News - May 9, 2016 - by Ray Hagar

On the day Republican Sen. Ted Cruz pondered a possible re-entry into the presidential campaign, a major official in his campaign said many Cruz supporters felt their candidate should have never dropped out in the first place.

Cruz dropped out of the race last week, after losing the critical Indiana primary.

"There was a lot of belief that he (Cruz) could have and should have stayed in," said Robert Uithoven, Cruz's western states campaign coordinator. "We'd done so well in the delegate chase. I spent the last several weeks of the campaign going to state conventions all over the West.

"We were winning the delegate game significantly," Uithoven said. "So if we got to a brokered convention in Cleveland ... I believe that if we were able to hold off Trump's momentum, we would have most certainly won the nomination on the second ballot, no question."

Uithoven's comments came during Tuesday's telecast of the Nevada Newsmakers television program in Reno.

On the same day, Cruz told conservative radio host Glenn Beck that after losing in the Indiana primary last week, "I didn't see a viable path to victory. If that changes, we will respond accordingly."

Cruz would not endorse Trump on Beck's program and Uithoven followed in suit on Newsmakers.

"My choice for president is (Democrat) Hillary Clinton and a Hillary Clinton supporter," Uithoven said, referring to Trump's verified (by PolitiFact) seven donations to Clinton's various campaigns for U.S. Senate and president over the years.

"That gives me a little bit of pause," Uithoven said. "Donald Trump has been advocating for tax increases over the weekend, a minimum wage increase. He has a record of going after 2nd Amendment rights. (He favors) abortion on demand. I'm not comfortable with it."

Last week, Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., said he would consider voting for "none of these candidates" in November if the two choices for president are Trump and Clinton. Uithoven said he would consider the same option.

"You can show up and not vote at the top of the ticket and vote on the (U.S. Senate race between) Joe Heck and (Catherine) Cortez-Masto and keep voting all the way down the ballot," he said. "If you don't feel that in your conscience, that you should vote for either of these candidates (Trump and Clinton), you can skip over it."

Uithoven, however, did not feel like Trump would lower turnout in the 2016 general election.

"There is so much money in a presidential election cycle, I think the turnout will be there," Uithoven said. "I think there will be more people than ever holding their noses when they go into vote."

Democrats may join Republicans in choosing not to vote for a presidential candidate in November, Uithoven said.

"I think there's anger on both sides," he said. "There might be a lot of vacancies on the top of the ballot, and people filling in the rest, who knows?

Uithoven said a third-party candidate could still enter the race.

"We will see," he said. "There could be a a third, conservative choice that comes out ... somebody who runs on a conservative platform, someone who appreciates and adheres to the Constitution. I don't think either of the top two choices have that level of commitment to federalism, to our Constitution and to our principles."

Uithoven said he would consider voting for a third-party candidate.

"At the end, if it is Hillary Clinton probably, against Donald Trump, a choice has to be made there," he said. "Now if there is another alternative who is conservative, I would look at it. I think a lot of people would."