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Cruz and Kasich Join Forces To Roadblock Trump
ASSOCIATED PRESS
- Ted Cruz and John Kasich announced late Sunday that they will join forces to ensure that Trump doesn't win outright.
- Their plan is to pull out of states where the other is doing well, Kasich will stop campaigning in Indiana and Cruz will pull out of Oregon and New Mexico.
- Trump dismissed this as”a horrible act of desperation from two campaigns who have horribly failed.”
- Trump is confident that he can win the 1,237 delegate count needed before Ohio's convention.
The presidential campaigns of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich announced late Sunday that they were coordinating their efforts in three upcoming primary states in an extraordinary attempt to prevent Republican front-runner Donald Trump from clinching the GOP nomination before this summer's convention.
In a pair of simultaneously released statements, the campaigns announced that Kasich would pull out of Indiana to give Cruz “a clear path” ahead of that state's winner-take-all primary May 3, while the Cruz campaign will “clear the path” for Kasich in Oregon, which votes May 17, and New Mexico, which votes June 7.
“Having Donald Trump at the top of the ticket in November would be a sure disaster for Republicans,” Cruz's campaign manager, Jeff Roe, said. “To ensure that we nominate a Republican who can unify the Republican Party and win in November, our campaign will focus its time and resources in Indiana and in turn clear the path for Gov. Kasich to compete in Oregon and New Mexico, and we would hope that allies of both campaigns would follow our lead.”
The arrangement marks a sharp reversal for Cruz's team, which aggressively opposed the idea of a coordinated anti-Trump effort as recently as late last week. Yet it underscores a bleak reality for the billionaire businessman's Republican foes: Time is running out to stop him.
Trump responded on Twitter shortly before midnight Monday.
Wow, just announced that Lyin' Ted and Kasich are going to collude in order to keep me from getting the Republican nomination. DESPERATION!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 25, 2016
Lyin' Ted and Kasich are mathematically dead and totally desperate. Their donors & special interest groups are not happy with them. Sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 25, 2016
A statement from the Trump campaign called the move “a horrible act of desperation from two campaigns who have horribly failed.”
The Kasich campaign confirmed to Fox News that it had canceled two Indiana campaign events scheduled for Tuesday. As recently as three days ago Kasich's campaign announced investments in Indiana, including the opening of two offices and the creation of a campaign leadership team.
Campaign manager John Weaver said in his statement that the Kasich team hoped to perform well in Oregon and New Mexico, which Weaver said were “structurally similar” to northeastern states where Kasich performed well earlier in the cycle.
“Our goal is to have an open convention in Cleveland,” Weaver added, “where we are confident a candidate capable of uniting the party and winning in November will emerge as the nominee.”
The announcement came less than 48 hours before voting begins across five Northeastern states where the New York billionaire is poised to add to his already overwhelming delegate lead. Trump campaigned Sunday in Maryland, which will vote on Tuesday along with Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
Trump needs 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination. If he falls short, the national Republican gathering in July will evolve into a rare contested convention.
At a rally in Hagerstown, Md., Trump stressed repeatedly that he expects to win the 1,237 delegates needed in the first round of voting to stave off a contested convention.
“I only care about the first. We're not going for the second and third and fourth and fifth,” said Trump.
Even before the plan was announced, Cruz had all but abandoned the Northeastern states in favor of Indiana, which holds its primary on May 3. Both Cruz and Kasich had cast the state as a critical turning point.
“Keeping Trump from winning a plurality in Indiana is critical to keeping him under 1,237 bound delegates before Cleveland,” Kasich's campaign said Sunday. “We are very comfortable with our delegate position in Indiana already, and given the current dynamics of the primary there, we will shift our campaign's resources west and give the Cruz campaign a clear path in Indiana.”
Indiana will award 57 delegates to the winner of its primary. Oregon and New Mexico have 28 and 24 proportionately awarded delegates at stake, respectively.
Fox News' Dan Gallo and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
By FoxNews
7 Comments
I have been a Republican for the last 50 years and I am both tired and embarrassed of all the BS that is going on within the republican party. The primaries are not meant to become a tag team match but established to get the results of choice from the American people here in the USA who have taken the time to vote for the person of that best fits their needs and the needs of the rest of the American people. The issues and road blocks that the Republican party is attempting to throw in front of Trump is both unfair and ludicrous, we will lose without total unity. Having people like Cruz and Kasich signing up to gang up on Trump is not right. Then there is the two time presidential loser “Romney” constantly throwing him under the bus is not fair either. What is his objective, run the third time in a contested primary. If he was so good we wouldn’t be in the position in the world that we are in today, he lost that means you lose. My sainted mother used to say empty barrels make the most noise, and he fits that quote to the “T”. It is time that the US Republicans under Speaker Ryan step up and start to organize and unify the party under one candidate, not this constant bickering and bad mouthing. I voted this morning and I was both proud of my right and of my choice “Donald Trump” the American people need a change, starting at the top… there is no one who is running for the office that makes more sense than Trump. He is not carrying the same excess baggage or IOU’s as the rest of those cronies that are running or exist in Washington politics today, lets not have another 4 years of what we have had for the last 8, our country cant afford it… we were once the shining light on the hill, now that light is beginning to fade and get very dim. I am the third generation in this country, my son and Grandchildren are fourth and fifth. I don’t want to leave my grandchildren to a world were freedom, success and safety are no longer what America stands for, God Bless America and Donald Trump who is running for candidate for President..
no wonder trump claims rigged !!!HOW IS THIS FAIR PLAY????? NO super pact money should EVER be allowed for donations
Neither of these two clowns (Cruz/Kasich) are capable of the job or they would have done better to this point I was just going to renew my membership in the RNC since I am a lifelong Repub. but not now…..Anyone but those two…..they don’t have the cajones to do the job.
we need Trump to make america great again, The other two would ruin our country.
BTed Cruz is a Lying, Cheating fool. He is MIRRORING Donald Trump. As for Kasich, he’s a joke. The right thing for Cruz and Kasich to do would be for them to drop out and support Mr. Trump. The people have proven over and over again that we NEED Trump! But of course there is to much corruption for that to happen. Trump is self funded and owes nobody nothing. Mr. Trump can NOT be bought. I am so disgusted with this. Donald Trump will MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!! Cruz is so full of shit. Neither Cruz or Kasich can beat him without cheating. My vote stands with TRUMP!
Kasich & Cruz are AIR HEADS !
Together they are trying to pull dirty tricks.