John Kasich Urged By Rivals To Back Out Of GOP Race, Ted Cruz Launches Attack Ads

US Politics

John Kasich has been getting pressure from his Republican presidential rivals, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, to drop out of the race.

The Texas senator has released new advertisements against the governor and has openly said that John Kasich is costing him his chances of defeating Donald Trump.

As the Wisconsin primary looms closer, Ted Cruz has been expressing his frustration over Kasich, noting that voters will most likely “revolt” if the Republican Party leaders choose John Kasich over himself or Donald Trump at the contested convention in July.

As for the advertisements aired in Wisconsin, the Texas senator’s team accused the Ohio governor of appointing friends and associates to positions of authority without regard for their qualifications in his home state. The senator also accused the governor via mailers of “auditioning” for a role as the vice president for Donald Trump.

One of the campaign spokesmen of John Kasich, Rob Nichols, commented on the advertisements released by the Senator Cruz’s team. He noted that the ads were deceptive, adding that the accusations did not work back in 2014 and still won’t work now. The spokesman continued, “Ohioans know that the governor has no say in what companies receive tax credits, and they also know Ohio has created more than 415,000 jobs since Governor Kasich took office.”

Ted Cruz also appeared on Fox News and told Megyn Kelly at a forum that someone is “not electable if he can’t get elected,” citing that John Kasich has only won his home state in the primaries. In another press conference, the senator took another jab at the Ohio governor, saying, “If over 80 percent of delegates are Cruz delegates and Trump delegates, under what universe do 1,000 Trump delegates or 1,000 Cruz delegates go vote for some uber-Washington lobbyist that hasn’t been on the ballot?”

As for Donald Trump, Cruz claims that he would easily win the Republican nomination if or when John Kasich dropped out of the race, further commenting that the Ohio governor is stealing his votes. However, the real estate mogul did note that the governor should just drop out, as his 143-delegate total has not moved since his Ohio win.

The Texas senator has 461, while the business mogul has 735 delegates. The Wisconsin primary is crucial for Donald Trump, and if he loses, he will most likely not have all the 1,237 delegates needed to secure the nomination. If none of the three candidates has 1,237 delegates, the convention will proceed in July, and the delegates will have to vote for a nominee.

Since Donald Trump has been making controversial comments regarding abortion, immigrants, and Muslims, he is not favored by many Republican delegates. As a result, the convention will most likely create problems for him.

Another spokesman for John Kasich, Chris Schrimpf, has commented on the statements of Donald Trump regarding the governor following in the footsteps of Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush, who both dropped out of the race weeks ago. Schrimpf shared, “Since he thinks it’s such a good idea, we look forward to Trump dropping out before the convention.”

John Kasich continues to stand by his commitment to the race, noting that he will not be backing out. He believes that the delegates will be voting for him, as he is more experienced in Congress and has spent more time at the state level. He also said in a recent rally, “I’m not getting out. Why would I get out, particularly when Trump’s worried I’m going to get his votes?”

The Wisconsin primaries are scheduled for this Tuesday.

[Photos by Mark Wilson, Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images]