Posted on 07/20/2015 7:45:00 AM PDT by VinL
Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz is the only major Republican in the field who isn’t jumping all over Donald Trump for his series of provocative comments regarding immigration and John McCain’s war service. In fact, Cruz even recently went to bat for Trump.
Cruz and Trump had a private meeting together last week at Trump’s New York City office, the Daily Mail reports, so it’s clear that the two are already talking strategy.
Trump has stolen some of Cruz’s thunder, and probably some of his vote share, early in this campaign. The latest Suffolk University poll puts Trump at 17 percent, Jeb Bush at 14, Scott Walker at 8, Cruz at 6, and Rubio at 5.
But despite trailing the billionaire by eleven points, Cruz refuses to attack Trump.
When Trump said that McCain might not be a war hero because he got captured (a Chris Rock line) Cruz asserted that McCain was indeed a hero but decided not to hit Trump, like many of his fellow candidates did.
“You know I recognize that folks in the press love to see Republican-on-Republican violence, and so you want me to say something bad about Donald Trump, or bad about John McCain or bad about anyone else,” Cruz told reporters, according to CNN. “I’m not going to do it.”
When Trump gave an impassioned speech against rapists and criminals coming over the U.S.-Mexico border, sparking boycotts in the process, Cruz said, “I salute Donald Trump for focusing on the need to address illegal immigration.”
What is Ted Cruz’s strategy here? Why is he not attacking Trump?
1 Trump allows Cruz to say things he wants to say without having to say them
Cruz, who led the fight to defund President Obama’s executive amnesty action, knows as well as anyone how much crime is being trafficked into America over our southern border. But why not let Donald Trump get the picket signs and the boycotts directed at him? Cruz’s firebrand status is a benefit but also a liability in a presidential race. Positioning himself as the second most-vocal and heavily-quoted conservative in the race actually does him a service — especially as Trump considers just how many hundreds of millions (and he’ll need that much) of his own money he’s going to spend if he wants to go the distance. If the Hillary Clinton people look to Bernie Sanders as a kind of unofficial voter-mobilization force for Democrats on the left, Cruz could easily use Trump the same way.
2. A Trump-Cruz battle in the primary would be too divisive for November voters
While both candidates have a lot of fans, they also have a lot of detractors. The last thing Cruz and Trump need is a battle of personalities between each other — especially when they agree on most issues. Too much Cruz-Trump back-and-forth during the primary, and independents will be turned off by November.
3. Cruz’s fundraising allows him to act like the conservative front-runner
Ted Cruz’s campaign has raised $14.3 million so far against Jeb Bush’s $11.4 million, and his super PACs have netted $37 million to Bush’s $103 million. Cruz also has a strong ground game in Iowa, where he is immensely popular with Christian voters and Trump is not (remember: Cruz also spoke and did well at the same Iowa forum where Trump’s McCain dig made headlines). Cruz can rightly claim that he’s the conservative front-runner in the race against Bush. Rand Paul isn’t giving Cruz much fundraising or polling competition on the tea party right, so Cruz needs to just keep raising money, keep setting up his ground apparatus in early states like Iowa and South Carolina, and keep watching Trump steal all the attention away from Scott Walker, who has the lowest public profile of the contenders.
4. Trump can weaken Jeb Bush, Cruz’s most formidable foe
The more Trump hammers Bush, calling him an “unhappy person” and promising Republicans that Bush won’t get them to the promised land, the less significant Bush’s $103 million in PAC money becomes. Cruz has always known that the road to the nomination goes through Bush. So let Trump weaken Bush … and then wait for Trump to implode.
The fact that the media is desperate for Cruz to attack Trump shows how fearful they are of him.
It is enlightening that the bastions of inclusion, freedom, individualism and the battle against the mind of the collective choose to condemn a candidate for not saying what THEY think he/she should say.
Could it be that “fear” is their biggest motivator and they are desperately searching for a way to keep the most formidable candidate out of the possibility of an actual debate of minds on a stage where all can see?
They are scared. They are scared shitless.
