By Thomas Madison

Politicians do indeed make strange bedfellows!

In the following Hugh Hewitt radio interview, Hewitt asked Donald Trump if he had ruled out Ted Cruz for VP? The Donald unpredictably replied, “Well, I don’t know. Look, I have nothing against him. It was sort of a sad thing that happened, but I’ve always liked him, I’ve always gotten along well with him….” The short answer: No, I have not ruled out Ted Cruz.

The interview is a month old and even more bad water has gone under the bridge, so who knows if Trump, who has always been accused of being exceedingly vindictive, still feels the same. One thing appears certain – Trump and Cruz need each other. So, from that perspective the once cozy, then combative and abusive relationship, appears to be on again, or at least not permanently off.

This renewed courtship makes perfect sense for several reasons….

  1. Cruz is running a lot closer to Trump than many predicted a month ago, or even a few days ago. The Canadian actually believes he can win this thing. The polls indicate otherwise. By March 15, if the polling is accurate (big IF, considering Kansas), Trump should be too far ahead for anyone to catch him. However, Cruz can still play spoiler and keep Trump from reaching the magic majority number of 1,237 delegates. Rubio’s new and multiple infidelity revelations should send him to the land of the politically obscure in short order. Kasich is hanging on for Ohio (March 15), in the hopes that he will be the new establishment favorite when Rubio falters, which is inevitable, considering Senor Rubio’s recent bimbo eruptions.
  2. This is now very much a two-horse race, with nary an establishment parasite in the picture, and the establishment doesn’t like that…. AT ALL! They will do whatever necessary to see that neither Trump nor Cruz, both outsiders, is the eventual nominee. Thus, Trump and Cruz MUST be confederates. The establishment’s big problem with this is if Trump doesn’t reach a majority of delegates and wins the nomination outright, and the convention is brokered, the combination of Trump and Cruz hold all the cards. Here is why that is important….
  3. Cruz could throw his support and delegates Trump’s way, and as far as I know (feel free to comment if you believe otherwise) that will lead to a first ballot win for Trump, presuming, of course, that Cruz supports Trump’s nomination before the first ballot. Trump would then be an irresistible force. Cruz has to hang in the race and score as many delegates as possible to place Rubio and Kasich in weak and helpless positions at the convention.
  4. Cruz has two alternatives – go for the brass ring now, or accept the VP slot on a Trump/Cruz ticket, spend eight years as veep, while gaining clout and visibility. This would also give the team time to resolve Cruz’s eligibility status, and make him heir apparent to the White House in 2024 when Cruz will be a young (by presidential standards) 54 years old. Everyone’s a winner!

The establishment appears to be outgunned, but it won’t matter if Trump and Cruz don’t play it right. It is my opinion that they may have already engineered just such an outcome. Smart dudes if they did!