Thank goodness the Iowa caucus is over. The idea that a state with fewer people than Harris County has such an outsized influence on electing a president should be offensive to anyone in the political process. In fact, there are 17 Metropolitan areas in the U.S. with a larger population than Iowa. And that says nothing at all about the lack of diversity of the state in comparison to the rest of the U.S.
I mean seriously, the “record” turnout in last night’s Iowa caucus was less than the turnout for last year’s mayoral election in the City of Houston. By a wide margin. Heck, even the runoff election for the city blew away the “record” turnout in Iowa – 212,696 vs 186,874.
Thank goodness we’re moving on.
But the obnoxious #cruzcrew is touting his victory in the caucus as if Ted Cruz had already won the nomination. They conveniently ignore the fact that in terms of delegates needed to win the nomination, he is ahead by exactly one vote. That’s right, one vote. He now has eight delegates while Donald Trump and Marco Rubio have seven each.
As obnoxious as the #cruzcrew is, they get it straight from their leader. I was amused reading Erica Grieder’s column in Texas Monthly (The Field Guide to Ted Cruz) in which she tells the rest of us that she has figured Cruz out and gives us her magical map so that we can do the same. At one point, she even seems to take credit for giving Cruz the idea to run for president. The only point that she makes that is worthwhile is that Cruz is in this to win it. What she misses is that Cruz has always been in this to be president and he will do anything to achieve that goal. That is the only thing you need to know about Cruz in order to understand his behavior in the U.S. Senate.
Rand Paul and Marco Rubio touched on this point during the last debate:
Rubio took exception to that characterization. He referred to earlier comments from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), who questioned Cruz’s “authenticity” while lamenting that other candidates were not as conservative as him.
“This is the lie that Ted’s campaign is built on, and Rand touched upon it. That he’s the most conservative guy and everyone else is a RINO,” Rubio said, using an acronym for “Republican in name only.”
“The truth is, Ted, throughout this campaign you’ve been willing to say and do anything to get votes,” he continued. That statement drew a smattering of boos in the crowd.
“Ted, you worked for George W. Bush’s campaign,” Rubio went on. “You helped design George W. Bush’s immigration plan. Now you want to trump Trump on immigration.”
Truth means nothing to Cruz – winning is everything. That’s why he put out the misleading mailer that was widely condemned:
Iowa’s secretary of state on Saturday blasted Ted Cruz’s campaign over a controversial mailer that aims to drive voters to the polls for Monday’s caucuses by claiming they have committed “violations.”
“Today I was shown a piece of literature from the Cruz for President campaign that misrepresents the role of my office, and worse, misrepresents Iowa election law,” Paul Pate, a Republican, said in a statement Saturday.
Cruz’s response?
“I will apologize to no one for using every tool we can to encourage Iowa voters to come out and vote,” he said.
Creepy privacy violations be damned, Cruz wants to win. And oh, by the way, those mailers were completely false:
Donna Holstein, who was listed on one of them, was upset to learn that she had been given a failing grade and that her neighbors might be told whether she participates in the caucus. She told me that she has voted consistently but that she can’t this time because of a disability.
“I’m crippled, so I can’t go to the caucus,” Holstein said. She was not happy about being shamed in front of her neighbors. “That’s what you call a bully,” she said about Cruz’s tactics. “I wish he would quit.”
Same thing happened during the caucus when his campaign directed their volunteers to tell voters at the caucus locations that Dr. Ben Carson had dropped out so they might as well vote for Cruz.
Sen. Ted Cruz apologized for potentially confusing Iowa Republican leaders by suggesting during Monday’s caucuses that rival Ben Carson was dropping out.
Cruz issued the mea culpa after Carson accused him of foul play.
“This was a mistake from our end, and for that I apologize to Dr. Carson,” Cruz said in a statement Tuesday.
Cruz won the Iowa caucuses; Carson came in distant fourth.
Can you say ‘ooopsie!’ Of course, what if those Carson voters had held their own and voted for their original choice? Would we be talking about Trump winning the Iowa caucus?
Cruz reminds me of Al Davis when he owned the Oakland Raiders – just win baby, just win. Cheating, lying, deceiving…who cares?
TrusTed? Seriously? As Cyndi Lauper says, Ted, I see your true colors.
