Tag: Ted Cruz

The GOOPS

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The Republican National Convention in Cleveland is over, and people are still talking about it, but not in a good way. From the coverage and commentary throughout the week, the Republican Party has made an already seemingly bad situation into a metaphysical certainty of bad decisions that make Kanye West look like Ben Franklin.

Okay, I’m kidding. It really wasn’t that bad. I mean, the Democrats have their chance to match the pure suckitude of the RNC soon when they will have to push a Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine candidate down the throats of the delegates, all while pandering to Black Lives Matter and the Bernie Sanders supporters. Oh, and field questions stemming from Wikileaks finding out the DNC actively tried to undercut Sanders’ campaign. And as Bill Clinton can tell you, Democrats suck best.

That’s not to say the RNC is out of the woods. Donald Trump’s campaign or the Republican National Committee or both made a number of high-profile mistakes that could come back to bite them. Ranging from Melania Trump’s alleged plagiarism from a 2008 Michelle Obama speech to the prime time Ted Cruz speech where he failed to publicly endorse Trump (depending on who you talk to in the Trump campaign) to Donald Trump’s acceptance speech that was darker than George Hamilton at the heart of a black hole while listening to a Sylvia Plath book on CD read by Crispin Glover, it was not the best way to put the GOP’s best foot forward.

At this point, it’s too late to hit the reset button and start the 2016 RNC over because, unfortunately, it’s not like an old school Nintendo. What can be done going forward, however, may erase the memories of how bad the visuals were. Here is a short list of suggestions I have.

1) Do some serious vetting of the campaign staff from top to bottom. Believe me, the Democrats have already started, so the GOP needs to find a way to respond to the worst of what the Dems have planned. Saying “you’re a loser” isn’t going to work.

2) Start figuring out how to strike Hillary where it hurts. Although the email scandal and Benghazi are red meat to voters like me, most people don’t care. What they do care about is easy-to-understand soundbites. Oh, and celebrities.

3) Figure out a way to bring back people turned off by the candidate. Hillary Clinton is beatable, but it’s not good to take a victory in November for granted. Like it or not, Trump has been shedding conservative voters like Julius Caesar shed blood on the steps of the Roman Senate. But it’s not too late to find a way to put Band Aids on the wounds, and the first step is to call a truce and stick to it.

Oh, and to any Democrats reading this, this should also be a concern for you. My best advice for helping Hillary in 2016 is simple: stop being Hillary.

4) Play up Trump’s “fuzzy side.” It’s hard to characterize a man as the second coming of Adolf Hitler (believe me, this is actually a thing right now) if the visuals coming from the campaign counteract it. Visual stimulation in today’s society is hard to overcome, and Trump’s campaign need him to start kissing babies and shaking hands. And you don’t want to get those mixed up, kids.

5) Ignore the fringe players on the Left. Trump’s Twitter war with Elizabeth Warren is entertaining to watch, but it’s counterproductive. Warren isn’t going to stop being the turd in the punch bowl. After so many times of seeing her pop up, maybe it’s time to stop entertaining her online rants and move on to other topics.

The other option would be to hire someone to respond to her with more scathing retorts than “Pocahontas” or “Loser Warren.” As someone with a track record of making scathing retorts, I’d be willing to do it. Call me, maybe?

I’m sure there are more, but these should be good for now.

Finger Pointing

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On the 3rd night of the Republican National Convention the junior Senator of Texas Rafael Edward “Ted” Cruz spoke. He was invited to speak at the convention by Donald Trump despite being bitter opponents during the primary election season.

The Trump campaign did not vet Senator Ted Cruz’s speech. They gave him and Senator Marco Rubio an open mic. They could say whatever was on their minds.

For Senator Rubio. He manned up. He kept his word given during the primary election season. He endorsed Donald Trump for President.

Senator Cruz took a different path. At the beginning of his speech the Senator did congratulate Donald Trump on winning the nomination. But then went on to not support or endorse Donald Trump for President.

The anti-Trump crowd is of course cheering the snub speech. As usual they don’t see the big picture. In fact they refuse to see it at all. So here, where I have a larger canvas. I’ll get out my crayons and finger paints and draw that picture.

