Gov. Mike Pence said he’ll vote for Ted Cruz in the Republican primary, giving the Texas senator a boost ahead of Tuesday’s vote in Indiana.
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Cruz spoke Saturday to the state Republican Party convention outside San Francisco.
When Todd began an epic (and ultimately unsuccessful) struggle to get Cruz to simply say whether or not he would support Trump if the billionaire ultimately won the endorsement, the senator turned a fairly straightforward question into another allegation of bias against him. Cruz was helped by Scott Walker’s endorsement in Wisconsin, giving Cruz his only big-state primary victory so far in this campaign.
Cruz pledged to wage an intense fight for delegates throughout the state.
I believe if the Republican Party nominates Donald Trump we will lose to Hillary, because when we offer Democrat-lite, Donald Trump and Hillary ClintonHillary Rodham ClintonClinton on Sanders: “There comes a time where you have to look at the reality” Poll: Clinton, Sanders in statistical tie in Indiana Trump doubles down on Hillary attacks MORE on the ballot, they support the same social policy, they support the same economic policy. “It’s clear the media elites are ready to anoint Donald Trump the Republican nominee before this race is even over”, she said in an email to supporters of her own unsuccessful presidential campaign.
Trump’s victory in NY and his smashing five-state success in the “Acela Primaries” last Tuesday brought him much closer to his goal.
Cruz’s delegate wins could be merely symbolic, though, if Trump secures the 1,237 delegates needed to win the party’s presidential nomination.
Virginia’s convention may matter because Virginia sends 49 delegates to the national convention.
At the same party convention that was the backdrop for chaotic protests against Trump on Friday, Cruz tried to woo party members with support for their long-time issues, like lower taxes and a harder line on immigration.
Cruz conveniently left out the fact that all 12 of the debates held earlier in the campaign were sanctioned in advance by the Republican National Committee which, among other things, wanted to avoid the circus atmosphere that the 20 debates in the 2012 cycle produced.
Afternoon voting will select 28 at-large delegates.
Speaking to the convention hall an hour later, he revealed to groaning Trump delegates that “as a first step toward unity, we have invited our top three statewide officeholders to join us on the slate”.
Backers of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s running mate. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey attends the Arizona Republican 2016 state convention at the Mesa Convention Center Saturday, April 30, 2016.
“If we’re fractured and we’re divided, Hillary Clinton wins and the campaign is lost”, he said, referring to the Democratic Party’s front-runner in the November 8 election for the White House.
Cruz talked about uniting the GOP, something he said his opponent Trump does the opposite of.
Constantin Querard, Cruz’s Arizona campaign chair, countered: “They lost because of math, not because of malfeasance”.
“If we unite, we will win the primary”, Cruz said.
Arizona Republicans are in Mesa for the state party convention, where they’ll elect 55 of 58 delegates to the national GOP convention. Vice presidential selections rarely move votes in a general election, but Trump opponents are hopeful Fiorina can help Cruz in the Golden State’s primary.
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News cameras caught images of Trump, guarded by security officials, hopping a barrier and walking toward a back entrance of the hotel for his speech to the California Republican convention.
