Posted on 02/04/2016 3:32:14 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz is upping his rhetorical battle with rival Donald Trump, saying the businessman is "melting down" after he came in second during Monday's Iowa caucuses. "I have to say it is interesting seeing Donald Trump, you know, just apparently melting down. He seems to be taking losing really badly," Cruz said during an interview with "The Sean Hannity Show" on Wednesday.
Cruz's comments come after Trump accused the Texas Republican of committing voter fraud because Cruz's campaign erroneously suggested Ben Carson was dropping out of the race during the caucuses.
Cruz apologized, saying his campaign should have sent out a follow-up report clarifying that Carson wasn't dropping out.
While Cruz has gotten criticism from both Carson and Trump, he dismissed the fallout over the reports as "silliness."
"For Trump, he has to blame someone, something, anyone other than himself and his own record for his loss," he said. "It's all designed to be a distraction."
He added that he understands Trump is "angry" for losing Iowa but said he "told the people of Iowa he thought they were stupid."
"He skipped their debate," he said. "It makes me wonder if Donald's next step is he intends to tell the people of New Hampshire he thinks New Hampshire is stupid. If he intends to skip their debate."
Trump skipped a Fox News debate over a long-standing feud with the network. Instead, he held a fundraiser for veterans' groups in Iowa at the same time.
Cruz suggested Trump was afraid of moderators, and again offered to debate him one-on-one.
"[It] will be interesting to see if Donald is still afraid of having his record questioned," he said.
The latest skirmish between Cruz and Trump comes as the two are battling for the top spot in the New Hampshire primary, with Trump having a sizable lead.
I have been saying here since Iowa that a 3rd place finish by Cruz will be a victory in RINO-Centric NH.
RINO's there are Rubio's and Trump's base.
SC will be the next real head to head test.
O’Reilly? You mean the guy who Donald Trump owes Vanilla Shakes to?
Denial is a huge dirty river running strong in the Cruz campaign.
Principled conservative, what a joke.
Oh, the curiosity factor. Arkansans wanting to see the exotic bird of New York values embodied & hoping to see a grown man run off the mouth as part of yet another TANTRUMp.
The media is overly lopsided (again) on this.
Cruz apologized after Carson team went after a SINGLE Cruz staffer to be fired over this. Yet, as Rush pointed out, multiple Rubio staffers were involved in Carson rumor-mongering.
So, the Carson team only goes after Cruz 'cause he's the front-runner? (While Rubio's squad gets a free pass?)
So, the media only goes after Cruz 'cause he's the front-runner & they hate him, or in Bill O'Reilly's case, selective outrage.
So the TANTRUMp's trump-upsters only go after Cruz 'cause he's the front-runner & some of them hate him?
Selective outrage across-the-board.
Meaning it's not REALLY the issue that provokes the above; just another opportunity to exploit tackling THE LEADING candidate.
Trump did melt down with that rant.
Which is awful because IMO he first inflicted a fatal wound on Cruz with that birther stuff.
That leaves us with Marco and the Seven Dwarfs. Not good.
Time will tell, not all folks are as shallow as as Trumps supporters.
“Oh, the curiosity factor. Arkansans wanting to see the exotic bird of New York values embodied & hoping to see a grown man run off the mouth as part of yet another TANTRUMp.”
I saw some interviews this morning on the local station of people who saw Trump. They were saying that they liked what Trump stands for.
Of course, we all know that you don’t really believe what you posted, just an attempt to slime Trump with your crap. It won’t work except for people on your level.
This dirty trix campaign of Cruz’s is going to cost him. It just seems so easy for him to think of this stuff. Problematic. Now the FEC is looking into this business of the two loans with Citibank and Goldman Sachs. Stuff tends to catch up with you.
Well, of course some people like Trump.
Nobody contests that.
But perhaps you didn't see this FR thread from Tuesday:
Gallup: Trump Has Highest Unfavorable Rating of Any Candidate Ever
Here's what's VERY interesting about Trumpsters on FR (& elsewhere).
For months I would read pro-Trump comments on FR (& NOT respond, btw) and one constant theme emerged: How well Trump was doing in the polls.
Poll citations EVERYWHERE. Yet for some reason, I don't see Trumpsters citing this Gallup poll above...Can you explain that?
So, here YOU tout Trump's likeability. When Gallup now says Trump's THE MOST UNLIKEABLE CANDIDATE EVER!
I guess this dashes the undercurrent I've detected amongst Trump supporters.
They keep thinking that he can garner takeaway votes from the Dem candidate amongst independents & Dems as a "populist" type of candidate. Yet, when this poll coming in shows that Trump is THE MOST UNpopular candidate EVER in terms of popularity polling re: "likeability," I guess that notion is wiped out.
But go ahead. Just repeat the mantra "some people like Trump; Some people like Trump" as you nod off to sleep each night.
Is it normal for people to make unusual efforts to turn out to see someone they don’t like?
There were over twelve thousand people at the event in Little Rock last night. Set a record.
Some of those people got there hours in advance.
When the news media covers a political event, do you remember what the first thing they report on is? Why would they notice that?
C'mon now. Ya gotta use a little common sense here.
How many of the 12,000 would show up to see Trump for free even if he wasn't a POTUS candidate?
Be honest here with that assessment.
I already had to admonish another FR poster a few days ago for trying to compare Trump to Reagan, claiming that "once they got to know" Reagan people warmed up to him...as if Reagan hadn't previously been both a long-time actor & CA guv...and, as if Trump hadn't been both a TV series star, a Miss America industry mogul, & media interview narcissist.
IoW, 'twas as if the FR poster wanted to ignore BOTH Trump's & Reagan's bio.
On a slow winter week with nothin' else to do but watch TV -- & you didn't have to pay for it -- an "unpresidential-minded" Trump would still draw thousands.
“How many of the 12,000 would show up to see Trump for free even if he wasn’t a POTUS candidate?”
That is easy. None.
Huckabee and others just bowed out. Do you think they could still draw a crowd?
I watched the Little Rock Trump rally last night, in hopes of personally witnessing said “meltdown”, but didn’t detect any. He broke all attendance records at the venue (over 50,000 people). I was amazed at the lack of comments about his opponents.
He spoke and seemed to be his usual self...no tears, no jabs.
Such is the value of watching and listening for your self and not listening to the rabid claims of rival bloggers.
Just one correction—he had over 11,500 people and set a new record for the Barton Coliseum in Little Rock.
Old record was a ZZ Top concert in 1974 with 11,374 people.
You’re right! Thanks for correcting me. Like the clintons, I “misremembered” it.
True. He does whine too much.
He will win New Hampshire 3 to 1 over Ted Cruz. I wonder what Ted will say then.
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