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The Republican establishment is sending in the cavalry for Ted Cruz, the latest unexpected twist in a presidential race that has defied all expectations. Many prominent members of the GOP establishment intensely dislike Cruz. But they now acknowledge that he is the best option — perhaps the only option — to deny Donald Trumptheir party’s nomination. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush jumped on the bandwagon on Wednesday with a surprise endorsement of Cruz, describing the Texas senator as “a consistent, principled conservative” in a Facebook post. Bush’s admiration for Cruz was noticeably lacking during the Floridian’s own run for the...

Talk about political whiplash. Exactly one week ago, 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney -- in his effort to defeat Donald Trump -- campaigned in Ohio with John Kasich, telling the state's voters to cast ballots for their governor. "Unlike the other people running, he has a real track record," Romney said of Kasich. "He has the kind of record that you want in Washington, and that's why I'm convinced that you're going to do the right thing tomorrow." Today, however, Romney's voice appears on robocalls in Arizona and Utah, telling these voters to side with Ted Cruz -- and...

Ted Cruz’s campaign has been exploring the possibility of forming a unity ticket with ex-rival Marco Rubio — going so far as to conduct polling looking into how the two would perform in upcoming primary states. The motivation, hashed out in conversations among Cruz’s top aides and donors: to find a way to halt Donald Trump’s march to the Republican nomination. It’s unclear whether Cruz’s campaign brass views a partnership with Rubio as realistic or quixotic. In Rubio’s orbit, according to three sources, it’s seen as an outright nonstarter — with Rubio telling his team that he isn’t interested. Yet...

A top presenter on Russian state TV has come out firmly in favour of Donald Trump in his bid to become US president, hailing him as an "anti-establishment" candidate who is ready to co-operate with Moscow. Russian state TV has regularly shown sympathy towards Mr Trump, especially after his apparently complimentary remarks about President Vladimir Putin. But it is only in the last week or so that it has started to unequivocally praise him. Fronting his two-and-half hour news review on official channel Rossiya 1 on 13 March, Dmitri Kiselyov hit out strongly at what he saw as a conspiracy...

In an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation," establishment-type Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., admitted that he would prefer to lose the election to Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton than to have Trump as president. "We can lose an election, but I don’t want us to lose our heart and soul," said Graham. "If we nominate Donald Trump, and he carries the banner of the Republican Party, given who he is and what he said about immigrants, about Muslims and young women, we will not just lose the election. We have lost the heart and soul of the conservative movement. That's what...

Top political aides to Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz connected Friday to discuss how delegates currently bound to Rubio might be allocated, a Cruz campaign aide confirmed to RealClearPolitics.Although the conversation between Rubio’s former campaign manager, Terry Sullivan, and Cruz Campaign Manager Jeff Roe was brief and no resolution was reached, the development suggests the two former rivals could be moving toward detente if not an active collaboration.-snip-If Rubio does decide to endorse Cruz, the aide said, that decision would likely be reached between the two of them, not among senior aides. “Marco and Ted are good friends, so...

The primary component of GOP presidential candidates’ health policy proposals is to repeal Obamacare. Once GOP frontrunner Trump released his plan, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget took notice and did an analysis of the likely fiscal effects from Trump’s plan. Presumably, these fiscal effects would also apply to the other Republican candidates who also support repealing Obamacare. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) is a budget watchdog group that began 35 years ago. For the past few years it has been housed with the neo-Democratic think tank, New America. The two organizations parted ways over the...

 Rubio wanted a fight with Cruz over national security. Well, he's got one. Boy, that escalated quickly. I mean, that really got out of hand fast. "Senator Rubio emphatically supported Hillary Clinton in toppling [Muammar] Qaddafi in Libya. I think that made no sense," Cruz told Bloomberg Politics in a wide-ranging and exclusive interview during a campaign swing through Iowa. He argued that the 2011 bombings that toppled the Libyan leader didn’t help the fight against terrorists. "Qaddafi was a bad man, he had a horrible human rights record. And yet, he had become a significant ally in fighting...

*snip* Trump surged as the Republican Party’s frontrunner on his campaign platform of deporting illegal aliens, promoting trade deals that prioritize the interests of American workers, and rejecting the party elites’ desire for increased military adventurism. Ted Cruz, by contrast, wrote an op-ed urging Congress to fast track Obama’s Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). No fast-tracked trade agreement has ever been defeated. Sen. Graham’s energetic endorsement of Cruz – and Cruz’s refusal to disavow the endorsement of a man who many believe betrayed the American people with his unyielding push for mass migration – will no doubt raise questions as to whether...

Pundit Erick Erickson's The Resurgent website got 10K from anti-Trump, Paul Singer-funded Our Principle PAC in their latest FEC reported, GotNews.com can report. The funding from the neoconservative billionaire wasn't disclosed to Erickson's readers at the new venture. Singer, who is a pro-gay marriage establishment billionaire, was one of the major financial donors for Marco Rubio. Singer is also a major supporter of National Review which was dispensing the #NeverTrump at CPAC.

