Support for Cruz hasn’t materialized for two key reasons: After seeing their favored candidates, Rubio and Jeb Bush, go down in flames, congressional Republicans are reluctant to cast their lot with Cruz, who despite his strong recent finishes remains an underdog to Trump. And, so far, Cruz hasn’t worked to seal the deal with personal outreach to GOP senators…
Cruz hasn’t been in the Capitol since February, despite senators asking for him to appear. Even as Cruz refuses to apologize for calling McConnell a liar, attending at the GOP caucus weekly lunch would show that he cares enough about the backing of his colleagues to divert his campaign to D.C. and demonstrate in person why they should risk the ire of Trump…
The uneasy relationship between Cruz and GOP senators goes both ways. People in Cruz’s orbit feel that lawmakers cloistered on Capitol Hill are nursing dated grudges against the senator and are out of touch with the rest of the Republican Party. The grass roots have long adored Cruz and establishment pillars like Bush have come to see him as an acceptable alternative to Trump.
In other corners of GOP politics, Cruz has made some progress landing donors and operatives previously supporting other candidates. Even some of the former candidates, such as Graham and Rick Perry, have thrown their support behind him, in large part because many see him as their last chance to thwart Trump. This all comes as Cruz emphasizes the importance of GOP “unity,” especially in the effort to stop Trump, at every turn.
