Glenn Beck officially endorsed Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz Saturday on the campaign trail at Faith Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa, referring to the Texas senator as the "next George Washington." Beck, who owns and runs the conservative media outlet "The Blaze," joined Cruz at the event, which was sponsored by a pro-Cruz super PAC, and will appear with the 2016 hopeful at other events in Iowa over the weekend.
"We need a new George Washington. Today's Washington will not be found in the garish light of gold but rather in the bold service of a man who stands tirelessly for what he deeply believes. That government should be of the people, by the people, and for the people. That is why I'm endorsing Sen. Ted Cruz as the next President of the United States of America," Beck said in a statement, according to Politico.
The news comes at the end of a rough week in Iowa for the Cruz campaign, as Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad called for the defeat of Cruz because of his pro-oil industry stance, which was compounded by former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's endorsement of Donald Trump.
For his part, as rumors began to swirl earlier this week about a Beck endorsement, Trump took to Twitter to call the media personality a "wacko."
Wacko @glennbeck is a sad answer to the @SarahPalinUSA endorsement that Cruz so desperately wanted. Glenn is a failing, crying, lost soul!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 21, 2016
However, at the time, Glenn Beck was seeking to downplay the anticipation, saying, "I don't endorse," adding, "Never have," CNN reported. Beck's words may have been an attempt to add gravity to an endorsement in the absence of having done so before.
On Saturday, Beck attempted to tell voters just ahead of the Iowa caucuses that casting a ballot for Donald Trump would be a big mistake. "If Donald Trump wins, it's going to be a snowball to hell," he said, according to USA Today.
