) He said, “I will be voting for Ted Cruz”.
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Pence explained that as a Reagan conservative, he was looking for a candidate who would stand for Reagan’s principles of “less government, less taxes, traditional family values and a strong military”.
But Pence seemed to go out of his way to praise Republican front-runner Donald Trump. “I urge every Hoosier to make up their own mind, but I always thought that to lead is to choose … I’m grateful for his voice in the national debate”.
Pence’s endorsement was closely watched, in part, because he’ll be on the ballot this fall as a candidate for re-election, and because, in the past, he’s been seen as a possible Republican presidential candidate.
Mike Pence instead provided compelling reasons to support Donald Trump as thanked him for running for president. Cruz was helped by Scott Walker’s endorsement in Wisconsin, giving Cruz his only big-state primary victory so far in this campaign. Their silence is a stark contrast with the vocal support Cruz secured from the anti-Trump crowd in Wisconsin, including influential talk-radio hosts in the state. While Cruz at this point has no chance of gaining enough delegates to win the nomination, he’s hoping that by winning IN he could block Trump from becoming the Republican nominee.
The New York Times and other political watchers have said that IN may be the most important firewall for the “Never Trump” forces and that if Trump can claim the state’s 57 GOP delegates, the New York businessman may have a clear path to the nomination.
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Earlier Friday, Cruz said he would “enthusiastically welcome” Pence’s support.