During the primary election season, especially when there are 17 candidates. Each tries to paint themselves as the best possible candidate. And they all, sometimes viciously, attack the record and character of their opponents.

A true test of character comes when one of these candidates drops out of the political race. Donald Trump, time after time, always extended the olive branch to those who fell before him. Raising them back up. Even if one or both said terrible things about the other. To me, this is both a mark of a true leader and shows Christian values and ethics that Donald Trump embraces.

That is the first picture to see. And if for some reason you do not see it. Your moral compass might be broken. You should get it calibrated in the Holy Bible.

This is why Donald Trump invited his closest and most bitter rival in the primary election season to speak at the convention. Because Donald Trump forgives and forgets those transgressions. Now ask yourself honestly. If the tables were turned would Senator Ted Cruz invite Donald Trump to speak? Hell to the no would be the answer.

Donald Trump is the bigger man and has the stronger moral Christian character. Let Senator Ted Cruz speak his mind. As a professed Christian, he should do the right thing.

But Senator Ted Cruz violates his oath to the Republican Party and the American Public. An oath he twice made to support the eventual Republican Nominee. Even if it wasn’t himself and even if it was in fact Donald Trump.

And when this fact is pointed out. The anti-Trump fanatics all shout and point their fingers at Donald Trump and say he did it first. Just like glue-eating, nose-picking immature children.

A few are a little more mature and say that since Donald Trump broke the contract first it voids out the entire contract so Senator Ted Cruz can also “violate it.”

So here’s more of that bigger picture they aren’t seeing for some reason. That contract, oath, and promise was not between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. It was with the Republican Party and the American Public. And it was Senator Ted Cruz that broke it.

Senator Ted Cruz’s speech did not help the junior Senator from Texas. In fact it hurts him in the eyes of Republicans and the American Public. It was political suicide.

His chances for a presidential bid in 2020 or later have gone from slim to none. And it is yet to be seen if a President Donald Trump will give him another opportunity to serve in the administration.

 

Republican National Convention

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As we move into the last primary of May, Donald Trump is just 68 delegates short of the 1237 needed to have the nomination all wrapped up before the convention in July. It includes today’s (May 24th) primary and the last primaries on June 7th. There are 347 delegates available. It should be an easy win for The Donald.

But as the saying goes, ‘the opera isn’t over until the fat lady sings.’ In this case that “opera” is the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. And the “fat lady” is the first round voting where the delegates are bound to vote according to their state’s popular vote.

One would think it would be a formality. Donald Trump will have the delegates and therefore should have the nomination. But other forces are at work in this election cycle that would like to change that outcome.

The “establishment” doesn’t want a nominee or President that cannot be bought or controlled by the party’s string pullers. And Donald Trump is the only candidate out of the 17 that holds that distinction. Not being able to pull those strings leads to a questionable future for these establishment insiders. They would be in danger of loosing their jobs and power.

Then there is the #CruzCrew faction of the GOP that believes in the Holy Cruzade of their cult leader Ted Cruz. And Ted Cruz has stated since the beginning that he would do anything to win. For the #CruzCrew, the ends do justify the means.

We saw him lie his way to a victory in the First-in-the-Nation Iowa Caucuses. By spreading a false rumor against Dr. Ben Carson’s campaign. He attempted to cheat John Kasich in Indiana by having Kasich supporters vote for Cruz instead. This backfired on the Senator causing him to “suspend” his campaign. And in lawyer-speak that will be used to reassert his candidacy at the convention.

Ted Cruz has courted the delegates in many states, even before his campaign was suspended. He has not endorsed Mr Trump. He is keeping alive his own bid still for the White House. Silently waiting until the convention.

I have not attended a GOP convention or meeting where someone has not attempted to change the rules. And the National Convention will not be an exception.

I firmly believe and predict that the Cruz faction will attempt to change the rules at this year’s convention. They will attempt to remove the bound delegates so they can freely vote against the will of the people in the first round. Thus changing the nominee from Donald Trump to Ted Cruz.

