The political arm of the anti-tax group Club for Growth is launching a $1.5 million ad buy starting Friday in Indiana urging voters to support Sen. Ted Cruz in order to stop GOP front-runner Donald Trump ahead of the state’s May 3 GOP presidential nominating contest.
“If you don’t want Donald Trump to win, your choice comes down to this: math,” a narrator says in the 30-second ad. “Only Ted Cruz can beat Donald Trump. John Kasich can’t do it. The math won’t work.”
“A vote for Kasich actually helps Trump by dividing the opposition,” the narrator says. “It’s time to put differences aside. To stop Trump, vote for Cruz.”
The Club for Growth PAC had already endorsed Mr. Cruz last month, and the Club ran a similar ad ahead of the Wisconsin GOP primary. Mr. Cruz scored a double-digit win there on April 5 over Mr. Trump, with Mr. Kasich finishing a distant third.
“Indiana is facing a unique moment in history: the opportunity to stop Donald Trump,” said Club for Growth Action president David McIntosh. “After success with our ads in Wisconsin, Iowa, Oklahoma, and Utah, CFG Action is about to blanket the Hoosier State with a simple message: To stop Trump, vote Cruz. There is now no state more important than Indiana for electing Cruz and keeping Trump from reaching 1,237.”
The latest delegate count, according to the AP, has Mr. Trump with 845, Mr. Cruz with 559, and Mr. Kasich with 148.
Mr. Cruz himself said on Wednesday that no candidate is going to reach the necessary 1,237 delegates before the GOP convention in July and that Mr. Kasich’s presence in the race is helping Mr. Trump at this point.
“John Kasich is an honorable and decent man whose only role in this election is as a spoiler,” Mr. Cruz said.
Speaking on CNN Wednesday, Mr. Kasich said Mr. Cruz is a “fine guy” but that he’s not concerned about what the Texas senator has to say about his campaign or his chances.
“All I know is if we pick these two guys, according to virtually all the polls, we are going to get creamed,” Mr. Kasich said.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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