In a testimony earlier this week, it was revealed that former president Donald Trump was playing dirty against then-Republican candidates and now Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio during the primary race in 2016. The latest news comes at a sensitive time for Donald Trump amid the presidential campaign, just as he is trying to win the support of voters in battleground states.
The race
Experts predict that the New York trial won’t significantly impact Trump’s efforts to garner voter support, given his anticipated challenge to President Joe Biden in November. Currently, Trump has a slight lead over Biden in nationwide polls. According to The Hill data, Trump leads Biden by 0.4 points. This current standing is the result of 674 polls combined. The latest data from ABC shows that Trump has increased his lead against Biden in all seven key battleground states, including Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
The New York trial
Nearly two weeks have passed since the start of the New York trial against Trump, where he faces charges for hush-money payments made to po*n actress Stormy Daniels in 2016. Trump is accused of making the payments and orchestrating a wide-ranging scheme to influence the 2016 presidential election outcome. As the trial progresses, the public will most certainly learn about many other things during Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, such as one from this week when former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker testified and revealed what Trump did to Texas and Florida Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, then Republican presidential candidates.
David Pecker testifying
Former National Enquirer chief David Pecker testified that he played a role in Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign by creating untrue stories about Ted Cruz. Pecker spoke at Trump’s trial concerning hush-money in New York City, revealing his involvement over Monday and Tuesday. He admitted to coordinating with Trump to release damaging and fabricated stories about Cruz to boost Trump’s chances in the election.
Other candidates were targets too
Pecker detailed that not only Cruz, but also other Republican candidates Marco Rubio and Ben Carson, who were vying for the 2016 Republican nomination, were targets of these fabricated stories. Hillary Clinton, who was Trump’s main opponent in the general election, was also a subject of such stories. Pecker claimed that after a meeting at Trump Tower in 2015, he proceeded to spread false allegations, including a story that Cruz had numerous affairs and another linking Cruz’s father to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
The attacks against Cruz
In the 2016 election, Donald Trump often called Ted Cruz “Lyin’ Ted” and frequently insulted the Texas senator, including making negative comments about his wife, Heidi Cruz’s, appearance before he clinched the GOP nomination. Since then, Cruz has faced criticism for not confronting Trump, especially after their contentious campaign. He has been labeled as “emasculated” and a “coward” due to his consistent loyalty and lack of challenge to the former president.
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Cruz is now huge Trump supporter
At the time, Cruz vehemently denied the accusations about his father and Kennedy, criticizing Trump as a “pathological liar” and accusing him of not knowing “the difference between truth and lies.” Despite these strong words, Cruz later endorsed Trump and has since offered consistent praise with minimal criticism. After Pecker’s testimony, critics on X, previously known as Twitter, took to the platform to condemn Cruz for his apparent lack of resistance to Trump’s tactics.
The critics
On Tuesday, Cruz was attacked online by users again. Former federal prosecutor Ron Filipkowski shared an image of an old story against Ted Cruz and wrote: “Can you imagine how little self-respect you have to have to endorse, support, and praise the man who did this to you?”
“This is what I keep thinking. @tedcruz has perfected shamelessness,” sportswriter Jeff Pearlman wrote in response to Filipkowski’s post.
This is what I keep thinking. @tedcruz has perfected shamelessness. https://t.co/OWY9eE41oa
— Jeff Pearlman (@jeffpearlman) April 23, 2024
“Team Trump was personally placing articles in The Enquirer accusing @tedcruz of infidelity. Will the world’s saddest cuck actually stand up for himself and his family this time? I think we know the answer…,” an ex-spokesperson for former President Barack Obama wrote.
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“Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz will probably put out a joint statement of support for Trump today,” former Clinton campaign staffer Josh Schwerin wrote.
