Actually, they did the math on O’Reilly’s show and it Cruz only got 4 votes per district (went out to 1500) it would explain his win. As for Rubio, the whole race shifted with this vote. We’ll never know but you’re right, it was a dirty rotten trick.
You have to realize that Rove is trying to oversimplify and obfuscate the issue. If you divide the total number GOP caucus goers by 1500, it is just over 100. These are small, intimate events where there were Carson supporters in the room if some Cruz supporter were to make such a claim.
Based on the numbers, the average precinct would have been about 110 people, and the following unfolded:
There were 12 Carson delegates standing around, and then one of the 30 or so Cruz folks made the dropout claim. The 12 Carson folks look at each other, shrug, and 4 walk over to the Cruz team.
Do you really think that 4 of the Carson folks told the other 8 that they were going to just believe the Cruz people and that was it? None of the Carson folks checked their phones to see if it was true?
Rove wants you to believe that 1/3 of Carson backers believed the Cruz people. Yet not one Caucus goer for Carson has made the claim that in their Caucus anyone defected to Cruz because of the claim.
Rove is scum, and will do anything to prevent any conservatives from winning the GOP nomination.