Those in the Cruz camp will do this because they mistakenly believe that this action will unify the party behind Ted Cruz. And it will lead to a victory for the Republican Party in November. Both of these thoughts are out of touch with the voters. It will lead to the death of the Republican Party and a Democrat victory if allowed to happen.

The 3rd Party Question

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The anti-Trump Republicans and Independents are looking for a 3rd Party alternative in the November election. Their goal is to force the election into the hands of the Republican controlled US House of Representatives by preventing any nominee from getting 270 electoral votes. This is a lofty goal, but possible in this election cycle.

Those leading this movement have singled out 3 top contenders for the 3rd Party nomination. Senator Ben Sasse, former Senator Tom Coburn, and former Governor Mitt Romney.

Former Senator Tom Coburn has already stated he is not interested in running as a 3rd Party candidate. This leaves the movement with the other 2 potentials.

It is important to note that Senator Ted Cruz is not in this list. This leads to many questions. Is Ted Cruz going to support Donald Trump as the nominee? Is Ted Cruz going to attempt to change the rules at the convention to win the nomination himself? Or is Ted Cruz going to start his own 3rd Party bid for the presidency? These and other questions remain unanswered for now.

The remaining 2 top picks for the 3rd Party run are very different men, not only from each other but also from the presumptive nominees of the Republican and Democrat parties.

First is the junior Senator Ben Sasse from Nebraska. The very thing that was used to attack both Obama’s presidency and Marco Rubio’s campaign seems not to matter for Senator Sasse (or Cruz for that matter.) Another untested freshman junior senator is hardly what the country needs again at it’s helm.

Of course when it’s “your guy” his faults are overlooked. Even if they are exactly the same reason you opposed another candidate as in the case of Marco Rubio and President Obama.

And the last potential 3rd Party runner up is former Governor Mitt Romney. He was the GOP nominee just 4 years ago and lost to Obama’s reelection bid. So already he doesn’t have a good track record.

Mitt Romney lost in 2012 for 2 reasons. The first strike against him was his connection to “ObamaCare”. It was Governor Mitt Romney that created it’s forerunner “RomneyCare” while he was at the helm of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The other is Mitt Romney is not an evangelical Christian. He is a member of the Mormon Church, seen by many evangelicals as a false teaching and a cult. Thus many evangelicals stayed home in 2012 which caused Mitt Romney to loose the election.

But now the evangelicals who rejected Romney just 4 years ago are welcoming him with open arms as their 3rd Party nominee choice. These 3rd Party pushers are nothing but hypocrites. They are not voting for their moral convictions. They are not voting for the Constitution or the principles of Liberty. No, they are voting to keep their own power, wealth, and influence on American politics and public policy.

They are evil and corrupt. No better than Hillary Clinton or any other wolf in sheep’s clothing. The need to be excised from the political landscape. They are responsible for turning our political process into the cesspool most see it as today.

3rd Parties don’t work in our 2 party system. You can always change which 2 parties are in control by changing how they do business. But that change always has come from within the parties and not from outside of the parties.

Not approved by Joe the Plumber

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It’s a week out from the Republican State Convention in Iowa. Again this cycle I am a delegate to that convention for my county. I have taken an active roll in politics since before I was 18 years old. And in the 3 decades since that time I have attended a number of county and state Central Committee meetings. I have attended a number of county, district, and state conventions as a delegate or alternate as well.

My civic duty goes beyond just voting. As our republic is to be a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. The people must be involved at every level. So I attempt to get myself involved where I can.

The downside of going to these meetings and conventions is that I see the same people all the time. They are always part of the standing committees. They are always the same ones we send to the national convention. The political elites that have come into power for power.

I have no problem if someone is doing a great job at it. By all means we should continue to appoint and elect them to their office. But we shouldn’t do that if no one else decides to go against them. They should be challenged. And many of them are just in politics for the power it gives them over others. These people should be replaced.

It has been said that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. Yet we continue to send the same people to represent our state at the national level within our party. And we wonder why nothing changes.

