Cruz Hits Trump as Pro-Abortion, Pro-Gay, Pro-Cuomo

“I disagree with Donald”, Cruz said.

The prepared riff, coming after reporters surrounded him at a back entrance here, comes after Trump used the 9/11 attacks in NY as a response to Cruz’s criticism of the real-estate mogul’s values on the debate stage Thursday in Charleston.

He seemed to gloat over Trump’s discomfort during an appearance on Fox News Sunday when he portrayed Trump as a closet supporter of abortion, gay rights and other liberal “New York values” that he says are out of step with Iowa and the rest of the country.

Cruz took Trump to task over his past support for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the $700 billion Congress approved to help stabilize the banks in 2008, and his early backing of universal healthcare coverage.

“The truth is he’s a nasty guy”, Trump said of Cruz on Sunday. He deflects a question about same-sex marriage, tacitly supports gays serving in the military, and declares himself “very pro-choice”.

“I’m pretty sure that Ronald Reagan didn’t write a huge check to Rahm Emanuel in December 2010 – after, by the way, the big Tea Party wave”, Cruz said of the now-mayor of Chicago.

But he continued, in rhetoric that made clear the apology wasn’t the one expected of him: “I apologize to the millions of New Yorkers who have been let down by liberal politicians in that state”.

As they say, the first step is recognizing you have a problem. “He was so nice to me”. I know many Democrats. I kept saying come on Ted.

“There’s a reason he is very, very dismayed”, Cruz added.

“We also have to have someone for president who knows exactly what they’re going to do when they get there”, the Florida senator said, as he courted Iowa voters ahead of the state’s February 1 caucuses. “It’s not a good thing for the country”, said Mr. Trump, who has led Republican opinion polls for months.

On “This Week”, Trump went after Cruz for his stance on immigration. “He only got strong in the last little while. I thought what he said was very, very sad”. Where has that been?

At the rally Cruz gave his standard stump speech, telling the crowd that if elected president he would repeal the Affordable Care Act, rip up the nuclear deal with Iran, build a wall to stop illegal immigration, abolish the IRS and “utterly and completely destroy ISIS”. Marco Rubio is in second place.

“The fact of the matter is that Ted has shown a propensity throughout his career in the U.S. Senate to take one position in front of one audience and then change his position in front of another”, Rubio said. “And I’ve been with the people of NY for a long time, but when the World Trade Center came down I watched these incredible people rebuild from the day it came down”.