Posted on 02/02/2016 12:20:14 PM PST by JSDude1
If the internecine warfare between the two top populist candidates continues, the conservative majority of the Republican Party could once again be forced to live with a nominee chosen by the Establishment.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Donald Trump placed first and second in Iowa. But if they don’t now combine forces and put aside their rancor, they may each find themselves losing the nomination to the third-place finisher, Establishment favorite Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
Entering New Hampshire, Cruz and Trump have to play it smart. Cruz must recognize that he needs Trump to win in the Granite State. If Rubio wins instead, he will gain so much momentum that he will be almost impossible to stop.
Cruz is smart and must know he can’t take the Granite State, which has fewer of the conservative and evangelical voters that drove him to victory in Iowa. According to Iowa exit polls, Cruz garnered a third of the evangelical vote and was the choice of 44 percent of voters who consider themselves “very conservative.â€
Trump, on the other hand, is up by 20 points in New Hampshire and has a real chance of victory — a win that could send the soaring Rubio straight back to earth, possibly wrecking his chances and providing a major blow to the hopes of the Establishment.
(Excerpt) Read more at lifezette.com ...
“the two top populist candidates”
Wrong.
Trump is populist.
Cruz is conservative.
I don’t mind, but we ought to be clear and accurate.
I can’t fathom The Don lowering himself to the VP position.
Promote your candidate, but this tearing into Cruz or Trump stuff has to stop, or it'll be Rubio in the general, and thus, Hillary in the White House.
Rubio is too smooth, reminds me of a politician.
As for Trump and Cruz, I like’em both.
No one mentioned that, this is tactical so that both Trump and Cruz benefit in NH, SC and beyond. The goal is to defeat the establishment as currently embodied in Marco Rubio!!
If Trump were politically street-smart, he would already be making a backroom deal with Rubio to combine forces against Cruz; a Trump/Rubio ticket would be unbeatable for the nomination (whether it could win the general is another issue). As a Cruz supporter, that is the one scenario that scares me.
I wish both Trump and Cruz would focus on their own policies - and what sets them apart - in a POSITIVE way, and quit making the Cabana Boy look like the adult in the room. Because he’s NOT.
All the back and forth between Cruz and Trump is a series of inoculations before the Presidential campaign. It's stealing a page from the Clinton playbook, i.e. when Hillary (or Bernie) brings up something negative, the response will simply be, "that's old news."
I don’t think it would work because Trump’s character is unreliable.
Or a Trump - Cruz coalition. Next two primaries will tell the story.
Neither Trump nor Marco Rubio wants to make a deal like that. They both want to be on top, as does Cruz!
Trump is more conservative on the issue of immigration.
No. Trump/Santorum, Trump/Walker, Trump/Cotton, Trump/Duffy. There are quite a few conservatives out there that have a personality that would help win the election. Cruz is fine but he is to rigid and that sermon last night was boring after 20 minutes and it went on and on for 40 minutes.
I couldn’t agree more. Trump was killing it when he was talking border walls and moslem bans. Cruz too felt much stronger talking issues. I know they both want to win but I think focusing on each other is a mistake. FWIW Ted pretty much stuck to issues in his Senate run while Dewhurst attacked him and still won pretty handily.
Read further below: Trump supporters, like their leader, are only happy to insult Cruz and his supporters as though we don't deserve a choice, if it's not for da man himself!!!
Trump's not a man to accept second place, second fiddle or second anything and his supporters follow his lead!
They do NOT have to team up.
They just need to STOP with the childish bickering.
Promote your candidate, but this tearing into Cruz or Trump stuff has to stop, or it’ll be Rubio in the general, and thus, Hillary in the White House.
I honestly don’t believe what we do on Free Republic will dictate what the voters do. Everyone seems to think control is easily done. Each voter has 1 votes and what they do with it is their decision. If Cruz and Trump lose to Rubio it is because of the voters and the stupid winner take all states in blue states that are the results. It has nothing to do with Free Republic.
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