Trump: S.C. could help him ‘run the table’
Cruz shows surge of strength in poll
First, South Carolina — then the nation?
Donald Trump seems to think so.
The New York businessman and Republican front-runner is poised to win the South Carolina primary Saturday, and he says a big victory in the Palmetto State will open the road for him to take the GOP presidential nomination. “If we win in South Carolina, we feel we could run the table,” Trump told a crowd of cheering supporters in Walterboro. It’s a line he has repeated throughout the state this week.
Some political analysts are skeptical, as are Trump’s Republican primary rivals: Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, John Kasich and Ben Carson. All are chasing Trump across South Carolina and the nation, each hoping for an eventual one-on-one showdown with the front-runner, starting with a surprise showing in South Carolina.
Though Trump leads Palmetto State polls and most national surveys by wide margins, opponents point to evidence that his support could be softening. An NBC News/ Wall Street Journal poll out Wednesday gave Cruz a slight lead over Trump among Republicans nationally, 28% to 26%. Rubio was third at 17%, followed by Kasich (11%), Carson (10%) and Bush (4%).
“There’s a new national front-runner in the Republican race,” Texas Sen. Cruz told South Carolina supporters this week.
Rubio, a senator from Florida, appeared in South Carolina with two prominent endorsers in tow: Gov. Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott, both of whom cited the state’s history of picking eventual Republican nominees. “We make presidents,” Haley told Rubio backers.
Like past South Carolina primaries, this one has seen its share of political attacks and alleged dirty tricks. Trump threatened to sue Cruz over his eligibility to be president, citing his birth in Canada. Cruz told Trump to bring it on, saying his mother was a U.S. citizen. Trump and Cruz have accused each other of lying. So have Cruz and Rubio.
Backed by veteran South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, Bush told crowds that Trump is not a conservative and is trying to “hijack” the Republican Party for his personal use.
Carson and Kasich are long shots in South Carolina.