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Cruz Forces Rubio to Defend Turf
Politico ^

Posted on 03/08/2016 9:35:02 AM PST by georgiarat

Ted Cruz is threatening to make one of the biggest gambles of the 2016 season: diving into Florida to knock off Marco Rubio. Cruz has little chance of winning the March 15 Florida primary, but he’s showing signs he might compete by opening field offices and sending surrogates to stump in the state while his super PAC prepares to strafe Marco Rubio with a seven-figure ad buy.

The aim: pull enough voters away from Rubio to ensure Donald Trump wins the state’s 99 delegates and deny the Florida senator any pick-up opportunity elsewhere by forcing him to defend his turf. Doing that gives Trump a bigger lead in delegates, but it means Cruz has calculated he can catch up.

While none of the polling indicates Cruz has a serious shot at winning Florida, to some Republicans, his big push here shows he’s looking not only at 2016 but 2020. “Cruz knows he does not have a great chance to beat Trump this year, but he is already playing for the next race,” said Curt Anderson, a Trump critic who’s also a top adviser to Florida Gov. Rick Scott. “This kind of gamesmanship rarely works out. Much will happen in the meantime.”


TOPICS: News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: cruz; gop; rubio; trump
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So Cruz knows he has no chance of winning this year so his goal is to keep Trump from winning, running in 2020. So his intent is to keep the GOPe in control and be their candidate in 2020? He is either an insider or delusional thinking he will have support in 2020 of a GOPe led party. If he is not an insider he will be destroyed long before 2020.
1 posted on 03/08/2016 9:35:02 AM PST by georgiarat
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To: georgiarat

Cruz is a laugh riot. So he thinks he can win 2020? Sure he can.


2 posted on 03/08/2016 9:39:31 AM PST by napscoordinator (Trump/Hunter, jr for President/Vice President 2016)
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To: georgiarat

“If he is not an insider he will be destroyed long before 2020.”

I think he is a false front insider. A machine guy in Tea Party costume. If a brokered convention results in M. T. Suit for president and Cruz is VP as a sop to gullible conservatives, we won’t have to wonder anymore.


3 posted on 03/08/2016 9:40:10 AM PST by Psalm 144 (That giant flushing sound is the New Whirled Order, going down the tubes.)
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To: georgiarat

And I am constantly being told by Cruzers that this guy is a genius. The map, going forward, is not his friend, but he and is followers seem downright delusional.

He reminds me of the chick who is screwing around with the married man, thinkng he is going to leave to marry her. lol


4 posted on 03/08/2016 9:40:21 AM PST by Dana1960
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To: georgiarat

One can only hope.

I think cruz has as good of a chance to win the republican bid as trump has. I don’t like cruz and I don’t want him to win anything more than a roll of trump toilet paper. There are still some crucial states to be won at this stage in order to be the republican candidate, but cruz does have a good shot at it.

In the mean time, if he does loose, there’s 4 more years for someone as dirty as he, to dig up the dirt on him.


5 posted on 03/08/2016 9:40:22 AM PST by PrairieLady2 (If you Cruze, you looze. Bye, Bye Miss American Pie...)
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To: napscoordinator

[Cruz is a laugh riot. So he thinks he can win 2020? Sure he can.]

Wishful thinking from UntrusTed. When Clinton gets into office, there WILL BE NO 2020 election.

If this is really his “strategy”, he is far stupider than any would claim he is.


6 posted on 03/08/2016 9:41:28 AM PST by ObozoMustGo2012
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To: georgiarat

“So Cruz knows he has no chance of winning this year so his goal is to keep Trump from winning,”

No.. Curt Anderson is saying IN HIS OPINION “Cruz knows he does not have a great chance to beat Trump this year”

Curt Anderson is an Aide to Jindal on his run for Republican nomination.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/bobby-jindal-camp-vows-brawl-donald-trump

Also anderson “Anderson joined Mitt Romney’s 2008 ad team, as a media consultant.[9] That same year, he oversaw the RNC’s anti-Barack Obama campaign.[6]”

https://ballotpedia.org/Curt_Anderson

Bobbie Jindal has since endorsed Rubio.

SO could Anderson be saying this to help Rubio and hurt Cruz?


