Will Indiana mark the end for Ted Cruz?

"Indiana's Republican primary today is an important milestone.   It may very well end Ted Cruz's chances of stopping Donald Trump from winning on the first ballot at the convention.  

Trump has won the last six primaries (NY, PA, CT, MD, DE, and RI) by unexpectedly big margins, ranging from a low of 54% of the vote up to a high of 64%.   In those states, Cruz came in third behind John Kasich in five of those six states.   A Wall Street Journal poll shows Trump leading in Indiana by 15%.

Even more than the numbers, Trump's campaign feels like it's surging, while the Cruz campaign feels like it is collapsing.

First, it was those six state losses, which were expected because it is not Cruz territory;  but not by such large numbers.   Then it was the bungled, desperate-seeming agreement between Cruz and Kasich to each back off in the states the other had a better chance of winning.   That lasted less than 24 hours -- and made Cruz look both calculating and dishonest, because he quickly went on TV and lied that Kasich had decided "to pull out" of Indiana, without mentioning that he was going to do the same in later states.

That set the stage for everyone understanding former House Speaker John Boehner's remark that Cruz is "Lucifer in the flesh" and "the most miserable son of a bitch I have ever worked with."

On top of that came the ballyhooed Hail Mary:  choosing of Carly Fiorino as his running mate.  Talk about "playing the woman card!"  What other possible motive could have been behind that?

Indiana is a winner-take-all state for Republicans, with 57 delegates going to a winner who takes all districts.   It won't put Trump over the 1237 delegate count;  and Cruz continues to grab friendly delegates who will be pledged to vote for Trump on the first ballot but will support Cruz on the second.   But it looks like they won't get a chance to do that.  Trump will likely get enough in California and New Jersey to put him over.  And, if not, he will be so close -- with a growing sentiment that he should not be denied the nomination if he's that close.

Cruz did pick up a sort of last minute endorsement from Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.   After first complimenting Trump, Pence then added: "but I will be voting for Ted Cruz."    David Brooks said on PBS News hour last night that "It set new levels of luke-warmness."

But that's too little, too late.   Trump now looks like the winner, and people -- voters and politicians alike -- want to get on the bandwagon.   And it's not Cruz's wagon.

Ralph