• 11/14/2024

Ted Cruz knocks McConnell-aligned super PAC for ‘zero support’ in competitive race

Fox News

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, reiterated his criticism of a group linked to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., at a recent rally, saying it has not assisted him in his competitive Senate race this cycle. 

“We are getting absolutely zero support from the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF),” the Republican said. 

Cruz is taking on Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, in the tight race for Senate. Despite the legitimate challenge posed by Allred, Cruz is favored to win the contest. 

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SLF has notably spent most of its resources in states with key Republican Senate pick-up opportunities, such as Pennsylvania, Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Michigan. 

But Cruz pointed out, “In Texas, we have the most expensive Senate race in the entire country.”

As the senator noted, the Cruz and Allred campaigns have raised more money than the candidates in any other Senate race, with the two of them raking in a combined $165 million, according to the Houston Chronicle

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While the race has attracted more campaign cash than others, including Cruz’s last re-election bid against Beto O’Rourke, it hasn’t seen quite as much outside involvement as certain other races this cycle. 

In fact, Ohio has reportedly seen the most spending in its Senate race, topping $400 million, according to USA Today. After Ohio, more than $200 million has been spent in both Pennsylvania and Montana. 

“Chuck Schumer is spending over $100 million with George Soros trying to beat me. And McConnell in the Senate Leadership Fund is spending zero,” Cruz said, referring to expenditures from the Schumer-tied Senate Majority PAC and other outside dark money groups with connections to Soros. 

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Allred’s campaign did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication. 

“Ted Cruz is one of the best fundraisers in the Republican Party, he ran a great campaign, and he will be reelected handily on Tuesday,” SLF spokeswoman Torunn Sinclair told Fox News Digital in a statement.

Less attention has been paid to the Texas Republican’s race — or those of Sens. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Deb Fischer, R-Neb., who are in similarly competitive battles — because most conservative efforts have been focused on knocking off vulnerable Democrats in several more competitive battleground states.

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“The way Washington operates, the swamp doesn’t like people that stand up and fight them,” Cruz told reporters. “And unfortunately, McConnell uses that super PAC to reward senators who obey him and to punish those who stand up to him.”

In a recent book on McConnell, titled “The Price of Power,” Michael Tackett, the deputy Washington bureau chief of the Associated Press, detailed how the leader allowed conference members to publicly go against him, to an extent, if it was helpful to them electorally.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ted-cruz-knocks-mcconnell-aligned-super-pac-zero-support-competitive-race