GOP Rep. Michael McCaul said he hasn’t ruled out a primary challenge against Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018.
In the wake of Cruz’s controversial speech at the Republican National Convention in July – the former presidential hopeful opted against endorsing Republican nominee Donald Trump, instead telling voters to “vote their conscience.”
“Like Reagan said, never say never, but it’s not something I’m spending a whole lot of time thinking about right now,” McCaul told reporters Wednesday in Austin, The Texas Tribune reports.
The House Committee on Homeland Security chairman, who is serving as a foreign policy adviser to Trump, said he is focused on the current election, but has been urged by a number of donors, referring to the push to run as “organic.”
McCaul noted the amount of time Cruz has spent on the campaign trail, adding he thinks the focus needs to be redirected back to the constituents.
“I think that’s an important job as well, and so I think the presidential campaign’s over and it’s time to — I think governance is important. I think in Washington getting things for the great people of Texas done is an important job.”
The odds may be stacked against the potential candidate, if a poll released by Public Policy Polling Wednesday is correct.
According to the survey, in a hypothetical race, just 19 percent of GOP voters said they would vote for McCaul over Cruz. Texas Gov. Rick Perry had a nine-point edge over the incumbent, coming in at 46 percent to Cruz’s 37 percent.
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