Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to mourn the GOP, a once-great political party, killed by epidemic of Trump
CRUZ BOWS OUT, MAKING DONALD PRESUMPTIVE NOMINEE
DONALD TRUMP ran his mouth to victory in Indiana on Tuesday — cementing the hatespewing huckster’s path to the Republican presidential nomination and bouncing his firebrand rival Ted Cruz from the race.
Days of angry accusations directed at the conservative Texan — and months of bigoted bombast directed at Latinos, Muslims, women and countless other groups — helped propel Trump’s hate wave to the pivotal Hoosier State winand proved to be too much for Cruz, who announced his exit just an hour after polls closed.
With 93% of the state’s precincts reporting, Trump had 53% support, compared with 37% for Cruz and 8% for John Kasich.
“All my life I’ve been in competitions, whether it’s sports, or business, or now, for the last 10 months, politics,” the billionaire said at a rally at Midtown’s Trump Tower. “I have to tell you that I have met some of the most incredible competitors that I have ever competed against right here in the Republican Party.”
Trump’s vitriol-fueled victory in Indiana opened up for him an undeniably clear path to the Republican nomination and effec- tively killed any shot Cruz — who had already been mathematically eliminated from winning the nomination outright — had of being the party's nominee via a contested convention.
At the tempered victory rally, the presumptive nominee showed unprecedented grace toward his former rivals — a sign that the typically harsh mogul was adjusting his approach as he geared up for a tough general election.
“Ted Cruz. I don’t know if he likes me or if he doesn’t like me. But he is one hell of a competitor. He is a tough smart guy,” Trump added.
“And I can say that for the others,” he said.
Flanked by daughters Ivanka and Tiffany and wife Melania, Trump also shifted his focus to a prospective general election faceoff with Hillary Clinton, even though she lost in an upset to Bernie Sanders in Indiana.
“We’re going after Hillary Clinton,” he said. “We’re gonna win in November,” he added before doing his best John Lennon impersonation.
“This country which is divided is so many ways is going to become one beautiful, loving country,” he said. “We’re going to love each other.”
Cruz was left to embrace the in- evitable, revealing his exit to supporters at a rally in Indianapolis
“From the beginning, I said I would continue on as long as there was a viable path to victory. Tonight, I’m sorry to say, it appears that path has been foreclosed,” Cruz said.
“We left it all on the field in Indiana. We gave it everything we got. But the voters chose another path,” he added.
“With a heavy heart, but with boundless optimism for the longterm term future of our nation, we are suspending our campaign,” he said. Adding insult to injury, Cruz accidentally elbowed his wife, Heidi, in the face while going in for a hug.
The conciliatory tone of the two pols marked a radical departure from the aggressive tit for tat they exchanged earlier in the day.
Trump outrageously accused Cruz’s father of being involved in the John F. Kennedy assassination plot, prompting the Texan to dub his rival a “serial philanderer,” “narcissist” and “bully.”
Echoing the party’s sudden internal harmony following Cruz’s exit, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus called on the GOP to unite.
“@realDonaldTrump will be presumptive @GOP nominee, we all need to unite and focus on defeating @HillaryClinton #NeverClinton,” he tweeted.
But Kasich apparently never got the memo.
In an email from his team to supporters, the Ohio governor vowed that the Indiana “results are not going to alter” his “campaign plans.”
“Kasich will remain in the race unless a candidate reaches 1,237 bound delegates before the convention,” his chief strategist John Weaver wrote.
With his win, Trump, who in recent days was endorsed by Hoosier State sporting luminaries Bobby Knight and Lou Holtz, tacked on at least 30 more delegates — and possibly up to 50 — to his total of 997.