Republican Fissures Deepen as Feuding Candidates Rip Up Loyalty Pledge

Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, and John Kasich had all promised to support the party’s eventual nominee. That changed on Tuesday.

BY Sahil Kapur

In a sign of a fractured party splitting even further apart, all three Republican presidential candidates on Tuesday walked away from their pledge to support the winner of the nomination in the general election.

Donald Trump and John Kasich said they would no longer abide by that loyalty pledge without knowing who the nominee is, while Ted Cruz made a personal and substantive case against supporting Trump.

“No, I don't anymore,” Trump said during a CNN town hall when asked if he still pledged to support the eventual party nominee if he was not deemed the winner. “I have been treated very unfairly,” he said, by the Republican National Committee, the Republican Party, and “the establishment.”

As for Cruz, Trump added: “Let me just tell you, I don't want his support. I don't need his support. I want him to be comfortable.”

The front-runner’s remarks came shortly after Cruz said he’s “not in the habit of supporting someone who attacks my wife and my family,” referring to a recent Trump tweet going after his wife, Heidi Cruz.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-03-30/republican-fissures-deepen-as-feuding-candidates-rip-up-loyalty-pledge