Talk about your Hobson's Choice . . . on today's Morning Joe, Nicolle Wallace, citing GOP consultants, suggested that--other than social conservatives--Republicans concerned with foreign policy should consider supporting Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump. Hillary supporter Harold Ford, Jr. could be heard chiming in with a "well said." Wallace was echoing the argument laid out by Joe Scarborough: that on a range of issues from foreign intervention to Israel, taxing the rich to breaking up the banks, Clinton's positions are closer to those of the GOP establishment than Trump's. But Joe, Nicolle and those Republican consultants are forgetting one overriding...

Florida voters "fed up" with Trump and Clinton speak out CBS News March 18, 2016, 7:05 AM Voters in the key swing state of Florida are sharing their frustration about their options in the 2016 presidential race. A focus group comprised of Republican and Democratic voters who oppose both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump offered a revealing look at the anger toward the front-runners in both parties. Clinton and Trump share the distinction of being among the least-liked candidates. "I would rather not vote than vote for either one of these candidates," one woman told CBS News contributor and Republican...

RUSH: Susan in Thousand Oaks, California. I appreciate that you waited during that little interruption. Great to have you here, Susan. CALLER: Hi, Rush. RUSH: Hi. CALLER: Listen, in my opinion, the only difference between Trump and Hillary Clinton is that Hillary has bigger hands. RUSH: (laughing) How long have you been waiting to say that? CALLER: Well, listen, I'm a never-Trump voter. I just cannot tolerate the thought of voting for him. I think they're both opportunists, and I don't think it really matters. People like to scream and say, "Hey, if you vote for --" RUSH: Wait,...

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump is brushing off news that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is apparently backing his main rival for the nomination, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Trump suggested Friday that Cruz was on the receiving end of a "jinx" after Graham, who endorsed Jeb Bush after ending his own campaign, signaled support for Cruz. "Lyin' Ted Cruz lost all five races on Tuesday-and he was just given the jinx - a Lindsey Graham endorsement. Also backed Jeb. Lindsey got 0!" Trump tweeted. The businessman's remarks come a day after news emerged that Graham, a vocal opponent of Trump, would...

Former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich mocks and criticizes desperate Republicans demanding a brokered convention to stop GOP frontrunner Donald Trump, saying they will throw the election to Hillary Clinton.

Breitbart News recently published a story that quoted The Tampa Bay Times confirming our reporting that Luntz has taken hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments to help shape Rubio’s political career. The scandal raised serious questions about Luntz’s impartiality in conducting his Fox News post-debate focus groups, especially in light of a ridiculously pro-Rubio focus group that he conducted right before the Iowa caucus. National Journal picked up the story in a feature entitled “Luntz Plays Favorites With Marco Rubio..”

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is supporting Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's bid for the White House, CNN Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash first reported Thursday afternoon. According to CNN, Graham will host a fundraiser in support of the Republican candidate on Monday during the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference in Washington, D.C. This election season Graham has been far from shy about his dislike for both Cruz and billionaire businessman Donald Trump, whom he called a "nut job." Last month, Graham said the Republican Party had "gone batsh** crazy."He added that Cruz was so despised among his...

Maybe Donald Trump isn't invincible, after all. On Saturday, Ted Cruz nuked Trump from orbit in Kansas, pantsed him in Maine, and almost scored coups in the other two states, Kentucky and Louisiana, where he fell short of Trump by just two delegates in the first case and one in the second. Overall, the Texas senator trails Trump in the delegate race by a very manageable 378-295. There's an awfully long way to go to get to the 1,237 needed for the nomination. It's enough to launch a thousand think pieces on what's become of the GOP's once-unstoppable frontrunner. But...

It's that strange time again in American politics when politicians endorse candidates they have repeatedly said they can't stand. For months, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has been warning the nation about Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. But on Thursday, Graham told CNN that not only is he supporting Cruz, he's fundraising for him. Graham pointed to Donald Trump's rise as the reason, explaining that Cruz might be the only one to stop him. "I think he's the best alternative to beat Donald Trump," Graham told CNN. "I'm going to help Ted in any way I can." It's a strange...

Sen. Lindsey Graham will soon raise money for Ted Cruz's presidential campaign, as CNN's Dana Bash just reported. Which is an amazing turn of events, given the things Graham previously said about Cruz. He has said on multiple occasions that Cruz is would be the death of the Republican Party and is no better than Donald Trump. He has even joked about killing Cruz. To wit (in reverse chronological order): Feb. 26: “I was asked the hardest question in my political life: Do you agree with Donald Trump that Ted Cruz is the biggest liar in politics?” he said. “Too...