Posted on 02/24/2016 8:30:17 PM PST by TigerClaws
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The “southern firewall†Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign has been building for months appears to be crumbling under the weight of Donald Trump’s staying power and Marco Rubio’s resurgence.
The Cruz campaign told Yellowhammer Wednesday night they are pulling out of the Presidential Forum set to be held at Samford University in Birmingham on Saturday, and will not be holding any other events in Alabama ahead of election day. Senator Marco Rubio’s campaign, however, reiterated their commitment to the event.
The move is one of the most open indicators to date that Cruz has failed to pick up steam in the Bible Belt South, once believed to be his geographic stronghold and his most likely path to the nomination.
Numerous southern states and almost a quarter of the Republican delegates are up for grabs in the so called SEC Primary on March 1st.
Yellowhammer CEO Cliff Sims said Cruz’s exit from the state so close to election day is unfortunate, but not entirely unexpected.
“Decisions like this are difficult for any campaign to make, but they have to do what they think is best,†he said. “Once a campaign goes into survival mode, sometimes they have to cut their losses and move resources where they can be most effective. A candidate’s time is the most valuable resource any campaign has.â€
South Carolina Republican strategist Hogan Gidley said Cruz’s lackluster performance in his home state was the first public sign that Cruz’s southern strategy was not coming together.
“It does definitely put a dent into the manufactured reputation that Cruz is coalescing all conservatives,†he told National Review. “I think we can put an end to that myth.â€
A longtime Alabama political consultant who is not working for a presidential campaign but has seen presidential campaign polling numbers through other state-level campaigns told Yellowhammer Cruz’s path to the nomination could be disappearing.
“If Cruz — the Texan, the staunch evangelical, the anti-Washington guy — can’t win in Alabama and across the South, he can’t win,†the consultant said on condition of anonymity so he could speak freely. “I’ve seen polling in the last week that shows Cruz in third in Alabama, far behind Trump and behind Rubio, too. It might become apparent after March 1st that Cruz’s goose is cooked.â€
Senator Rubio is scheduled to be in both Birmingham and Huntsville on Saturday. Donald Trump is scheduled to be in Huntsville on Sunday. No other Republican candidates are currently scheduled to campaign in the state ahead of the March 1st primary.
Goldman Sachs. Nuff said.
Cruz’s ticket to the White House was on Trump’s coattails and as his VP. The nation needed more time to get to know Ted and to get used to him, and he could well have been elected president after four or eight years as VP.
That’s how it looked for a time until the truce between the two came apart.
Actually, Cruz would be the best VP choice for Trump.
Honestly that is irrelevant
Trump is anti conservative
There must be a known alternative to trump at Cleveland
I wouldn’t care if Cruz lost every primary going forward.
We must have an alternative to trump.
Once his sheeple have been secured he will reveal his New York values in greater candor.
He hates conservatives. He is NOT inevitable.
Boobio isn’t going to win FL.
He should drop out now to save himself the humiliation.
Indeed that has been disturbing.... I'm not liking that.
Alaska will ignore Palin’s Trump endorsement?
Texas is a toss up.
The rest...
Trump is up 8 in Oklahoma.
Cruz has made an error. He had the victory speech and he gave a long, rambling repeat of his stump speech. He’s got Glenn Beck out stumping for him.
His error is running for votes he already has. He’s a niche candidate and not running to be the general election candidate.
I think that you need to remove your bumper sticker....
How do you feel about sharia?
How does third place feel?
Actually, that would be like JFK picking LBJ.
It actually did.
Ohio and Florida are key states. I don’t want to see Rubio or Kasich as VP though and certainly not Jeb!
Sadly, and you know it’s true....
......the Cruz people on this thread would do......and have done. .... the same thing when the moccasin is on the other foot......no high ground here
Not saying it’s right.
....but I’ve seen plenty of their hurtful retorts through these past months
Trump has no need for constitutionalists on the court
I love Ted Cruz and I do thank God I did not vote for RINO trump.
Trump has shown us he hates Cruz more than sanders Clinton or Rubio.
Wrong. Trump distroyed the Hildabeast’s war on women in one tweet while Teddy cut and run saying Bill Clinton was off limits.
I’ll buy you a clue: That’s why Trump is in first and Cruz is in third.
I don’t want to hear anymore cries about the betrayal of the GOPe when so many of us have betrayed our own supposed cause. We’re no better than they are.
...re-enacting the Maine...? /dry>
I agree, tho not sure things can be patched up...never seen it so ugly.
It’s strange watching the joy on FR when a true conservative, and someone who has for the most part been a champion of ours against some real slime balls, stumbles.
Yes, it’s almost as much fun as the month that Senator Principled Conservative was campaigning for Obama’s legacy trade agenda. Ted Cruz made his bed. Now he’s got to lay in it.
What’s the Cruz campaign war chest look like?
Campaigns don’t stop, they run out of cash.
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