Republican front-runner Donald Trump has gone on the offensive against Ted Cruz following comments the Texas senator made behind closed doors at a fundraiser. On Friday morning, Trump took to Twitter to say that Cruz, who is rapidly rising in the polls, is "getting ready to attack" but that "he will fall like all others." He followed that up with another tweet, suggesting that Cruz is indebted to donor "bosses."
Looks like @tedcruz is getting ready to attack. I am leading by so much he must. I hope so, he will fall like all others. Will be easy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2015
.@tedcruz should not make statements behind closed doors to his bosses, he should bring them out into the open - more fun that way! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2015
The feud is over comments made by Cruz about Trump and Dr. Ben Carson before approximately 70 potential donors on Madison Ave. in New York Wednesday.
"Who am I comfortable having their finger on the button? Now that’s a question of strength, but it’s also a question of judgment. And I think that is a question that is a challenging question for both of them," Cruz said, according to the audio posted by the Times. “So my approach, much to the frustration of the media, has been to bear hug both of them, and smother them with love."
However, Cruz also said that he was "thrilled" that Trump was in the race because "he has framed the central narrative of this primary as who will stand up to Washington" and saw his own record as somebody who has "stood up to Washington."
Cruz has sought to downplay the comments, calling the report "misleading, but issued a statement placing emphasis on the "judgment" of the other candidates.
"In the course of a Presidential election, the voters are going to make a decision about every candidate," the Cruz campaign said in a statement, published by NBC News. "And ultimately the decision is, who has the right judgment and the right experience to serve as Commander in Chief?"
Cruz reiterated that line of attack on Fox News Thursday night.
“And so voters are making the determination for every candidate who has the experience and judgment to have their finger on the button, to be commander in chief, to make the hard decisions to keep this country safe," the senator said, according to Politico. "And what I can tell you, Megyn, is that if I’m elected, I will keep this country safe."