The media use this tactic against any perceived frontliner threat. Cut up quotes in mid sentences and ignore what was said after it , just to create controversy. Those who attack Trump should wise up to it, otherwise noone is going to come defenvr when the media use the same tactic they used against Trump
Look at what Trump said fully. He’s not a war hero, then correct it 4 times later that he was. All within a few seconds of each other. He basically misspoke and tried to correct it.
Personally I don’t think Mccain is a war hero
Cruz isn’t a sheep. The rest of the GOP field immediately came out bleating their canned responses provided by the MSM.
America may be on a roll back to normalcy
I think we might begin to consider .. seriously .. the potential marshal law that could conceiveably called.
obumbles didn't put all his private army crap in place for nothing and there DOES seem to be an escalation on everything American
I think Trump is serving a great purpose, but doesn’t want the job. He will bow out after he’s finished carving and skewering the establishment, and urge his supporters to join Cruz.
That’s my hope. It would be great, eh?
There’s also the fact that only Ted Cruz and Donald Trump are calling out issues like illegal immigrants violation LOTS of laws, not just immigration laws, and security matters.
By each man essentially leaving the other alone except defending them for taking a similar political stance, it both keeps the issues like this in the forefront and prevents each man from looking like an extremist for being the only Presidential candidate making these issues important.
Bingo. Cruz is a master of using words in public based on his debating and court experience (after all, Cruz has argued legal cases before both the Texas Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court) and by staying out of the fray, makes him look WAY more Presidential. In fact, if Cruz does get elected, someday we'll look back on him as the most masterful public speaker since Ronald Reagan.
4. Trump can weaken Jeb Bush, Cruz’s most formidable foe
Last week it was that Trump actually strengthens Bush. I wish they’d get their story straight.
Initially yes...but his morphing into a pompous sell out disguised as a republican is pitiful...F K Mc Cain he has sucked the corporate cock too long and is as much a criminal and traitor as 98% of all in the congress....the constant harping on Trump for utilizing caucasionally challenged Chris Rock’s comedic line about MCCain is trite...Al Franken said the exact same thing and all you heard were crickets...Once again F K McCain.
Cruz is anticipating Trump’s likely implosion and wants to be there to pick up the pieces. Wise move on his part as it will likely happen.
Why should any of the candidates be attacking one another? They should be attacking Obama, his policies and the Democrats who seek to replace him.
Maybe Cruz knows where the money is—joins as Trumps VP or if Trump drops out, gets Trumps endorsement and financial support. Both wins and so long as Cruz is treading water at 5% in the polls he really doesn’t have much alternative.
Trump will always make a deal
tump cruz is a win/win
Cruz has a better chance running in 2020/24 as VP then neophyte senator in 16
New York/Texas are a winning start for the campaign
meanwhile...... Go Scott
The actions by this pResident in his last 15 months certainly do seem to be harshly extreme - nearly all of his actions are explosive, combative and confrontational. They invite vigorous dissent - to what purpose?
Couple this with the ruse of ‘normalcy’ in daily interactions (e.g., WH press office giving a black reporterette the opportunity to ask asinine questions about Obama’s father-daughter NYC excursions in the midst of his absurd bleats about the terrorist killings of four Marines and a sailor in TN) and you have a total disconnect. Divorced from reality (I am reminded of Hitler’s Bunker days) planning God knows what. It certainly isn’t good.
Cruz knows this is the perfect time to take a chance. There was little to no chance without him taking a risk, which he did. He was lost in the crowd until this Trump came onto the scene.
“trump cruz is a win/win”
Respectfully disagree with that ticket.
Trump is a radioactive lightning rod of ridicule, hurting conservatives by mere party affiliation.
This is so easy if thought through.
Just ask yourself who you’d hire to be your company’s chairman of the board of directors?
I’d hire Ted Cruz in a heartbeat.
However, I’d never hire Trump because of his long history of weather vane political stances, he lacks discernment, has an abrassive egotistical style, and poor message communication.
Trump will never resonate with a majority of voters.
Ted Cruz can.
I’m a walker man and posting my observations and extrapolation there of......
with respect, Cruz has not been able to capture much of any thing so far.
He is a great conservative but is not able to capture the needed voters so far. The hard cold fact seems to be voters like others much better
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