Republican Senator Ted Cruz puts Clinton odds of White House win at 40 percent

Republican U.S. Senator
Ted Cruz of Texas, a Tea Party favorite seen as a
potential 2016 presidential contender, on Thursday
put Democrat Hillary Clinton's chances of winning
the White House at 40 percent.
"The media thinks she is unstoppable, but they
also thought she was unstoppable in the 2008
Democratic primary," which Barack Obama won en
route to the White House, Cruz said of the former
secretary of state and wife of two-term U.S.
President Bill Clinton.
Cruz said Clinton would be vulnerable in a general
election for a number of reasons, including what he
called Obama's failed economy and the traditional
shift in voter preference.
"There is a natural pendulum in politics," Cruz said,
with the public often ready to turn to the other
party after one party has held the White House for
eight years.
Obama is in his second, four-year term.
Cruz, who spoke at a Politico Playbook Breakfast,
was pressed by moderator Mike Allen on whether
he planned to run for the presidency.
"It's premature," the Texas Republican said.
But Cruz said Republicans would stand a better
chance of capturing the White House if they put
forward a conservative, rather than moderate,
candidate.
"Let's look at the last 40 years," Cruz said. "Every
single time Republicans have nominated a
presidential candidate who ran as a strong
conservative, we won. And every time we have
nominated a candidate who ran as an
establishment moderate, we lost."
"What I find to be astonishing is that the D.C.
political consultants look at that record and say, 'In
2016, we need another establishment moderate,"
Cruz said.
As a freshman senator, Cruz has earned a
reputation as an outspoken conservative who has
won the admiration of the anti big government Tea
Party movement. He has also accused Senate
Republican leadership of being too willing to
compromise.
Last year, he bucked leadership and pushed a
strategy to deny funding to President Barack
Obama's healthcare plan that resulted in a 16-day
government shutdown. The strategy fueled ill will
toward Cruz among many Senate Republicans
when the shutdown provoked a public backlash
against their party.
More recently, Cruz demanded that the Senate
come up with 60 votes – rather than 51 – to
advance a bill raising the debt ceiling. That put a
handful of Republicans, including Senate Minority
leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, in the
awkward position of having to vote to allow the
debt ceiling bill to move forward even though they
opposed it.
Tea Party-backed candidate Matt Bevin, who is
challenging McConnell in a primary election race in
Kentucky, has criticized him over the vote, saying
he caved in to Democrats.
Cruz said he would stay out of the primary
contests.
"I'm not supporting any of the senators in my party
or their opponents," he said. "I'm leaving it to the
grass roots to make their decision."

Sent From David Aniemeka