And of course this year I am looking at the list of delegates and alternates that the state nominating committee came up with for this cycle. It’s a list of who’s who in the Iowa Republican Party elitists. And every last one of them is Ted Cruz approved. So these are the people that wont be getting my vote at the State Convention as a National Delegate or Alternate:

[table align=”center” width=”75%”] DELEGATES,ALTERNATE DELEGATES
Sen. Bill Anderson,Chelle Adkins
Gov. Terry Branstad,Shellie Bockenstedt
Robert Cramer,Pastor Joseph Brown
Bryan English,Mary Dorin
Sen. Randy Feenstra,Sen. Dennis Guth
Carol Hanson,Rose Jaeger
Cody Hoefert,Jeff King
Congressman Steve King,Maurice McWhirter
Marlys Popma,David Oman
Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds,Kay Quirk
Richard Rogers,Donna Robinson
Loras Schulte,Jennifer Smith
Cecil Stinemetz,Heather Stancil
Speaker Linda Upmeyer,Linda Stickle
Bob Vander Plaats,Craig Williams
[/table]

All of these nominees are old blood. They are the political elites of Iowa. And all but maybe Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds are supporters of Ted Cruz. Including two of his national co-chairs. I’m sure the nominating committee would have loved NOT to include the Governor and the Lt. Governor but they had to in order to save face.

I want to thank the Republican Party of Iowa for providing the list of nominees that I am not going to support for the National Convention on the 21st of May. I hope we can get some others nominated and some new blood injected into the system. It is the only way to save the Republican Party.

Surprise, Surpise

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The results of the Indiana Primary took us by surprise. On the Democrat side Bernie Sanders, a socialist, beat out Hillary Clinton. Everyone thought she would take the state without any trouble. She has felt the Bern.

The Republican winner was Donald Trump. This is not really surprising as he was polling well there ahead of the primary. Ted Cruz did get nearly 40% of the popular vote after all. I guessed it would be close like that. I just wasn’t sure who would take it. But of course I wanted it to be Trump.

The surprising factor was Ted Cruz announcing the end of his presidential campaign. Up to that moment I didn’t believe he would every do such a thing. And I’m still in a bit of shock by it.

Ted Cruz, as I have stated before, is a man who seeks earthly power. He wanted to be President of the United States, more than anything. So he has either grown in wisdom or he has been offered a deal that he cannot refuse.

If he has grown in wisdom and addresses the mistakes made by himself and his campaign staff, it’s all for the better. His next step is to help unify the Republican Party. To bring an end to the #neverTrump movement and actually endorse Donald Trump for President.

If on the other hand he has been offered a deal. Then I hope it was offered by the Trump Campaign and by The Donald himself. And not some kind of 3rd party option for and by the #neverTrump crowd. All they really want is a Hillary Clinton victory to further their agenda.

Over all it was a good night. We are closer to a Republican nominee before the National Convention. And closer to having a split vote on by the progressive liberals with Bernie Sanders going strong in Indiana.

November is approaching fast and we need to be ready for it. The GOP must win the White House, keep the House of Representatives, and gain the majority of the Senate. Additionally Republicans need to win in the States as well. There is a lot of work ahead of us.

Hoosier Daddy

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With tomorrow’s Indiana primary looming, the writing may be on the wall for at least some of the candidates still in the race for the Democrats and Republicans. Depending upon which set of polls you believe, Donald Trump or Ted Cruz will win the Hoosier State and, with it, a slew of delegates. Between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders…ah, who cares? They both suck.

Whomever wins for the Republicans will have done something important. They will have made later contests matter.

One of the big complaints from states like California is that smaller states have a much larger impact on who the candidates are by the time they get to hold their party conventions. This year, though, that narrative has been thrown out the window. Later contests are actually having an impact on who the GOP’s nominee is.

And that, dear reader, is a good thing.

When we started out the campaign cycle, the Republicans had 16-17 candidates (depending on whether you counted the Pat Paulsen of the GOP this year, Jim Gilmore). By far, that has been the deepest field in my lifetime. Although they took up various points on the conservative spectrum, the GOP had the political buffet from which to savor.

