Report: Cruz supporters testing attacks on Trump

Washington Examiner ^ | January 12, 2016 | Ryan Lovelace

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's supporters have reportedly begun poll-testing lines of attack on Donald Trump. Cruz has largely avoided speaking ill of Trump, but may have begun looking for an opening to go after the reality television star atop the polls.

Iowans received a message-testing phone call on Monday, RealClearPolitics reported, which sought answers about several possible lines of attack. The call asked respondents about whether Trump was a liberal pretending to be a conservative and his comments about Christianity. The call also reportedly raised the issue of Trump's positions on abortion, eminent domain and healthcare.

Cruz, who often decries the "food fight" of the Republican presidential campaign, may be gathering ammo to respond to Trump's jabs at Cruz's candidacy. In recent days, Trump has questioned the legitimacy of Cruz's presidential bid, and launched various attacks at Cruz about his positions on ethanol, immigration, and dependency on donors.

Trump and Cruz will square off in South Carolina during Thursday's primetime GOP presidential debate on the Fox Business Network. Cruz ranks second in the Washington Examiner's newest GOP presidential power rankings. Trump ranks first.

[dforest]

Only you and a few. Tried and failed.

[Diogenesis]

Has he and his supporters no shame?

Sen. Cruz should have put more effort into stopping
the vote on ObamaTRADE, but Goldmann Sachs ....

[Yashcheritsiy]

Uh oh, looks like Ted Cruz is feeling the heat and getting desperate!

/Good. Goose. Gander. Assembly required.

[CA Conservative]

Has he and his supporters no shame?

This coming from a Trump supporter?

[SoConPubbie]

Projection seems to be the name-of-the-game with the Trumpsters!

[grania]

Now that it's out that Cruz tested avenues of disagreement, instead of seriously and honestly bringing things up, it serves to make Cruz seem to be just another politician. The pleas for campaign donations and the back room discussions and either being played or complicit on the first TAP vote and the call for even more H1B visas supposedly being a political maneuver....how political.

I have a second choice after Trump. It's not 100% certain, but it isn't Cruz anymore.

[Sybeck1]

If Cruz loses Iowa what’s next?

[mrsmith]

Why leave the attacks for the Dems to use later?
Cruz and Trump help each other, and all of us, with their political attacks on each other.
Politics ain’t beanbag.

[DouglasKC]

Nothing will work. His appeal goes beyond conservatism and religion..he has broad appeal which ironically the GOPe has been looking for. However his broad appeal is opposite of what they want. They think that pc, embrace all values is the way to go. Trump is showing them that traditional American values are what people are looking for.

[SoConPubbie]

This coming from a Trump supporter?

The answer, judging from their posting histories, is NO!

[SoConPubbie]

I have a second choice after Trump. It's not 100% certain, but it isn't Cruz anymore.

I sincerely doubt he was ever you're 2nd choice.

[demshateGod]

It certainly won’t work with the “me want wall” _____s around here, but maybe with people who don’t know that Trump is a card-caring, elitist leftist. It will also draw more attacks from Trump who can only attack Cruz from the left or with lies: both things he’s already done and is doing.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

http://hotair.com/headlines/archives/2016/01/12/did-cruz-make-a-mistake-by-playing-nice-with-trump/

[Mariner]

Attack ads from Cruz against Trump are “fair” by any definition.

[SoConPubbie]

Only you and a few. Tried and failed.

Standard OP for the Trump supporters is to do this very thing that you, and this article, are accusing Cruz supporters of doing.

[Greetings_Puny_Humans]

In fact, I heard from someone in Iowa that these weird negative phone calls from a Cruz SuperPac was going on a week even before Cruz’s Canuckistinian heritage was brought up.

Real Clear Politics is just finding out about it today I guess.

[demshateGod]

Sometimes I think they're capable of reason and discernment. Then they post stuff like that and I realize I was wrong. Which Freeper do you think this is? Which one is this? And who is this?

[Red Steel]

Back to the Senate.

[grania]

I was one of the original supporters of Cruz. When he announced, I sent a check to the campaign that very day. I didn't start having questions until (1) I learned that he had not too long ago supported increasing H1B visas by a multiple and (2) his getting played or being complicit in the first TAP vote.

Since then, it just keeps piling up, and his nasty supporters and their attitude make me really wonder about the direction Senator Cruz and his campaign are taking.