Clearly not looking to give up this fight, Senator Ted Cruz is set to announce today that he's already got a vice-presidential pick, and it's Carly Fiorina. The announcement comes just as Donald Trump trounced Cruz in all five primaries in the northeast yesterday, and a week ahead of the Indiana primary which is now potentially make or break for Cruz's campaign. As the New York Times is reporting, the move to name a running mate this early, in April, "amounts to the grandest diversionary tactic a presidential candidate can stage."
The Weekly Standard noted on Monday that Cruz's team was vetting Fiorina as a possible VP, and ABC's Jon Karl predicted that morning on This Week that Cruz would likely make this announcement ahead of the Indiana primary.
Fiorina, the one-time Hewlett-Packard CEO, last month endorsed Cruz after ending her own presidential bid in February, and as the Times note's she's "proved to be an eager surrogate, attacking both Mr. Trump and Hillary Clinton with zeal."
And the selection of Fiorina is clearly an effort by Cruz to garner some more votes from women, given Trump's wide unfavorable ratings among women in polls.
Here, of course, is Trump's reaction to the announcement:
Agreed! pic.twitter.com/biyldP3CIw
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 27, 2016
At the moment, a full three months before the Republican National Convention, Cruz trails Trump in the Republican delegate count 562 to 954, with 1,237 needed to secure the nomination. There are 616 delegates left to be decided, meaning that only Trump stands a chance of reaching that number, and regardless it is looking like it will be a brokered convention, which should be fun for everyone to watch.
Update: And, naturally, Boing Boing did a face swap.
Cruz to pick Carly Fiorina as running mate https://t.co/OUpZJXGBO2 pic.twitter.com/7D1f04IcMC
— Boing Boing (@BoingBoing) April 27, 2016
Previously: Ousted HP Head/Demon Sheep Vanquisher Carly Fiorina Is Now Running For President