An Arizona lawmaker who backs Ted Cruz acknowledged Tuesday that Donald Trump’s tough talk following the terrorist attacks in Brussels will likely help him win over voters.
Rep. Matt Salmon, who represents the Phoenix area, announced he’s backing Cruz in the GOP primary. Arizona holds its primary Tuesday, and in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Brussels, Trump has called for closer scrutiny of people entering the United States.
“I would be very, very tough on the borders, and I would be not allowing certain people to come into this country without absolute perfect documentation,” Trump said in a morning CNBC television interview.
Trump is already leading the polls in Arizona, and Salmon said Trump’s message is resonating with voters, even though he doesn’t agree with some of the rhetoric.
“I think this kind of an incident does benefit the outsider that has been talking the toughest on securing the borders,” Salmon said. “Right now, the king of angry rhetoric seems to be Donald Trump, and that anger only grows when things like what happened in Brussels happen.”
Trump Tuesday morning also said he would “do a lot more than waterboarding” to elicit information out of any terror suspects arrested in the Brussels attack.
Salmon said he doesn’t believe Trump’s comment will hurt him, and could actually win him more support, even though waterboarding is prohibited.
“Americans have little to no sympathy for terrorists and want us to do everything we can to stop it,” Salmon said.
According to recent polls, Trump has enjoyed a double-digit lead among voters in Arizona, which has grappled with an increased influx of illegal immigrants crossing the border. Trump has called for building a wall along the U.S. southern border.
Salmon is retiring this year. He has represented Arizona in Congress from 1995 until 2001 and again beginning in 2013.
