Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) offered a striking assessment of President Trump's political tactics, crediting him with an "instinctual genius" for the nickname "Lyin' Ted" that dogged Cruz during the bitter 2016 Republican presidential primary.
In a Wednesday interview on the New York Post's "Podcast One," Cruz said the moniker was "politically very effective" because it struck at the core of his appeal to voters.
"What was so effective about it was that my single strongest attribute was that voters trusted me," Cruz told host Miranda Devine. "The Jiu-Jitsu of Trump was to take my greatest strength and make an attack that goes right at it, and I think he does that instinctually in a very effective way."
Cruz, who won 12 states during the primary, acknowledged the contest was "ugly" but argued that Trump ultimately respects those who stand their ground. "I don't think he respects girly men. He doesn't respect people who are weak," Cruz said. "He respects people who have strength because, listen, the guy's got a cast-iron backbone."
The Texas senator's relationship with Trump has evolved dramatically since their heated 2016 clash. Cruz eventually endorsed Trump in the general election, and the two have since become political allies, with Cruz often defending the president in the Senate.
By the time Trump entered the White House, Cruz was already poking fun at their past rivalry. At a 2018 Gridiron Club dinner, he joked that his nickname had shifted from "Lyin' Ted" to "Beautiful Ted," a reference to Trump's new moniker during Cruz's reelection campaign.
But not everyone views Cruz's praise as a sign of political maturity. Sarah Matthews, who served as deputy White House press secretary during Trump's first term, criticized Cruz in a social media video, accusing him of debasing himself despite Trump's past attacks on Cruz's family.
"The humiliation ritual for Ted Cruz truly never ends," Matthews said. "This man is so desperate for power that he willingly debases himself like this to praise a man who quite literally called his own wife ugly and said that his own father helped to assassinate JFK."
Cruz's comments come amid ongoing tensions within the GOP over loyalty to Trump, with some Republicans breaking ranks on key votes, while others like Cruz have aligned closely with the president's agenda.
