I have just finished reading your comment, RKBA, as I catch up on the thread.
What I am wondering is this - how many of us think that Cruz can beat Hillary if he gains the nomination. I think Trump will attract more cross-over voters from Independents and Democrats, and I doubt that Cruz will be able to do that.
His personality won’t appeal to them, even if he does his best to initiate Trump on the stump. His voice doesn’t wear well, and he has an annoying stammer.
Big picture is that outside of nice places like FR, the population just isn’t that conservative. If it were, we would be talking about VP Palin’s candidacy right now.
Ted just doesn’t have the appeal outside of a very conservative crowd. His voice is not his fault, but it is grating. He would be a designated loser if he were somehow to weasel into the nomination.