Not quite sure what he will do, Sen. Ted Cruz says he will wait to see if Donald Trump will run in the next election, before making a firm decision on running himself.
Cruz, the conservative firebrand from Texas and the runner-up to Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential nomination race, said that that he and other potential 2024 presidential contenders will wait and see what Donald Trump decides and then make decisions from there.
Trump has been going back-and-forth on if he will try and run in another presidential election. He recently appeared to give his biggest sign yet of his intentions, by telling New York Magazine a 2024 run is about when, not about if.
“I would say my big decision will be whether I go before or after,” Trump said in an interview published last month, seemingly referring to the midterm elections in November.
Cruz has also consistently not ruled out making another White House run. He has been making stops a handful of times over the past year in the early voting states in the GOP presidential nominating calendar, with more likely to come in the months ahead.
Cruz has said, “When I ran in ’16, it was the most fun I’ve had in my life.”
In his Friday interview, which took place moments after he addressed the crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Dallas, Texas, the senator gave another 2024 hint, once again emphasizing “I am committed to fighting to save this country with every breath in my body. It is what I believe in.”
But Cruz also stressed that his top campaign mission the next three months is helping fellow Republicans in November’s midterm elections.
“My focus is on 2022. I’m spending practically every waking moment on the campaign trail, focusing on retaking the House and retaking the Senate,” Cruz said.
Cruz also predicted, “I think we’re gonna win both. I think we’re gonna see a Republican majority in the House. I think we’re gonna see a Republican majority in the Senate. And I hope and believe we’re going to see not just majorities, but strong new conservative leaders who are willing to stand and fight and deliver on their promises.”
Republicans have the political winds at their backs as they aim to win back the congressional majorities in both chambers in the midterms. But there are plenty of people in the GOP concerned that a potential Trump 2024 announcement before November could negatively impact the Republicans’ chances of wining back control of the House and Senate.
Asked whether he thought a Trump 2024 announcement would be damaging to the GOP, Cruz answered, “Trump is going to decide what he wants to do, and frankly, he’s going to decide on his own time-frame. He’s not going to listen to me. He’s not going to listen to anyone else. He’s going to decide when he damn well wants to, and the rest of the world will react accordingly.”
