Ted Cruz scored a key endorsement right in heart of Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush country Saturday.
Miami-Dade Republican Party Vice Chairman Manny Roman spurned the two local presidential hopefuls to instead endorse Cruz, a Texas Republican.
“Even in an environment where there is overwhelming indirect pressure to get behind one of the local candidates, Ted Cruz’s story and platform break through all the noise,” Roman wrote in a letter to the Miami Herald.
The letter is titled “Hurrah for Cruz.”
“Cruz is an incredibly talented, principled and unwavering voice for constitutional and limited government,” Roman wrote.
The Miami-Dade Republican Party has been described in the past as the “House that Jeb Built” because of Bush’s efforts on its behalf in the 1980’s and 1990’s before he was Florida governor.
Donald Trump leads the state in the polls, but the endorsement for Cruz could help him compete in the state.
“Over the next months, I will be helping the Cruz campaign reach more people in Miami-Dade. I will help lead the grassroots-focused campaign that is now taking off in Iowa and other key states,” Roman wrote.
Twisting the knife a bit, Roman described himself as a colleague of Rubio’s.
“I had every reason to support Senator Rubio instead — he is a well-liked local Republican and my colleague on the faculty at Florida International University (he teaches politics, while I teach business),” Roman said.
