Ted Cruz asks campaign spokesman to resign following Rubio video gaffe

Ted Cruz campaign spokesman Rick Tyler on Monday issued a Facebook apology to Marco Rubio for sharing an article from a college newspaper that claimed the Florida senator had said there were “not many answers” in a Bible a Cruz staffer was reading.

Rubio, who eked out a second-place finish in South Carolina’s primary by fewer than 1,000 votes over Cruz on Saturday, racked up endorsements from prominent Republicans including U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and former presidential candidate Bob Dole.

Tyler on Sunday tweeted a story that falsely alleged that Rubio, in an encounter with Cruz’s father Rafael and a Cruz staffer in SC, said that the “Bible did not have any answers in it”.

Cruz says he spent the morning investigating what happened before making his decision. “That’s why I’ve asked for Rick Tyler’s resignation”. I had made clear in this campaign that we will conduct this campaign with the very highest standards of integrity.

Even though Rubio has stated his support for traditional marriage and believes the case can eventually be overturned, Cruz said that Rubio’s position “are word for word the talking points of Barack Obama”. “That’s why I’m asking for Rick Tyler’s resignation”, Cruz said. “I regret that mistake”.

Rubio said the Bible video was “perhaps the most offensive” tactic to date, as it attacked his faith.

“It’s every single day something comes out of the Cruz campaign that’s deceptive and untrue”, he said.

Rubio’s communications director, Alex Conant, tweeted the same video in question, pointing to the correct wording of the remarks. The Florida Senator demanded accountability, and now Tyler is out.

Social media erupted, as did Rubio’s campaign, complaining about the “dirty tricks” that he, Donald Trump and Ben Carson have accused the Cruz campaign of engaging in through the course of the primaries, especially suggesting that Carson was about to drop out of the race in Iowa. Cruz later clarified it as a misunderstanding, saying he used a CNN article as a source for claiming Carson was taking a break from the election.

Rubio did indeed say, ‘Got a good book there, ‘ as he strolled by the Cruz team. Todd Harris, senior adviser to Rubio, called the move “phony and deceitful”.

“I know exactly what I said to that young man”, Rubio said.

It no longer gets much attention, but for several years, Donald Trump’s most notable contribution to the political discourse was his “birther” conspiracy theory about President Obama.