On Thursday afternoon, Donald Trump’s campaign unleashed a scathing attack on Ted Cruz, and in a few hours, Cruz’s team shot back. No, it wasn’t a policy paper, an explanation of a broken campaign promise, or even a snappy media soundbite. Those are last eon’s campaign tactics. Trump and Cruz now fight with photoshopped images on social media.
Trump’s opening salvo was a photoshopped image of the 1997 film Liar Liar, starring Jim Carrey. Except, instead of Carrey’s face was that of Trump’s closest rival, the Texas senator. The caption read, “Who should star in a reboot of Liar Liar-Hillary Clinton, or Ted Cruz? Let me know.”
Cruz’s team hit back, less than two hours later, with their own Jim Carrey photoshop, of Me, Myself & Irene (2000). This post went straight on the airwaves — I mean on Twitter. Instead of Irene, it became Me, Myself & Don. This attack tied Trump to a character with multiple personality disorder, hitting The Donald on both his narcissism and his penchant for switching political positions. “I’m very capable of changing to anything I want to change to,” a caption reads.
Don’t take a chance on this new release coming to ballot boxes in November 2016… #ChooseCruz pic.twitter.com/srvABnXjYE — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 17, 2016
Following Trump’s withdrawal from a now-cancelled Fox News debate next Monday, this social media back-and-forth may rank among the few forms of debate left on the Republican side for a little while. Contrary to some reports, the race is not yet over, and while Trump leads in delegates and had a great night on Tuesday, it is still very plausible that he will not make it to the convention with the required 1,237 delegates to win on the first ballot. Also, while Cruz would need about 76 percent of the remaining delegates to win outright, that is also not impossible.
Until it really is over, at the July convention in Cleveland, Ohio, it seems the candidates and their social media teams are gearing up to have a little fun.
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