Ted Cruz downplayed any rift with Donald Trump on Monday, even as he told voters in rural Iowa that the billionaire GOP presidential front-runner – like other rivals – lacks any record of taking on the Washington establishment. Cruz brought up the topic unprompted while discussing the state of the GOP race for the White House at a town hall in Fort Dodge.
Advertisement
For Cruz’s presidential effort, the increased travel is the latest part of a gradual ramp-up in the Hawkeye State.
Without naming Rubio, Cruz is using the September Senate action on Planned Parenthood, to build up his own support among the Republican Party’s evangelical base, which he declared Monday was vital to his campaign. He said it would be “horrible for this country” if the primaries began in larger states, where the contests would be “decided by giant, slick Hollywood TV ads, all artificially created in a studio”. “Every one of you is a proxy for thousands of Americans that don’t get the chance to do this, to examine and press down and not believe the hot air and smoke but get down to the” truth.
The Fort Dodge town hall was Cruz’s first stop of 13 he plans this week.
“The ground game has been really stepped up here in the last month-and-a-half or so in Iowa”, said Jeff King, noting that the strategy fits the rhythm of politicking in a state that has a history of breaking late for a candidate.
Rubio, a Florida senator, has defended the absences by saying the votes were symbolic, and that electing a Republican president is the best way to ensure Planned Parenthood’s federal funding is eliminated.
Cruz often has gone after Republican leadership in Congress and fellow 2016 contenders for not being “consistent conservatives”. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, talks with local residents during a campaign stop at the Pizza Ranch, Monday, October 12, 2015, in Rockwell City, Iowa. Rubio’s campaign raised $6 million in the third quarter, a source said earlier on Thursday, citing campaign officials.
CROWDS: About 50 in each Fort Dodge and Rockwell City.
REACTIONS: Applause and laughs at Cruz’s standard campaign lines in Fort Dodge.
WHAT’S NEXT: Cruz is scheduled to attend a fundraiser for U.S. Sen.
Advertisement
Congressman Steve King introduced the Texas Senator, praising Cruz’s stance against things like Obamacare and the Iran Deal, but stopping short of fully endorsing him.
