Cruz Could Grab More of Trump’s Iowa Support

Joshua Green digs deeper into the new Iowa Poll and finds that Ted Cruz “is poised to draw away even more of Trump’s supporters—and that Trump may have difficulty luring those who currently favor Cruz.”

“Cruz’s strategy of embracing, rather than attacking, Trump—even after Trump makes controversial or offensive statements—appears to have served him well, at least so far. In the new poll, respondents who say they support Trump have an extremely positive view of Cruz: 73% view him favorably, while 18 percent view him unfavorably. Asked to state their second-choice preference, these Trump supporters overwhelming pick Cruz (49%), with Rubio (16%) a distant second. If Trump falters or alienates his current supporters, they appear quite open to supporting Cruz.”