Compare that to the 5 major candidates the Democrats had to suffer through…I mean pick from. Although the Democrats could fit all of their candidates on the same stage, they really didn’t deviate too much from the script: Republicans bad. Democrats good. (Read that in a Frankenstein’s Monster’s voice for the best effect.)

With such a wide array of candidates, Republicans had a lot of choices, and that, in turn, lead to a longer campaign than usual. Previous years saw a Republican candidate sew up the nomination by May or sooner. But this year, voters had an actual choice. They had to weigh options carefully, line up their own values with those of the candidates, and really think for a change instead of being forced to have warmed over dog crap sandwiches this late in the primary season.

Regardless of whether you’re on the Trump Train, want to Cruise with Cruz, or take up space with Kasich, there are two things we can take from this year’s primary season. One, the Republicans have done a masterful job in making later contests matter.

And, two, Bernie Sanders really needs to put away the Flowbee and get to a Great Clips.

The Deal

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If you can’t tell by now with my political posts I’m going to spell it out fully. I firmly support Donald J. Trump for President of the United States. I cast my first vote for him during the Iowa caucus.

I am a County, District, and State delegate. I ran for election as an Alternate National Delegate during the District convention. If the opportunity arises at the State convention next month in May, I will again place myself in nomination for the position.

Donald Trump has what it takes to beat the Clinton political machine. I don’t think Ted Cruz has that ability. It would be a very tough fight for him. And after 8 years of Obama, I don’t want to take that chance.

Donald Trump’s ideas on foreign policy are right on. The United States shouldn’t be bending over backwards to appease any other power on Earth. Our military needs to be 2nd to none. And ready to defend our nation at a moments notice. He will bring back the Peace through Superior Firepower motto. And we must be a sovereign nation, with boarders that cannot be crossed illegally by anyone or by any means.

I will admit, like other conservatives who support Donald Trump, that his stances on some social issues are not as desirable as I would like them. But Ted Cruz isn’t going to fight the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage. He has stated over and over again that he believes such issues are up to the states or the Supreme Court to decide. He talks the lawyer speak to make it sound like he is going to defend social issues. Don’t believe it for a minute.

One of the greatest strengths for Donald Trump is that he is coach-able. Although he would make the decisions as he should being the Commander-in-Chief. He does listen to and take advise from others. Where as Ted Cruz is a one-man show. As clearly demonstrated with his failed so-called deal with John Kasich.

It Donald Trump a Christian? Sure he is, just like a lot of Christians in this country. They go to church on Sunday and think that is all it takes. But I don’t think he is truly a born-again believer. It doesn’t show in his actions and words. He would not be the first President to be such and certainly wont be the last either. We are not a Theocracy after all. Donald behaves as I expect from a non-believer.

Ted Cruz professes to be a born-again believer. But he too behaves as a non-believer would behave. And since he claims to be a believer, I hold him to that higher standard and he fails to reach it. As for the Cruz supporters, some are just hoodwinked. Others who profess to be believers as well, show no signs of it either. They talk of their righteousness like the Pharisees of old.

As with all the candidates in this election cycle. I don’t agree with any one of them 100% of the time. After all I’m not running for President. But Donald Trump has more positives than negatives. And is the best candidate who can defeat Hillary Clinton in November.

So when June comes around and the RNC has it’s National Convention. They delegates there will choose the GOP Nominee. I pray that it is Donald Trump. But unlike those cultists that follow Cruz. I will support the nominee, even if it is not Donald Trump.

The GOP must win the White House in November. Every vote counts. If you don’t believe that look at the 2012 presidential vote where certain members of the GOP stayed home because they did not want to vote for a Mormon who created RomneyCare.

Instead of being #NeverTrump become #NeverHillary. United the GOP can save our nation from the fate that awaits it if Hillary Clinton becomes President.

Running Mate

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To announce a running mate before securing the nomination is generally a bad move. This holds true in both major parties. History will repeat itself. On Wednesday Ted Cruz announced that Carly Fiorina would be his vice president. This is of course if he wins the nomination and the election. Both are unlikely at this point.

