In the wake of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's announcement that he is running for president, one conservative radio host said she's not surprised.
S.E. Cupp writes in
the New York Daily News that during one of her radio shows last fall, she asked her listeners to pick who they wanted to see run for president in the 2016 election.
Out of almost two dozen names, Cruz, a Republican, garnered the most support. But the fact there were so many others mentioned isn't necessarily a good thing for Cruz, Cupp argues.
"The presumably crowded Republican field is vexing for most would-be candidates," Cupp writes.
"Jeb Bush comes with a brand. Rand Paul, too. Everyone else has to work hard to earn one."
Still,
Cruz's status as a front-runner in Cupp's informal poll shows his campaign for the White House is getting off to a good start, she writes.
"But the second part of the equation — that even with their attention divided among the almost two dozen others, many conservatives still put Cruz on top — is obviously good news for the Texas senator, who commands a great deal of loyalty from far-right conservatives, despite slipping in recent primary polls," Cupp writes.
"To many on the right, Cruz is the only Republican they trust not to cave to the 'squishy' moderates who put pragmatism ahead of politics."
Adding that "his principles are exceedingly popular with the conservative base," Cupp surmises that Cruz "puts the rest of the Republican field in a tough spot if they plan to dismiss him as 'too conservative' to win the nomination."
Still, some conservative politicians, commentators, and experts think
Cruz isn't quite qualified to run the country. He worked as the Solicitor General of Texas from 2003-2008 and has been a U.S. Senator since 2013.
Eric Bolling of Fox News, for example, said Monday he feels Cruz is
not ready to be president.
"I love the Constitutional conservative in him. I think he would be a great president, but I just don't think he is ready yet," Bolling said.
Bolling also compared Cruz to President Barack Obama, who was voted into the office after serving in the Senate for less than four years.
"One of the strikes we had against President Obama was that he was too young, he was too fresh, he was too green around the ears," Bolling said.
Cupp concludes by saying, "The real winner in Cruz's candidacy may just be Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who sits somewhere between Bush and freshmen U.S. Sens. Cruz, Paul and Marco Rubio."
Cruz is the only major candidate in the race for president, although
several others are expected to follow him in the coming weeks and months.
On the Democrat side, Hillary Clinton is expected to announce her candidacy next month.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.