Businessman Donald Trump on Monday ratcheted up his attacks against Sen. Ted Cruz in the GOP presidential race, calling the Texas Republican a “totally unstable individual” and “the single biggest liar,” while threatening to bring legal action against the Canadian-born Cruz over his eligibility to be president if he continues spreading lies on the campaign trail.
“One of the ways I can fight back is to bring a lawsuit against him relative to the fact that he was born in Canada and therefore cannot be president,” Mr. Trump said in a statement. “If he doesn’t take down his false ads and retract his lies, I will do so immediately. Additionally, the RNC should intervene and if they don’t they are in default of their pledge to me.”
Mr. Trump, who won the New Hampshire primary, and Mr. Cruz, who won the Iowa caucuses, are aggressively pushing to cement their status as the front-runner in the GOP presidential nomination race by coming out on top in South Carolina’s primary later this week.
Born to an American mother and Cuban father in Canada. Mr. Cruz has dismissed the notion that he is not a natural born citizen and in recent weeks has challenged Mr. Trump’s conservative credentials — including on the issue of abortion and over judicial nominees.
Mr. Trump said Monday that Mr. Cruz is peddling lies, arguing he is wrong to say he would nominate a liberal replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and to question his evolution on abortion from pro-choice to pro-life.
“Like Ronald Reagan, on many issues, I have evolved,” he said.
Mr. Trump said it is “hard to believe a person who proclaims to be a Christian could be so dishonest and lie so much.”
“Cruz has become unhinged and is lying with the hopes that his statements will go unchecked until after the election and he will save his failing campaign,” he said.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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