Posted on 01/11/2016 6:39:12 AM PST by Isara
'Five paid staffers' last day was Sunday, call Cruz a 'conservative who can win'
MANCHESTER, N.H. - All five paid New Hampshire staffers at the pro-Ben Carson 2016 Committee super PAC quit their posts on Sunday to become volunteers for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, WMUR.com has learned.
Jerry Sickles of Keene, the spokesman for the staff, said he and the other four staffers recently came to the conclusion that Cruz is the conservative most able to win the GOP presidential nomination and the presidency. He also noted that Carson has spent very little time campaigning in New Hampshire, which became frustrating to him and the other staffers as they tried to build support in the state.
"We hold Dr. Carson in the highest regard," Sickles said. "This is a man we revere, but we think it is important that our party nominate a conservative and get behind a single conservative who can win, and we strongly believe that candidate is Ted Cruz."
Sickles said that joining him in leaving the 2016 Committee and endorsing Cruz are former state Rep. Tim Comerford of Fremont, Joel Lambert of Alton, Jaye Foster of Keene and Emily Lecuyer of Hampstead.
The disclosure comes 10 days after Carson's campaign operation, which is separate from the 2016 Committee, lost campaign manager Barry Bennett and communications director Doug Watts.
The 2016 Committee began as a national effort to draft Carson to run for president, with the theme "Run, Ben, Run." When Carson became a candidate, the group continued working on his behalf but independent of the Carson campaign operation.
The 2016 Committee focuses on grassroots organizing to build support for Carson. The staffers' move in New Hampshire does not affect the separate Carson campaign operation in the state.
A spokesman for the Carson campaign in New Hampshire could not be immediately reached.
Cruz campaign senior adviser Ethan Zorfas said, "We continue to work hard for every vote here in New Hampshire and we are encouraged that conservatives continue to coalesce behind Sen. Cruz here in the Granite State and around the country."
"The Paris and the San Bernardino attacks changed everything," Sickles said. "I believe Republicans are looking for a voice that is more emphatic and has dealt with issues of national security. We believe that Ted Cruz is a conservative Republican in the mold of Ronald Reagan and understands Reagan's three-legged stool of social conservatism, economic conservatism and strength on national security."
Sickles also said the staffers "definitely noticed" that Carson has campaigned infrequently in New Hampshire. Cruz has not been among the leading candidates visiting New Hampshire, either, but he has been in the state more than Carson.
Cruz will campaign in New Hampshire on Tuesday and will return on Jan. 17 for a four-day bus tour of the state.
Sickles said that despite Carson's sparse number of visits, since the summer he and the other staffers "made thousands and thousands of phone calls" on Carson's behalf.
"We haven't been fired," Sickles said. "We just decided as a staff that this was the thing we should do at this point. "It's something we've been talking about among ourselves and we just decided that the timing is right to do this."
"I can't tell you how many times I would be out talking to voters who liked Dr. Carson but said, 'Can you get him to come here?'"
Unfortunately nobody will be dropping out till after Iowa at the soonest.
Bet they stopped getting paid and went to where they are getting paid by a flush Cruz PAC.
Have we resolved that natural Born thing yet?
Trump is really rooting for Ted on this.
But what about the recent reports of “renewed signs of revitalization of the Carson Campaign in Iowa?”
Getting paid is certainly an incentive for enthusiasm.
Gentle Ben has been plagued from the beginning by so much of his contribution cash flow being turned around into - soliciting more contributions. Not enough of his message got out.
Now, perhaps the various PACs do not have these kinds of cash flow problems, but there certainly are a LOT of hangers-on that attach themselves very early, and sometimes, the message still does not get out before the money grows too tight to adequately fund the campaign.
And that is a damn shame in my opinion. Imagine placing your hopes and fortunes of the whims and fancies of a bunch of corn ho’s used to attention along with those mavericks in NH...... the very last groups I’d consider “conservatives” indicative of national sentiment.
I was hoping that Carson would throw in the towel after NH. The race will be effectively tied nationally as soon as he drops out.
His supporters are ideologically united to Cruz, and Trump has alienated Carson supporters by mocking of Carson.
That must have been the look on his face before he went after his mother with a hammer or stabbed his friend.
The Carson staffers understand that better than a lot of Freepers who ought to know better.
We believe that Ted Cruz is a conservative Republican in the mold of Ronald Reagan and understands Reagan’s three-legged stool of social conservatism, economic conservatism and strength on national security.
Yeah.
Cheap shots - all trumpees have, just like their boy. I say counting their chickens before they hatch.
BWAAAAAHAHAHA, pathetic.
Nothing like loyalty.
My thoughts exactly—just because you are supposed to get paid does not mean you are getting paid...and the real carrot I think is a possible WH staff job...
Brent Bozell is welcome to his opinion.
Am I supposed to be impressed?
Apparently, there’s more than one ‘3 legged stool’
http://www.discernment-ministries.org/ChristianImperialism.htm
Scroll down a little
LOL — Nice picture.
have they no pride? never followed primaries before but now I see that these men are shameless and that’s scary.
It’s OVER Christie the Hut, jeb the jerk, carson the hammer, huck the huckster...i’m forgetting some, I know.
geez, leave already.
“Unfortunately nobody will be dropping out till after Iowa at the soonest.”
That’s OK. If Cruz takes Iowa and 2nd or 3rd in NH, he will be well set up for SC. Hopefully, Carson will drop out before SC and Cruz will pick up virtually all of his supporters.
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