Marco Rubio Says He Backs Ted Cruz

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) discussed the current GOP presidential nomination fight, which he was once a part of, during Tuesday night’s episode of LevinTV with nationally syndicated radio host Mark Levin.

The conversation, understandably, came down to who Rubio would support between the two leading contenders: businessman Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). The Florida senator had to carefully navigate the question before answering he supports Cruz.

“I’ve been pretty clear, I want the Republican nominee to be a conservative, and in my view, at this moment, of the candidates who are still actively campaigning, the only one [presidential candidate] that fits that criteria is Ted Cruz,” he said.

Rubio has to be careful how he answers these kinds of questions because he has been adamant that while he’s suspended his campaign, he has not dropped out of the race. That is because he wants to retain the delegates that have been bound to him during the early states.

Depending on individual state rules, those delegates could be reallocated if he fully drops out of the race. And, technically, he could still resume campaigning, although he is mathematically eliminated from winning a majority of delegates before the national convention begins.

On a second, or subsequent ballot, however, with the delegates “released” to vote their conscience, Rubio stated he hopes those delegates vote for Cruz.

“As far as the delegates we’ve earned, look, they’re bound on the first ballot, and I want to make sure they’re there on the first ballot,” he said. “After that, as you know, these delegates, many of them, will be free to vote for another candidate, and I hope that they’ll nominate a conservative.

“The Republican Party has to be the home of the conservative movement. If not, it loses its reason to exist as an organization.”