Trump, GOP leaders realizing they may need each other

About half the Republican electorate wants someone besides Trump or Cruz.

Donald Trump: Trump has had a very good last few weeks. GOP candidate was the first to comment on the issue, saying the issue is overblown.

Graham dodged on whether he would support Trump if he were to end up as the party nominee. At that point the dam breaks and you will get a rush of other establishment figures who will rally around him. “We the people will get him in office if we push hard”.

However, the establishment’s growing acceptance of Trump’s electoral prospects so far hasn’t manifested itself in tangible support for his campaign.

Yet Trump’s personality is passable to many Republicans when forced to choose between it and Cruz, and the baggage Cruz tows: his poor relationships with fellow senators and an utter lack of goodwill.

The South Carolina senator did not just attack Republicans, however.

Overall, 61% of voters say Cruz is eligible to be president, while 27% disagree.

There was a time, not so long ago, when Republican insiders believed there were really two races for their party’s nomination. New Hampshire voters told ThinkProgress they support Cruz chiefly because of his willingness to crack down on undocumented immigrants. Ted Cruz in Iowa, according to Al-Arabiya.

One reason so many Republican bigwigs oppose Cruz is that he is considered by many political professionals to be too right-wing to win a national election. Trump has an overwhelming lead over Cruz in the other key early primary states of New Hampshire and Florida.

“My son, a combat veteran… was fighting for you all, America, in the war zone”, Palin said.

Even as he’s taken up the anti-establishment mantle, Trump has made some quiet overtures to GOP powerbrokers. The hotel is owned by Republican Party mega-donor Sheldon Adelson.

Cruz placed second, earning 20 percent of support, his highest yet as his numbers continue to surge.

She says she has no doubt that if elected president, Cruz would cancel the moratorium nearly immediately. Ted Cruz, comparing it to a choice between poisoning or being shot.

The TV spot features footage of Cruz stumbling over his words in a December interview with Fox News as he tries to explain his position on immigration reform. “He could be Canadian Prime Minister”, Trump said. He often talks about how he’s been in politics all his life and has been seen as the “fair-haired boy” showering contributions on both Republicans and Democrats.

Trump himself has been a fixture of the NY donor class for decades and already has deep relationships with many establishment players.