Republican presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas on Wednesday blamed the liberal media and Washington insiders with trying to portray front-runner Donald Trump as the presumptive nominee.
He said those forces wanted the GOP race to be over because there is no difference between Mr. Trump and likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
“Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are flip sides of the same coin,” Mr. Cruz told reporters in Indianapolis, Indiana, as he vowed to campaign hard for that state’s May 3 primary.
He noted that the billionaire businessman had previously contributed to Mrs. Clinton’s campaigns. He insisted they had the same views on Obamacare and raising taxes, although Mr. Trump disputes that characterization of his positions.
“I recognize that the New York media executives and the Washington lobbyists running Donald Trump’s campaign both want the campaign to be over. They are desperate for it to be over,” Mr. Cruz said. “They now recognize that this campaign has moved on to much more favorable territory.”
Mr. Trump’s landslide victories Tuesday in five Northeast states put him far ahead in the delegate hunt and on track to clinch the nomination before the July convention in Cleveland.
SEE ALSO: Ted Cruz pledges ‘major announcement’ at 4 p.m. Wednesday
The Texas senator’s only path to the nomination is through a contested convention where he hopes to win after multiple ballots.
Mr. Cruz cast the Indiana primary as a decisive battle that could block Mr. Trump from getting the 1,237 delegates needed to lock up the nomination. He said Hoosier State voters face the “decision of which path we want to go down.”
“Do we want to go down a path of a campaign that is based on yelling and screaming and cursing and insults, or do we want to unify behind a campaign that is a positive, optimistic, forward-looking, conservative campaign based on real policy solutions to the challenges facing this country,” Mr. Cruz said.
The Cruz campaign has announced that he will make a major announcement Wednesday at 4 p.m.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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