Ted Cruz Tries to Talk Himself Into the 2024 GOP Nomination: ‘The Runner-Up Is Almost Always the Next Nominee’
In a recent interview set to air on Friday, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) made the case why – from a historical standpoint – he may very well be the next Republican presidential nominee.
“What are your thoughts on the field of potential candidates going into 2024?” asked Brilyn Hollyhand of The Truth Gazette in a clip tweeted on Wednesday. “And would you ever consider another run for president?”
Cruz declined to address the rumored field of candidates in the clip. Instead, he explained why the next GOP presidential nominee could be Ted Cruz.
Cruz replied,
Absolutely. In a heartbeat. You know, I ran in 2016. It was the most fun I’ve ever had in my life. We had a very crowded field with 17 candidates in the race. A very strong field, and I ended up placing second. And you know, there’s a reason historically that the runner-up is almost always the next nominee. And that’s been true going back to Nixon, Reagan, or McCain, or Romney. That has played out repeatedly. You come in with just an enormous base of support. In 2016, we raised over $92 million. That was the most money any Republican’s ever raised in the history of presidential primaries.”
It’s true that several nominees had to try at least twice before landing the nomination. But whether Cruz runs in 2024 may well depend on the political plans of Donald Trump, who defeated Cruz in 2016. On the campaign trail, Trump besmirched the looks of Cruz’s wife and also suggested Cruz’s father was involved in the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
Nevertheless, Cruz said, “It was the most fun I’ve ever had in my life.”
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