Just after Christmas, Ted Cruz met with several hundred evangelical leaders at a Texas ranch belonging to Farris Wilks, a fracking billionaire who, along with his brother Dan and their wives, have donated $15 million to Keep the Promise II, a SuperPac supporting Cruz. According to the Washington Post, some 300 evangelical leaders came to “huddle” with Cruz, dine on brisket, and listen to Christian rock music.
From the first official day of his campaign, Cruz has leaned on his claim—of dubious veracity—that Republican presidential candidates have lost recent cycles because tens of millions of evangelicals stayed home. (Cruz frequently has cited 54 million; his campaign spokesman, Rick Tyler, has cited 30 million. Either way, the numbers don’t add up.) Back in March, Politifact rated this statement “mostly false,” and it’s been roundly criticized even in conservative media. Meant to trigger guilt and fear (the nation’s very survival is in your hands), the tactic is also crafted to elevate Cruz’s standing: you stayed home in 2012, but in 2016 there’s a “true” conservative to vote for, a “true” Christian, someone you can trust to save the nation and its Christian values from the secularists and socialists and all the rest.
Read Full Article »