Getting endorsements from former GOP candidates Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) just got snake bit by the so-called Republican establishment. Jeb and Lindsey continue their futile anti-Trump campaign, not because there’s not legitimate opposition to the brash 69-year-old New York real estate developer but because they have zero credibility. Graham’s presidential run flamed out Dec. 21, 2015 with the prestige endorsement of former GOP nominee Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the prestigious Armed Services Committee. Graham finished down-in-the pack polling less than 1% before he quit. While Graham’s an amusing interview, he’s a terrible speechmaker and even worse presidential candidate. Jeb had the most heavily financed campaign, spending nearly $150 million for only third and fourth-place finishes.
Cruz’s appeal outside the Beltway was his opposition to Republican establishment politics, including compromising with President Barack Obama on the Dec. 18, 2015 Omnibus budget bill, raising the debt ceiling from $19 trillion to $21 trillion. Cruz, together with former House Budget Committee Chairman and now House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), was a key figure in the Oct. 1 to Oct. 16, 2013 Government shutdown, paralyzing the government and tossing 800,000 federal employees out of work. Considered one of the Senate’s most conservative zealots, Cruz was seen as a troublemaker since starting his senate career Jan. 3, 2013. Getting Graham and Bush’s endorsements comes with the establishment label, something Cruz never expected since declaring for president March 23, 2015. Whether Cruz likes it or not, he’s become the GOP’s establishment candidate.
Graham and Bush endorsed Cruz for only one reason: To make Trump’s path for the GOP nomination more difficult. Coming down to crunch time in the primaries, the delegate fight looks worse-and-worse for Cruz. Whether endorsed by Graham or Bush, Cruz faces an uphill battle stopping Trump’s march to the magic number of 1,237 delegates. With about 741 delegates, Trump’s less than 500 delegates to the magic number with delegate-rich states in the Upper Midwest, Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and West going forward. Endorsements by Graham and Bush are only symbolic to the GOP’s failing anti-Trump movement. Mainstream media don’t want viewers to know the truth about what’s about to happen in the GOP race. When you consider Cruz has virtually no support in Upper Midwest, Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and West Coast, Trump’s closer to closing the deal.
GOP insiders have been hyping the unlikely scenario of a contested GOP convention, not honest about the slew of upcoming primaries that could easily put Trump over the top. Ohio Gov. John Kasich continues his nonsense about getting picked in a brokered convention when he’s only won one primary, his home state. Kasich insists he matches up best against Hillary, which rings true if you surrender the November election. Kasich marches on with only one purpose: To try to siphon off delegates from Cruz and Trump. Brokered conventions or not, Kasich has zero chance getting the nomination. Former GOP 2012 nominee Mitt Romney continues his futile mission to derail Trump’s campaign. Trump gets more votes when voters see how the GOP establishment does everything possible to sabotage his candidacy. Mitt, Lindsey and Jeb haven’t helped the GOP establishment.
Trump’s popularity stems from the failure of the GOP establishment to get anything done in Washington. Voters in 2016 look for anything but establishment politicians to save the country from a dysfunctional government where partisan gridlock paralyzes Washington. After backing Cruz March 17, Graham can’t contain his disgust with the GOP. Asked by MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski whether Kasich would make a better president that Cruz, Graham admitted, “yeah.” Graham and Bush were so thoroughly humiliated by Trump in the debates, they’d vote for former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in the general election. Mitt Romney feels the same way, knowing his anti-Trump rhetoric hurts the Republican brand, weakening the Party before November. Republican voters back Trump because he’s the only candidate bringing any change to Washington.
Getting endorsements from Graham and Jeb spells the beginning of the end for Cruz’s campaign. While the endorsements have little practical effect, they spell the GOP’s last-ditch but failing effort to stop Trump. Looking at the rest of GOP delegate-rich primaries, they mostly favor Trump, giving him a good shot at hitting the 1,237 magic number. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said the Party would accept the candidate either hitting the magic number or getting close. Kasich, Romney and other GOP officials face a fork in the road starting with the Wisconsin primary April 5. If Trump wins, there’s no stopping the GOP front-runner from getting to the magic number heading into the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and West Coast. Already with a big lead in California, Trump looks poised to rack up the lion’s share of remaining GOP delegates before primaries end June 7.
