Here's a fun new wrinkle in South Carolina: One of the many shadow organizations that gets the bulk of its funding from the Kochs is trying to destroy Ted Cruz in the Palmetto State. They're going in with $1.5 million in attack ads against him.
The spot ties Cruz to Bernie Sanders, the liberal insurgent who's gaining momentum in the Democratic primary, and President Barack Obama. "Ted Cruz talks tough on national security. But look at his record. Cruz voted with Bernie Sanders against defense spending," the ad says. "Cruz sided with Obama to weaken our ability to track terrorists."
The commercial also attempts to paint Cruz as soft on undocumented immigrants, an issue where he has painted himself as the GOP field's strongest candidate of border security — as well as its strongest opponent of "amnesty" for people who entered the country illegally. The issue is a high priority for GOP voters, particularly in conservative South Carolina.
"Cruz proposed mass legalization of illegal immigrants," it continues. "He even praised the traitor Edward Snowden. Ted Cruz's talk is cheap. His national security record is weak."
So what's the end game for the Kochs in this one? They must figure they can't buy Cruz, but they have to know that they're never going to be able to buy Donald Trump. Cruz is going to run strong in South Carolina with its strong conservative evangelical base, and is arguably very competitive with Trump to win it. Why are the Kochs putting their thumb on the scale for Trump?
Maybe they think they can knock Cruz out now, then take on Trump later, if say Marco Rubio or Jeb Bush has any political breath left in them by the end of the month. But right now, it looks like they've decided Trump's their guy.