If Trump is taken out, this is all over.
Yes, Cruz would step in and carry on the best he could, but Cruz’s political life span would be measured in months at the most, much more likely weeks or even days.
If Trump is gone, ALL the rules change, and they won’t revert back to they way it was.
New draconian rules will be the law of GOPe land, and another Donald Trump will never ever have a chance to darken the political doorway again.
It’s Trump or nothing.
Cruz? I'm sorry, but the charisma is not there to the same degree. Cruz will get real Conservatives out of their homes and into the voting booths. But you need more than that. I believe Cruz would lose in the general election.
Trump/Cruz is a winning ticket. Cruz by himself, in my opinion, gets us a Democrat winner.