S.C. GOP primary notes
Cruz aide: Rubio must win S.C.
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign is trying to raise the stakes on S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley’s endorsement of rival GOP presidential candidate Marco Rubio.
Rubio — who has won the endorsements of Haley, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy — “has to win” South Carolina, a Cruz spokesman said Friday.
“If he doesn’t finish first, this is a massive loss,” said Jason Miller. “Rubio has to win here.
“He has the very popular sitting governor, very popular junior senator, very popular Upstate congressman. ... If Rubio can’t win here, under these favorable circumstances, where can he win?”
Kasich headed to Vermont, Massachusetts
John Kasich says he’s not staying in South Carolina Saturday night to await results of the S.C. GOP primary.
Kasich is heading that day to campaign in Vermont and Massachusetts instead. Both states hold their primaries on March 1. Kasich finished second to Donald Trump in last week’s New Hampshire primary.
Pro-Cruz PAC takes aim at Rubio
An outside group backing Ted Cruz is training its sights on Marco Rubio in the final days ahead of Saturday’s S.C. GOP primary.
The group, called Keep the Promise I, is spending about $3 million in the state, a spokeswoman says. Kellyanne Conway, a Republican strategist working with the super PAC, says the activity is aimed at protecting Cruz, a U.S. senator from Texas, whom she says is being “maligned by mushy moderates.”
One of four commercials Keep the Promise I is airing on television blasts Rubio, a U.S. senator from Florida, for his work on failed legislation that would have provided a pathway to citizenship for some immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.
Senator campaigns for Cruz AND Rubio
U.S. Sen. Mike Lee of Utah is campaigning in South Carolina with both U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz.
Lee said before a Cruz event at a barbecue restaurant in Easley Thursday that he considers both Cruz and Rubio to be friends, and that’s why he hasn’t endorsed either in Saturday’s S.C. primary. But Lee said he may endorse later, and he will back whoever is the GOP nominee. Lee said both Cruz and Rubio “would do a really good job uniting the party.”
Staff, wire reports
This story was originally published February 19, 2016 at 12:11 AM with the headline "S.C. GOP primary notes."