The largest paper in New Hampshire surprised many recently with its early endorsement of a presidential candidate. The state is scheduled to start second in the nation for primaries after Iowa.
In November, the New Hampshire Union Leader publisher Joseph McQuaid wrote: “Gov. Christie is right for these dangerous times.” Yesterday, another newspaper editorial gave an anti-endorsement of sorts for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, saying that the candidate is taking his “Texas Tough Guy act on the road.”
Grant Bosse, editorial page editor for the New Hampshire Union Leader, says the phrase “Texas Tough Guy” is more about the caricature of the Texas cowboy Cruz is associated with.
“We’re certainly not saying anything bad about the fine people of Texas, but Ted Cruz tends to promote this cartoonish image of himself – that because he’s the loudest, that he’s also the purest, and he’s also the toughest – and we think that’s a cartoon and not reality,” he says.
According to Bosse, Cruz has been under pressure from fellow candidate Marco Rubio concerning the NSA’s bulk data collection program and now “beating the war drums” after months of tension with neo-conservatives in the Republican Party.
“Here he is in his first election where he’s got to appeal to people outside the choir, not only in Iowa and in New Hampshire,” Bosse says. “Running for president is a little bit different than running for Senate in the state of Texas and we’re not sure if Ted Cruz translates very well.”
Listen to the full interview in the player above.
