OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) – Ted Cruz worked to consolidate support from Iowa conservatives Tuesday with the help of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, while rival Donald Trump claimed Cruz was “nervous” with less than a week until voting kicks off in Iowa.
A day after nabbing the endorsement from his former primary rival, Cruz planned seven stops with Perry in central Iowa, joined by other bold-name conservatives backing Cruz. Though lagging behind Trump nationally, Cruz is locked in a cutthroat race with Trump in Iowa as the broader Republican Party slowly comes around to the likelihood that one of the two could be their nominee.
“He’s so nervous. He’s such a mess,” Trump told ABC’s “Good Morning America,” dismissing questions raised by Cruz about his record on abortion. Touting his recent endorsement from Sarah Palin, Trump teased another big endorsement he said would be coming later Tuesday, though he didn’t disclose who it would be.
Cruz has sought to avoid a personal war of words with Trump, whose supporters he’s working to peel off in Iowa and other early-voting states. Both candidates are seeking to capitalize on a strain in the GOP hungry for an insurgent conservative that can shake up the status quo.
The backbiting among the two leading GOP candidates came as the leading Democratic contenders fought over whose record of fighting for economic fairness has been the most consistent, effective and tested.