Rallying Around Ted Cruz

The Beltway press and the GOP Establishment is besides itself now that they can again say that Someone other than Donald Trump is winning something. 

We are hearing that Cruz's lead in a few recent Iowa polls is a shock. Of course, it really isn't. He's been setup to to this for awhile.

It's only a few polls but many pundits are already declaring Trump done. Sure, never heard that one before. Chris Cilliza declares that Cruz is the favorite to be the nominee,

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/its-cruz-not-trump-who-looks-more-like-the-favorite-to-win-gop-primary/2015/12/13/bf8c57de-a1a9-11e5-b53d-972e2751f433_story.html

Don't get me wrong. I think Cruz has a good chance. Still, to be so categorical that he's got it based on a few polls tells me that again this may be more pundit wishful thinking.

Trump has led in all these polls but now he trails in a few in Iowa and that's the end of it? I agree that Cruz is formidable-I suspect he may have more staying power in Iowa than Ben Carson did. But I don't get why this gift wraps the race to him. When has Iowa been destiny in recent years?

Even if Trump finishes in a strong second in Iowa he looks slated to win in NH and SC and quite possibly Florida and Nevada as well.

But what the pundits are now saying is that Trump is all or nothing. He has to either win every state or he will win none. John Fund at the National Review is pushing this line. I would quote a little from it but NRO insists on not letting you cut and paste it's material.

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/428444/trump-loses-iowa-kryptonite-for-him

But the idea is that if Trump loses Iowa or even looks in line to lose, he'll just drop out. I do agree that Trump is very invested in every poll that comes out.

Still, if you look at Fund's record during this primary in terms of predicting Trump's moves it is not pretty. He's been wrong again and again. This was Fund back in June.

Donald Trump will milk every ounce of the publicity he can from his boisterous entry into the 2016 presidential race — then drop out before he has to begin the grind of day-to-day campaigning, Newsmax analyst and National Review columnist John Fund says.

"I still actually believe that Donald Trump isn't going to go the distance on this race," Fund said Wednesday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on Newsmax TV.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.newsmax.com/Newsmax-Tv/John-Fund-Donald-Trump-presidential-race-publicity/2015/06/17/id/651007/#ixzz3uITShRbp

Prophetic he ain't. Nothing else has felled Trump but now the hope is this hyper focus with winning will. Sure, the Muslim comments,didn't, McCain didn't, Carly Fiorina's face didn't' but this will be the smoking gun. 

The irony is that the GOP Establishment despises Cruz and it's even been argued that Cruz would be an even bigger general election nightmare. 

But the reason pundits are so excited over Cruz's rise is the hope that this will be the end of Trump. If Trump gets out, they hope then that an Establishment candidate-Rubio, Crhistie, etc,-catches up to Cruz. 

P.S. I do see though that even Clinton World seems to be jumping on the Ted Cruz bandwagon. Both David Brock and John Podesta have declared that Cruz will be the nominee. 

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/12/hillary-clinton-general-election-prep-216698

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/12/hillary-clinton-david-brock-attack-ted-cruz-216694

I'm not exactly sure what to make of that. I mean I hope it's true really-I'm happy as long as it's not an Establishment GOPer. 

I do think that Cruz has a good chance but don't know that I agree it's a done deal just yet. My hope is a Trump-Cruz duel that goes all the way to the convention.