Showing signs that the GOP acquiesced to nominating 69-year-old real estate mogul Donald Trump, his closest rival, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that Trump would be a “disaster” for the Party. Cruz faces an ugly Super Tuesday March 15, not expected to win any of the contested states, including Florida, Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina. Cruz knows tomorrow’s results spell an end to his 2016 campaign. “I think it is a disaster for the country because if Donald is the nominee, it makes it much more likely that that Hillary Clinton wins the general,” said Ted, knowing full-well, that Trump has a far better shot of beating Hillary than him. Proving that his critique of Trump was disingenuous, Cruz told Stephanopoulos that he’d back him if he’s the Party’s nominee. Cruz joked that he wouldn’t support Trump if he actually shot someone on Fifth Avenue. Trump once joked he wouldn’t lose votes even if he shot someone on Fifth Avenue.
Looking beyond the GOP primaries, Cruz doesn’t back GOP Party insiders scheming to disenfranchise GOP primary voters, picking the nominee at the Cleveland GOP convention in some smoke-filled backroom. Whether Trump actually wins all 1,237 delegates needed for the nomination outright, he’ll have the lion’s share of delegates when the primaries end June 7. After surviving the GOP’s anti-Trump attacks led by former 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney and other Party insiders, Trump looks poised for big wins on winner-take-all Super Tuesday. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio stands to end his campaign in disgrace, losing his home state of Florida in a landslide. After deviating from his positive image, Rubio turned ugly Feb. 26 at Fox New debate, calling Trump a “con artist,” insisting he had “small hands.” While praised in the mainstream press, Rubio watched his campaign implode.
Watching the post-Feb. 26-debate press heap praise on Rubio for his self-destructive attacks on Trump speaks volumes about Trump’s attacks on the press.. Anyone watching Rubio fulminate in the Fox News debate knew his gamble backfired. Rubio has no one to blame but himself for following the advice of his opposition research chief Joe Pounder. Watching Rubio lash out reminded voters that he’s still too mercurial and immature to be president. Trump pointed out Rubio’s “robot” moment in the ABC’s Feb. 6 debate, watching him shell-shocked after hit by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Rubio now faces a humiliating defeat in his home state of Florida March 15. Facing winner-take-all Super Tuesday 2, only Ohio Gov. John Kasich has a shot of beating Trump in his home state. Kasich fantasies that winning Ohio means anything for his failing campaign.
Kasich insists he has a path to the GOP nomination without one win in 33 GOP primaries, only collecting 63 apportioned delegates. If he wins Ohio March 15, he’ll add 66 more delegates, totaling only 129, still behind Rubio’s 163. With Trump expected to win most of the delegates March 15, Kasich, like Rubio, has no path to the nomination other than some backroom deal at a contested convention. Even then, Kasich has no argument, most likely finishing the GOP primaries June 7 with only one win, his home state. If Trump wins Ohio tomorrow, it’s game over. If Kasich pulls off Ohio, it’s still game over, due to delegate math. Rubio and Kasich have admitted that soldiering on would be futile, other than keeping Trump from winning the1,237 magic number. Trump’s delegate stands today at 460 and could easily top 700 tomorrow night, locking up the nomination.
Whatever happens in Ohio, Cruz, Rubio and Kasich have no path to the nomination. With 370 delegates, Cruz faired better than any other candidate but faces stiff headwinds going forward. Winning 104 delegates in Texas March 1 was Cruz’s last shot at racking up large chunks of delegates. Cruz has little chance in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and West of winning too many more delegates. When Trump upended Cruz’s Southern State firewall, his insurgent campaign blew up. Once Trump secured the endorsement of Liberty University’s Jerry Falwell Jr. Jan 26, it wrecked Cruz’s evangelical strategy. With Rubio facing humiliation March 15, Kasich kidding himself in Ohio and Cruz running out of delegate-rich states, only Trump has any path to the GOP nomination. After March 15, the GOP Party establishment has no choice but to line up behind Trump.
Showing that campaign rhetoric is largely meaningless, Cruz and Rubio reluctantly confessed they’d back Trump. Only lowly Kasich pretends he has a way forward after Ohio. “Sometimes it’s really tough. I hope to be able to support whoever the nominee is,” Kasich told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos Sunday, March 13. “You’re not going to get me to answer your yes-or-no question,” said Kasich, regarding supporting Trump. “I hope he’s going to change his rhetoric and bring people together,” said Kasich, coming closest yet to admitting it’s all but over. No matter how the media and political establishment tried to sabotage Trump, voters proved they have the last laugh in elections. Trump rides the public’s anti-Washington wave in 2016, insisting he’s only the messenger. Neither political party has admitted how Washington’s elected officials have failed the public.
