Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry has endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz for president.
“It’s a great privilege to endorse Ted Cruz,” Perry said on Fox News Monday morning of his home state senator, adding that he has “really gotten to know” Cruz over the past few months.
He’s “probably one of the best listeners I’ve ever been engaged with on the political front,” Perry said. “I am convinced from day one that this very committed conservative will be ready from day one to be commander and chief.”
Perry also called Cruz a “principled conservative,” who will stand up for an issue even if it isn’t the popular one and has not compromised his views over time.
“Of those individuals of who have a chance to win the Republican primary, at this juncture from my perspective, Ted Cruz is by far the most consistent conservative in that crowd,” Perry said in a Monday interview with Politico, which first reported the endorsement.
Referring to the tight race between Cruz and frontrunner Donald Trump that has seemingly caused a split in the Republican party, Perry said that the primary race now “appears to be down to two people.”
According to Perry, who dropped his 2016 bid last September, the criticism that Cruz is too uncompromising to be an effective president isn’t true.
“You’ll have with Ted Cruz that same result of, senators and others in the Washington establishment that are mad at him, find him to be hard to work with, they will find ways to work with him because they know he means what he says he means,” he said, adding that Cruz is the best GOP candidate to speak to the anti-establishment.
“Gov. Scott Walker, Bobby Jindal, Rick Perry, Jeb’s barely making an impact out there — those are very skilled, very successful, very experienced governors,” he said. “But the electorate doesn’t want that. That’s why we have elections, why we democratically select leaders.”
The first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses are just days away and Cruz’s main rival, Trump, has already picked up numerous endorsements. Conservative media figure Glen Beck, as well as former GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole have also endorsed Cruz recently.
