Former Sen. Alan Simpson endorses John Kasich
Former Wyoming Sen. Alan Simpson threw his support behind Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday, giving the GOP hopeful a fresh burst of support after front-runner Donald Trump's blowout win in New York left Kasich netting only a small handful of delegates.
Simpson noted in a statement that he served in Congress with Kasich, who was in the U.S. House from 1983-2001. "He really is the only candidate who can defeat Hillary Clinton in the general election," Simpson said.
The former senator also took a shot at fellow GOP hopefuls Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and real estate mogul Donald Trump, hinting that their "temperament" and "leadership" skills aren't up to the task of being president.
"He also has the right temperament and realistic leadership skills required to advance smart and bold reforms to reduce the nation's debt and deficit so that we can restore fiscal sanity in Washington," Simpson said. "Further, he has a proven record of experience that is wholly unknown to Ted Cruz and Donald Trump."
In terms of Senate support, Kasich previously earned the backing of fellow Ohioan Rob Portman as well as Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe. Cruz has three U.S. Senators (Utah's Mike Lee, South Carolina's Lindsey Graham and Idaho's Jim Risch) supporting him, while Trump only has one (Alabama's Jeff Sessions).
On Wednesday, Kasich also picked up the endorsement of the Providence Journal in Rhode Island, which holds its primary next Tuesday.
