Cruz finds hundreds of supporters in Towson

Several hundred supporters enthusiastically greeted Republican presidential candidate Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at a town hall rally Monday at the American Legion in Towson, Maryland.

The senator’s visit coincides with Maryland’s April 26 presidential primary. A decisive victory could help Cruz slow down front-runner Donald Trump’s momentum. But if polls are any indication, he has no shot. He might have been able to count his votes among the hundreds who showed up to hear him speak.

Cruz is in third place with 19 percent of the state’s potential primary voters while Trump is leading in Maryland with 47 percent, according to a recent Monmouth University poll.  That same poll puts Ohio Gov. John Kasich in second place with 27 percent.

It’s not surprising Cruz is courting voters in Maryland while Trump remains in New York prior to Tuesday’s Big Apple primary. The real estate billionaire was doing his stump speech in Buffalo Monday while the Cruz train left the Big Apple, where he was booed on the streets for his immigration policies and his dislike of New York values. The latest poll from Real Clear Politics shows Cruz sinking to third place while Trump is blowing away the field.

Fiorina on the Cruz train

Former presidential candidate Carly Fiorina introduced Cruz to the Maryland crowd. Fiorina described the Texas senator as a “constitutional conservative,” with a proven record of taking on the status quo in Washington.

Fiorina also said Trump’s self-described anti-establishment credentials are illegitimate and compared the real estate mogul to Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton.

“And the people that I know who voted for Trump, I think-they think-that he’s going to challenge the system, but guess what folks: he is the system,” Fiorina said. “And the truth is that Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are two sides of the same coin.”

Following Fiorina’s speech,  the senator’s supporters watched a short campaign video  and then Cruz took the stage.

“We’re here today because our country’s in crisis,” Cruz said. “Because we’re bankrupting our kids and grandkids, because our constitutional rights are under assault, and because America has receded from leadership in the world and its made the world a much more dangerous place.”

On jobs, Cruz said Obamacare was partly to blame for underemployment.

“I want to take a minute to talk to all the single moms who are here, who are working two and three part-time jobs, who have had your hours forcibly reduced to 28-29 hours a week because Obamacare kicks in at 30 hours a week,” Cruz said.

Cruz also discussed taxes, foreign policy and constitutional protections.

Fiona Moody, who is a 23-year-old teacher and campaign volunteer, told the Baltimore Post-Examiner she is supporting Cruz because his values closely align with her own.

“Cruz is the only candidate who is a constitutional conservative,” Moody said. “He stands for my values and will not waver on them.”

Kyle Casey, a 21-year-old student at Towson University and former Rubio supporter, told the Post-Examiner he will most likely support Cruz and that he decided to attend the rally because it presented a unique opportunity.

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Casey said.

Former Frederick County Commissioner Paul Smith, 65, told the Post-Examiner that while he is not opposed to Trump’s candidacy, he said Cruz would be a better nominee.

“He’s the best Republican hope for president,” Smith said.

Smith expressed dismay with some of Trump’s antics and said that since the real estate mogul “continues to offend and alienate people,” his chances of winning a general election are gradually diminishing.

Other speakers included state senator Michael Hough, (R-Frederick) and former two-time GOP gubernatorial candidate Ambassador Ellen Sauerbrey.

Bryan Renbaum

Bryan is an award-winning political journalist who has extensive experience covering Congress and Maryland state government.

His work includes coverage of the election of Donald Trump, the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and attorneys general William Barr and Jeff Sessions-as well as that of the Maryland General Assembly, Gov. Larry Hogan, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bryan has broken stories involving athletic and sexual assault scandals with the Baltimore Post-Examiner.

His original UMBC investigation gained international attention, was featured in People Magazine and he was interviewed by ABC’s “Good Morning America” and local radio stations. Bryan broke subsequent stories documenting UMBC’s omission of a sexual assault on their daily crime log and a federal investigation related to the university’s handling of an alleged sexual assault.