Trump: Cruz missteps 'worse than Hillary'
NORWALK, Ia. – Donald Trump continued to pound Republican rival Ted Cruz Wednesday morning, saying some of the things Cruz has done make him worse than Democrat Hillary Clinton.
Trump, who is embattled in a tight race with Cruz in Iowa, spent roughly eight minutes of his speech here walking the crowd through all the ways in which he believes Cruz is not fit to be president.
“He’s fine. He’s two-faced,” Trump said of Cruz. “A lot of people don’t like him, frankly. But look, Ted Cruz has a problem.”
Trump began with Cruz’s Canadian citizenship, which Trump says raises questions about whether he’s eligible to run for president. Cruz was born in Canada, though his mother was a U.S. citizen. Most legal scholars agree that makes him eligible to run for president, though the issue hasn't been tested in the Supreme Court. Cruz held dual citizenship, but renounced his Canadian citizenship in 2014.
Iowa Poll: Cruz holds 3-point lead as Trump attacks
Trump warned that Cruz won the Republican nomination, Democrats would bring a lawsuit questioning his ability to run “just as sure as you’re standing here.” Trump criticized Cruz’s previous statements that he hasn't always known he was a Canadian citizen.
“Smart guy. He doesn’t know that?” Trump said. “Yeah. That’s worse than Hillary when you think about it.”
Then Trump, who took on a more subdued tone for the 8:30 a.m. event, discussed the two loans from major banks that Cruz failed to disclose on certain financial reports.
“The problem is he didn’t (disclose them) purposely because what he wanted to do is say, ‘I will protect you from Goldman Sachs, I will protect you from Citibank, and I will protect you from the banks, because I’m Robin Hood and I’m this wonderful senator and I’m going to protect you from these banks,' ” Trump said. “And then he’s borrowing form the banks.”
Trump spoke after gaining the endorsement Tuesday from Republican firebrand Sarah Palin in Ames. The former governor and 2008 vice presidential nominee was expected to join Trump Wednesday morning, but he appeared alone.
His appearance also followed statements from Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad’s Tuesday denouncing Cruz for being insufficiently supportive of ethanol subsidies. Trump said that even though it wasn't an endorsement, it was good for his campaign.
“I understand exactly what he’s saying,” Trump said of Branstad, who he praised as being above politics. “And I think it has to do with more than ethanol. I think it has to do with maybe other things, too.”
At the event
SETTING: The Wright Place event venue in Norwalk, Iowa.
CROWD: About 300 people attended the event.
REACTION: The crowd was mostly subdued throughout Trump’s speech, with few major applause lines. However, most excitedly stuck around after the event to take pictures with the candidate and get autographs.
WHAT’S NEXT: Trump returns to Iowa Saturday for stops in Pella and Sioux Center. Check DesMoinesRegister.com/candidatetracker for more details.
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