Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s new convention manager accused Ted Cruz’s campaign of using “Gestapo tactics” after the Texas senator swept the party’s convention-delegate selection process in Colorado.
“He’s threatening,” Paul Manafort said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “You go to these county conventions, and you see the tactics, Gestapo tactics, the scorched-earth tactics.” He didn’t give any examples.
Cruz picked up all 34 delegates on offer in Colorado. The final 13 were selected at the end of a day-long convention Saturday in Colorado Springs.
Cruz, as well as much of the Republican Party’s establishment, is trying to deny Trump enough delegates to be nominated on the first ballot in Cleveland — a rare event in modern U.S. politics that would throw the nominating process wide open. As of Sunday Trump led the race with 743 delegates, according to Associated Press estimates. Cruz had 545 including the weekend’s pickups, while Ohio Governor John Kasich lagged far behind at 143.
Colorado’s 34 delegates are a small fraction of the 1,237 needed to win the nomination but take on more significance than usual with a contested convention becoming more likely. The next Republican contest is in New York on April 19. A Fox News poll published Sunday had Trump garnering 54 percent support from likely voters in his home state.
Manafort, 67, who helped President Gerald Ford’s delegate operation at the 1976 convention and managed Kansas Sen. Bob Dole’s 1996 presidential campaign, said Cruz was “not playing by the rules” and doesn’t “care about the party.”
“If they don’t get what they want, they blow it up,” said Manafort.
A Cruz spokeswoman said Trump’s campaign was trying to distract from its lack of a ground game.
“It’s no surprise that Trump’s team will lash out with falsehoods to distract from their failure, as they have the entire time,” said the spokeswoman, Catherine Frazier. “We have earned our success by working hard to build a superior organization and are working within the process and rules that have been established — which has led now to four consecutive wins, 12 wins total.”
Cruz’s sweep in Colorado highlighted Trump’s lack of a robust national organization as a political novice.
Manafort said Trump’s campaign wasn’t “playing in Colorado” and had succeeded with efforts with Alabama, Michigan and Nevada. Trump is running his own campaign and “was doing very well on a model that made sense, but now, as the campaign has gotten to the end stages, a more traditional campaign has to take place,” he said.
While Cruz showed the benefit of a traditional grassroots organization in Colorado, Hillary Clinton had an establishment victory of sorts in Wyoming, even as she lost the state’s Democratic caucus to Bernie Sanders, 56 percent to 44 percent.
The Vermont senator had been expected to dominate the rural, mostly white western state, and Clinton didn’t campaign there. But Sanders’ margin of victory was less than in his recent lopsided caucus triumphs in Washington state, Alaska and elsewhere. The candidates split the state’s 14 delegates and Clinton continues to enjoy a sizable delegate lead.
While Sanders reflected on his momentum during a rally in New York, Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook, in an e-mailed statement, said his candidate had “outperformed” expectations in Wyoming by fighting Sanders to a delegate tie.
(c) 2016, Bloomberg · John McCormick, Jennifer Oldham
7 Responses
With that comment alone, it shows how out of touch the Trump campaign is with the values and sensitivities of the frum community. The fact that the chief political operative for Mr Trump can equate a rival campaign outworking and outmaneuvering them in the delgate selection process or in a state convention to “Gestapo tactics” is mind-boggling. The Gestapo he is so eloquently referring to, physically and emotionally abused and murdered people to accomplish their goals. To equate them to a political opponent who has a superior organization then you is insulting and hurtful the Jewish community.
Once again, the Trump campaign is demonstrating reckless behavior in the face of adversity. It is instances like these and the many others like it which makes most voters scratch their heads as to what the campaign was thinking in making such a statement.
Perfectly stated! Thank you. Neverdrumpf.
How do you know so much about Cruz methods neverdrumpf or is it just you hate trump to automatically you have a haze of red for anything you see about it. Also i don’t understand how a yid can ever say never someone. Just daven that hashem should give us whoever will be best for us and besides once someone becomes president they lose there bechera so it doesn’t even make a difference in the long run. And if that is to yeshivish for you I ask you why would you pick Hillary over Donald trump? You actually think Hillary Clinton would be better for the yidden then Donald trump? You disgust me neverdrumpf.
From Yeshiva bachurs statement you know he thinks Donald trump is hashem’s gift to America
From the first part of his statement “also I don’t understand….. Just daven …..
Yet in the end he says “do you think Hillary would be better than trump
Anyone that doesn’t see that Donald would make a great whiner in chief is delusional
@Yeshivahbachur I am going to take your word for it that you are what you say you are. Now that we’ve established your devotion to daas Torah is unequivocal, I’d like you to go ask your Rosh Yeshiva what he thinks about Donald Trump, his behavior, and his retorect. I am someone who does form my own personal opinions but almost never act t on them before consulting a Rav.
My Rav called Mr Trump a “mashigina” who is making a laughingstock of the entire America. He continued, the fact that there are so many people in America going to vote for him, shows how low society has fallen.
You tell me yeshivabachur, do I still have to reaquire my bechirah so that it can fit your narrative about how you think I should vote? My Rav doesn’t think so…
To all of you who think so highly of Ted Cruz. If you think he’ll be able to pass one thing in congress thats eather going to be turned down or will not have a majority to voted into law. Don’t forget that while as senator he didn’t pass one legislation without going to court and fight it there. I don’t think you could do that when it comes to fighting congress.
And anyway Cruz is beholden to his supporters who give him money for his campaign his supper packs Trump is not.