The war between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz grew even hotter Thursday as the Republican rivals exchanged barbs over which was an "establishment" candidate amid surveys showing Trump widening his lead in Iowa or the contenders in a virtual dead heat in the state.
Cruz kicked it off Wednesday when he told New Hampshire voters that the "Washington establishment" was "abandoning Marco Rubio and unifying behind Donald Trump."
Trump hit back Thursday by charging that Cruz's loans from Goldman Sachs and Citigroup at the outset of his Senate campaign suggested that he would be liable to Wall Street interests if he won the White House.
He also continued to talk up his endorsement from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who holds sway with many tea party voters. Cruz remains a critical tea party favorite.
But Trump also embraced Cruz's "establishment" attack, saying that the moniker might be necessary to get some things done.
"You know what? There's a point at which: Let's get to be a little establishment," he told a rally in Las Vegas. "We've got to get things done folks, OK? Believe me, don't worry. We're going to make such great deals.
"Guys like Ted Cruz will never make a deal because he's a strident guy."
Meanwhile, the latest
CNN/ORC poll showed Trump holding an 11-point lead over Cruz in Iowa, while a
Loras College survey showed the developer at 26 percent and the senator at 25 percent.
Iowa holds it caucuses on Feb. 1 in the first test of the 2016 presidential election season.
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