Cruz Rallies Audience Upstate, Makes Matzah In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Ted Cruz told an upstate audience Thursday that momentum is on his side, and also stopped off to make matzah with a group of youngsters in Brooklyn.
As he looks to upset Donald Trump in his home state, the Republican senator from Texas spoke earlier Thursday in the packed gym at a Christian school just outside of Schenectady. He told the crowd that recent primary victories in Wisconsin and Utah are giving him momentum ahead of the state's April 19 primary.
Cruz also said endorsements from former GOP candidates and party leaders show the party is uniting behind him as the only candidate capable of winning a matchup with Democrat Hillary Clinton.
He won big applause by promising to repeal the Affordable Care Act and eliminate the IRS.
He also said the race is as much about the Supreme Court as the presidency, with the winner likely to pick a justice that could set the court's direction for decades.
Later Thursday, Cruz took a stop at the bakery at the Chabad Neshama Center in Brooklyn, and learned to make matzah from scratch with the help of a dozen children.
"We took the stalks of wheat, we ground it up, we had flour, and we actually rolled out the dough with rolling pins," said Rabbi Moshe Winner.
Winner, who is rabbi of the Chabad Center in Brighton Beach, said the event was not about politics. He said all the candidates were welcome.
"This was not an endorsement at all," Winner told WCBS 880's Peter Haskell.
But Cruz had some strong supporters at the event, 1010 WINS' Carol D'Auria reported.
"He supports Israel. He's going to do for our economy, and I think there's no other choice out there," one man said at the event.
Winner said the event was a great experience for the kids.
At the Brooklyn campaign stop, Cruz was asked what would happen if the general election turned to Trump up against Clinton, as CBS2's Brian Conybeare reported.
"The first thing we would do is weep," Cruz said, "but there is something more fundamental, we must prevent that from happening."
Cruz also participated in a roundtable with African-American business leaders in Brooklyn on Thursday.
As Cruz toured New York, a remark he made in the past became the subject of a new campaign ad from rival John Kasich, governor of Ohio.
During a Republican presidential debate in January, Cruz said Republican frontrunner Donald Trump embodied "New York values," and went on to say, "the values in New York City are socially liberal or pro-abortion or pro- gay-marriage, focus around money and the media."
PHOTOS: Ted Cruz Makes Matzah In Brooklyn
But Cruz defended the comment on Thursday and took a swipe at Trump.
"Donald Trump has been funding these failed liberal policies and those failed liberal politicians for 40 years," Cruz said.
At a campaign rally on Long Island later that evening, Trump also took a swipe at Cruz for the same "New York values" remark.
"Do you remember during the debate when he started lecturing me on 'New York values' like we're no good?" Trump asked the crowd.
But Cruz also defended his definition of New York liberalism against Trump's latest remarks.
"The people of New York know exactly what those values are," he said. "If you want to know what liberal, Democratic values are, follow Donald Trump's checkbook."
And as Cruz has campaigned in New York, not everyone has been excited to hear him.
Campaigning in the Bronx Wednesday, Cruz was met by a group of shouting protesters when he showed up for a meet-and-greet at a restaurant.
"Get out of the Bronx,'' they shouted.
According to a new Monmouth Poll released Wednesday, Trump has support of 52 percent of likely GOP voters in New York followed by Kasich with 25 percent. Cruz comes in third at 17 percent.
Kasich also visited Brooklyn on Thursday for a town hall meeting, and dined at a deli in the Bronx.
Trump laid low on Thursday following his rally.
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