Subject: FLAG: Frederick News Post: Cruz appeals to conservatives in Frederick as Maryland primary nears
From: "Wei, Shu-Yen" <[email-masked]>
To: Comm_D <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2016 14:27:54 -0700

Quote made it in

Cruz appeals to conservatives in Frederick as Maryland primary nears
*         By Danielle Gaines and Nancy Lavin News-Post Staff

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/politics_and_government/elections/cruz-appeals-to-conservatives-in-frederick-as-maryland-primary-nears/article_d785bb24-4fd7-58fa-9fc3-eb0b32010570.html

On the final day of early voting in Maryland, presidential hopeful Republican Sen. Ted Cruz urged local conservatives to help him add Maryland to his list of wins in Tuesday's primary.

He pointed to the wide variety of supporters who filled The Weinberg Center for the Arts on Thursday, and those across the county, as evidence of his ability to unite Republicans of different geographies and political ideologies.

"If we continue to unite to bring this party together ... we will turn this country around," Cruz said.

Cruz is polling third in Maryland among Republican candidates, according to the most recent information released by Public Policy Polling this week.

That poll finds Donald Trump leading the pack with 43 percent support from likely Republican voters. John Kasich received 29 percent support from likely primary voters and Cruz polled at 24 percent, according to the organization.

Maryland is one of five states with primaries on Tuesday. Trump is leading in the delegate count.

Dwight and Diane Reever came to Thursday's rally in Frederick from New Midway. Waiting in line for the event to start, Dwight Reever said he hoped the senator would speak about cracking down on immigration, lowering taxes and abolishing the Internal Revenue Service.

He also said he believes Cruz will help restore personal freedoms, including those relating to gun ownership.

Diane Reever said she doesn't support Trump and hopes more Republican primary voters will move toward Cruz before the Republican National Convention in July.

Reever said the likely contested convention will be "a mess," but she hopes the party can come together before the general election in November.

State Sen. Michael Hough, R-District 4, chairman of the Cruz campaign in Maryland, highlighted the crucial role of Maryland conservatives in deciding the GOP nominee.

"This is not Iowa. This is not Ohio," he said. "This is not an area where Republicans really get to participate in the political process."

Cruz addressed a crowd of about 1,000 at the Weinberg in downtown Frederick for about a half-hour.

His promises to repeal the Affordable Care Act, often called "Obamacare," and to rebuild the military were met with standing ovations and whistles.

The Republican presidential candidate repeatedly compared himself to former President Ronald Reagan, highlighting their shared traditional values, tax plans and emphasis on job creation. And just like Reagan transformed the policies enacted under his Democratic predecessor, Jimmy Carter, so, too, will Cruz redirect the path carved under the administration of current President Barack Obama, he said.

"I am convinced the most long lasting legacy of Barack Obama is going to be a new generation of Republican lawmakers ... who stand and fight for Judeo-Christian values," he said.

Shu-Yen Wei, the Northeast press secretary for the Democratic National Committee, sent a statement responding to Cruz's campaign in Maryland.

"When it comes to Ted Cruz, there is no shortage of extreme statements and disastrous policy positions, from wanting to shut down the government over Planned Parenthood funding and eliminating key federal agencies to denying climate change," Wei said. "The fact that he and Donald Trump are leading the Republican Party shows how far the GOP has fallen outside the mainstream."

A number of Republican Frederick County officials attended Thursday's rally.

Hough introduced Cruz. Delegate Kathy Afzali, R-District 4, also addressed the crowd inside, along with State Sen. Justin Ready, a Republican from Carroll County.

State's Attorney Charlie Smith was in the back of the theater during the speech.

"I'm here to hear what he has to say," said Smith, who generally shies away from primary politics but is leaning toward Cruz. "I think he's a strong candidate. I'd really like to see who his vice presidential choice is. I think a lot of Americans are waiting to hear who all of the vice presidential candidates are."

Smith originally supported Carly Fiorina, who has been traveling through Maryland with Cruz over the last several days.

For Joel Storms, a Carroll County resident, Cruz's talking points may have been enough to change his vote in the Tuesday primary,

"I came in here a Trump supporter," he said. "I think I came out a Cruz supporter."

Storms named Cruz's pledge to support military and law enforcement officials as a key reason for his newfound support.

Clarence Crum, meanwhile, said Cruz met every expectation he had in terms of issues and presentation.

"Mr. Cruz is exactly the man I thought he was, a very presidential candidate," the Frederick resident said.

A small number of protesters also attended Thursday's event, standing outside the auditorium with signs.

Among them was James Van Kuilenburg, a 16-year-old transgender teen from Frederick.

Van Kuilenburg attended the rally wearing a flag that represents the transgender community as a cape. After making their way into the theater with tickets, Van Kuilenburg and his mother, Nicola, said they were escorted out by campaign staff. Since it was a private event, they could be asked to leave, Nicola Kuilenburg said she was told.

"The fact that I'm thrown out based on my identity is ridiculous," James Van Kuilenberg, a student at Gov. Thomas Johnson High School, said.

Van Kuilenberg said he attended to show Cruz supporters that rhetoric about gay and transgender rights hurts real people, like him.

Abby Casarella, 33, from Frederick, supports Bernie Sanders, but came to the Weinberg on Thursday morning with the hope of hearing Cruz's speech.

"He's certainly not getting my vote," she said. "[But] if I want people to understand my side, I have to understand where they're coming from."

Cruz answered several one-on-one questions with The Frederick News-Post before the rally, underscoring his support for the small-business community, the biotechnology industry, and increased enforcement of national immigration laws.

This story will be updated.