Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump unleashed a tweet storm Saturday morning targeting Sen. Ted Cruz’s Canadian birth, loan disclosures and “New York values” comments.
The attacks began shortly before 7 a.m. as Trump doubled down on remarks made at Thursday’s GOP debate that Cruz may be ineligible to be president. Trump then shifted gears, trying to explain how Cruz’s citizenship and other matters relate to reports that he failed to disclose campaign loans he received from Goldman Sachs and Citibank.
Ted Cruz was born in Canada and was a Canadian citizen until 15 months ago. Lawsuits have just been filed with more to follow. I told you so
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2016
“Ted Cruz said he ‘didn’t know’ that he was a Canadian Citizen. He also FORGOT to file his Goldman Sachs Million $ loan papers. Not believable,” Trump wrote.
Trump, who slipped to second place this week in the Washington Examiner’s presidential power rankings, claimed front-runner Cruz was owned by Goldman Sachs and “not much of a reformer!”
Was there another loan that Ted Cruz FORGOT to file. Goldman Sachs owns him, he will do anything they demand. Not much of a reformer!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2016
He linked back to a New York Times report Friday that Cruz failed to properly disclose a loan from Citibank during his 2012 Senate bid. In light of the news, Trump said it was “no wonder banks do so well in the U.S. Senate.” Cruz has acknowledged, but downplayed his failure to disclose a loan he received from Goldman Sachs, which employeees his wife, during the same campaign.
Trump also attacked an apology Cruz made Friday after bashing Trump’s “New York values” in a comment made at the GOP debate.
The Ted Cruz wiseguy apology to the people of New York is a disgrace. Remember, his wife’s employer, and his lender, is located there!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2016
Trump’s final tweets drew a connection between all of the earlier ones.
Cruz reacted Saturday, casting the attacks as the billionaire real estate developer reacting to falling poll numbers in Iowa. Cruz said Trump reacted by “tweeting and tweeting and tweeting.”
“In terms of a commander in chief, I think we ought to have someone who isn’t springing out of bed and tweeting in response to the latest polls,” Cruz said.
Based on the fact that Ted Cruz was born in Canada and is therefore a “natural born Canadian,” did he borrow unreported loans from C banks?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 16, 2016