7 posted on 03/08/2016 9:42:23 AM PST by justlittleoleme
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To: georgiarat

Go Cruz Go, keep the Donald WINNING!-)


8 posted on 03/08/2016 9:43:53 AM PST by Harpotoo
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To: georgiarat

How does this work? If Cruz takes Rubio support in FL, doesn’t it help Trump?


9 posted on 03/08/2016 9:45:30 AM PST by grania
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To: napscoordinator
Cruz is a laugh riot. So he thinks he can win 2020? Sure he can.

A "laugh riot" is one thinking that Politico speaks for Cruz.

10 posted on 03/08/2016 9:46:13 AM PST by FreeReign
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To: Harpotoo

“Go Cruz Go, keep the Donald WINNING!-)”

Exactly what I am thinking. I bet Cruz thinks he can overtake Rubio in Florida and come in 2nd. That should finish off Rubio as a viable candidate. Now the GOPe will have to get behind Cruz which they sorta are now. GO TRUMP GO


11 posted on 03/08/2016 9:46:20 AM PST by Parley Baer
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To: grania

The article says that Cruz sees his only path as eliminating Rubio. If Trump wins Cruz is willing to let that happen to eliminate Rubio and believes he will gain more delegates long term in a one on one with Trump. He is discounting the Rubio votes that will go to Kasich in northern primaries and causes remaining after March 15.


12 posted on 03/08/2016 9:50:00 AM PST by georgiarat (Obama, providing incompetence since Day One!)
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To: Dana1960
The map, going forward, is not his friend,

Though it might be friendlier with GOP support. The GOP has unlimited funds that they're throwing into focus groups, campaign managers, ground games, anti-Trump ads, etc. Donald Trump has shown he'll stand up against them all but it's an uphill fight against GOP/media.

I pray for Trump and for our country. If the GOP pulls it off and gets to a brokered convention, they'll never let the people get this close again.

13 posted on 03/08/2016 9:52:26 AM PST by Kenny (RED)
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To: georgiarat

But of course Trump isn’t forcing Rubio to defend his home turf. Only Ted is.

What a surrealistic world these folks live in.

Trump doesn’t exist... why it’s a neck and neck race between the two government insiders of course.

These two overslept...


14 posted on 03/08/2016 9:55:18 AM PST by DoughtyOne (Facing Trump nomination inevitability, folks are now openly trying to help Hillary destroy him.)
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To: georgiarat
This isn't the first time I've wondered about Cruz's campaign tactics. Kasich is in gear now, and he's backed off from insulting Trump. What if Trump needs Kasich's votes to get a majority? Kasich says he sees a path to the nomination, but it might be a clearer path to VP for four or even less years.

No, I am not a Kasich fan. But I do appreciate that he's underrated. That's why he's the governor who's still in the game.

15 posted on 03/08/2016 9:56:47 AM PST by grania
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Be careful what you wish for, Cruz.


16 posted on 03/08/2016 9:58:11 AM PST by BlackFemaleArmyColonel (I am so very blessed! Thank You, JESUS!)
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To: grania

It also forces Rubio out of the race. Head to head Cruz beats Trump in a landslide.


17 posted on 03/08/2016 9:58:28 AM PST by the_boy_who_got_lost
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To: grania

“How does this work? If Cruz takes Rubio support in FL, doesn’t it help Trump?”

That’s the idea. Cruz and Trump have been buddies from the beginning of the campaign. Has no one noticed?


18 posted on 03/08/2016 9:58:47 AM PST by toldyou (Even if the voices aren't real, they have some pretty good ideas.)
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To: georgiarat

The problem I see is that I heard that Cruz, instead of setting up offices and campaigning in the I-4 corridor and Miami (which will take votes away from Rubio) will campaign in the north Florida counties and attempt to take votes (despite what everyone is saying) from Trump.

Is there truth to this?

Where in Florida, what counties? is Cruz planning to campaign in?


19 posted on 03/08/2016 9:59:05 AM PST by Toughluck_freeper
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To: georgiarat

So campaigning in Florida to take votes away from Rubio, who is the establishment’s guy, help’s Trump even more. Somehow means he’s a secret agent of the GOPe? I don’t get it.


20 posted on 03/08/2016 9:59:09 AM PST by Durbin
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