Donald Trump is raising questions about the birthplace of Republican presidential rival Ted Cruz, a move that many thought that the real estate mogul reserved for President Barack Obama. The Republican front-runner said that the situation could be "a big problem" for Cruz and the party.
"Republicans are going to have to ask themselves the question: ‘Do we want a candidate who could be tied up in court for two years?’ That’d be a big problem," Trump told The Washington Post, referring to the Texas senator. "It’d be a very precarious one for Republicans because he’d be running and the courts may take a long time to make a decision. You don’t want to be running and have that kind of thing over your head."
"I’d hate to see something like that get in his way," he added. "But a lot of people are talking about it and I know that even some states are looking at it very strongly, the fact that he was born in Canada and he has had a double passport."
Cruz, who was born in Calgary, Alberta, said that he is eligible for the White House because of his mother's status as an American citizen, USA Today reported. He has also released his birth certificate and renounced his Canadian citizenship.
Cruz responded on Twitter Tuesday night with a video clip from the show "Happy Days," suggesting Trump had "jumped the shark."
My response to @realDonaldTrump calling into question my natural-born citizenship? https://t.co/gWfAHznlCY
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 5, 2016
While Cruz and Trump have been amicable toward one another for most the campaign season thus far, there have been signs of that relationship fading in recent weeks, beginning with released audio from a private fundraising event in which Cruz questioned Trump's "judgement," The New York Times reported.
Trump called into question Cruz's evangelical Christian roots into question in December, saying, "Just remember this — you’ve got to remember, in all fairness, to the best of my knowledge, not too many evangelicals come out of Cuba, okay? Just remember that . . . just remember," according to The Washington Times.