Almost immediately after Carly Fiorina dropped out of the presidential race herself she endorsed Ted Cruz. I always wondered why she did that. During her campaign she never had anything nice to say about Ted Cruz. It was a bit of a surprise when the endorsement came. But now we can see why. She gets the VP spot should they win.

Does Carly know or even care that Ted Cruz is just using her? Ted Cruz is a political pimp and Carly is now his girl. To be used as he sees fit. And discarded when no longer useful. Does she even care? Or is she, just like her master Cruz, a seeker of power for powers sake?

As for Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina is but a tool. One that he has now in desperation plugged into his failing campaign. She is to be used in the Indiana effort to block Donald Trump’s coming victory in that state. She is to be used as his token woman. The flip side of the Hillary Clinton coin to garner support of women. And since she is a native Californian, Ted hopes to gain delegates from her connection in the Golden State’s primary. But that’s just California dreamin’.

In truth, Carly Fiorina will do little to help Ted Cruz’s campaign. Her views on a number of subjects makes my skin crawl. She is hardly one in support of Liberty. If she were VP or even President. She would have further forced the issue between Apple and the FBI. Siding with the FBI. She made it very clear during her own campaign that our 4th Amendment Rights were revocable for the security of the nation. Her campaign failed against Donald Trump. Ted Cruz’s campaign is failing against Donald Trump. Tag teaming The Donald isn’t a winning move.

Stacking the Deck

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There is a lot of confusion this election cycle when it comes to choosing the Republican nominee for President. We have a lot of first time participants and candidates this time around. So I hope this can clear up some confusion.

Remember that our government and political structure is that of a republic. We are not a direct democracy. The people vote for other people who will represent them. The popular vote in the caucus and primaries isn’t to determine the winner. It’s determine who will represent the people.

The delegates to the National Convention are chosen by and from the delegates at the State and District Conventions. And those delegates are chosen by and from the County Convention delegates, who are in turn elected by those attending the local caucus. In a primary state, there would be a slight difference of course.

The RNC sets the rules that the state parties must follow. This cycles rules were that delegates to the National Convention would be bound by the votes during the caucus or primary. How many rounds of voting are binding is up to the states. For most it’s just the 1st round, for others it can and is higher.

In the case of Colorado, they didn’t have a vote during the caucus, so no delegates were bound by vote. The delegates were bound by other criteria during their District and State Conventions.

This is where Donald Trump made his biggest error in the campaign. Once the voting was done at the caucus or primary, he pulled out of that state. It’s easy to understand why. Donald Trump isn’t a politician, he is a business man. In business once the board votes, it’s a done deal. But this is not true in politics at all. There is still a lot of dealing to be done after the vote. This is to secure delegates who will vote for your nomination in all rounds if possible.

Ted Cruz on the other hand is a born politician. He wants the presidency more than anything else. He stayed in those states in force to covet the delegates to his favor. If he can’t win on the 1st round, he will take it in the 2nd round at the National Convention.

Donald Trump only has 2 options. Come into the National Convention with the needed 1237 bound delegates. This will secure the nomination on the 1st and only round. Or attempt a rules change before the nomination voting begins. The first option is the best of course as a rules change can cause more problems.

For Ted Cruz, he has no chance of coming into the National Convention with the needed 1237 bound delegates. His plan is that Donald Trump wont have the needed delegates either and win on 2nd round ballot when the majority of the delegates become unbound. Failing that, he might also attempt a rules change before the voting. He could hope to unbound the delegates on the 1st round of voting even if Trump has the 1237 delegates. Or his chosen delegates could just vote for him on the 1st round anyway, breaking the rules.

In my experience attending multiple County, District, and State Conventions. Rules change attempts happen all the time. Most are shot down. So an attempt can very well be made. And it’s possible for it to pass.

Ted Cruz has been stacking the deck with his delegates. This gives him a good edge if there is a 2nd round vote. It can also help him if there is a motion to change the rules in his favor.

These are both plans that Ted Cruz and his team are considering. If I was in his position, I would make similar plans. Either way he can get the nomination if these plans work in his favor. And his odds are good since he has courted the delegates.