Thursday, December 10, 2015

First Read: Is Ted Cruz 2016's Invisible GOP Frontrunner?

 
First Read is a morning briefing from Meet the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter.
 
The invisible frontrunner in GOP race? Try Ted Cruz

Today's political spotlight -- once again -- is fixed on Donald Trump, given the three new polls (national NYT/CBS, Fox News of South Carolina, Winthrop of South Carolina) that show him leading the Republican presidential race. But now 53 days out from the first nominating contest, it's time to consider Ted Cruz another frontrunner in the GOP race at least when it comes to the Iowa caucuses. "Ted Cruz, the no-compromise conservative purist, is on the verge of securing the Christian conservative bloc, a linchpin that could secure victory in the 2016 Iowa caucuses, GOP insiders say," per the Des Moines Register. "The question is whether Cruz can siphon enough tea party voters from front-runner Donald Trump to vault Cruz into the No. 1 slot when votes are counted less than two months from now, they say." The Washington Post's Cillizza adds that Cruz is also set up well for the March 1 contests. "Assuming Cruz is one of those candidates who makes it to March, the calendar starts to look very favorable to him. On March 1 is what's being referred to as the 'SEC primary'; Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas will all vote on that first Tuesday in March." 

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Source: NBC News

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