Donald Trump leads three remaining challengers in the race to represent his party in the Novmber 8 election to succeed Democratic President Barack Obama. (AFP Photo)
MONROE, North Carolina:
Donald Trump moved closer to capturing the 2016 US Republican presidential nomination with his latest primary victories and forces within the party who oppose him on Wednesday calculated the dwindling odds of another candidate winning.
One of Trump's fiercest critics in the Republican Party, US Senator Lindsey Graham, said if the real estate tycoon's winning streak continued into crucial contests next week, his path to the nomination was all but inevitable.
"I'm worried that if we lose Florida and Ohio he may be unstoppable," said Graham, a former Republican candidate who was among the party's large early field of White House hopefuls.
Trump leads three remaining challengers in the race to represent his party in the Novmber 8 election to succeed Democratic President Barack Obama.
The combative front-runner struck a more conciliatory tone toward the Republican establishment that has fiercely resisted his advance - first by backing favorite candidates who failed to win votes, then by pouring money into campaigns against him.
"If we embrace what is happening and everyone came together, instead of spending all this money on these ads ...," Trump told Fox News. "If everyone came together, no one could beat the Republican Party. We would walk into Washington."
He also praised US House of Representative Speaker Paul Ryan after speaking with him by phone this week, calling the Republican leader a "good man."
The New York billionaire, 69, fended off a week of attacks from the party's establishment and defied predictions his campaign might be losing steam with his primary wins on Tuesday in the big prize of Michigan as well as Mississippi and Hawaii.
His convincing win in Michigan narrowed prospects for the party's anti-Trump forces to stop him before the March 15 contests, which also include Illinois, North Carolina and Missouri.
As he chases the 1,237 delegates needed to win the nomination, Trump now has 446 delegates, with Senator Ted Cruz of Texas second with 347 delegates, according to The New York Times.
ENDORSEMENTS: ANY ONE BUT TRUMP
Cruz, with enough primary victories to present himself as a viable Trump alternative, won the endorsement of former Republican rival Carly Fiorina on Wednesday and appealed to anti-Trump Republicans to back him.
"If you don't want to Donald Trump as the nominee, if you don't want to hand the election on a silver platter to Hillary Clinton and the Democrats, then I ask you to join us," Cruz said.
Trump, a former reality TV star, has peppered his campaign with put-downs of rivals and critics. Many mainstream Republicans have been offended by his statements on Muslims, immigrants and women and alarmed by his threats to international trade deals.
But Cruz, 45, is a hard alternative for some of the mainstream Republican leadership to get behind. A fiscal and social conservative, he is unpopular with fellow senators who were targets of his personal attacks and who blame him for orchestrating a government shutdown in 2013 in a failed attempt to derail Obama's healthcare reforms.
In January, Graham called a choice between Trump or Cruz like "being shot or poisoned." But the senator from South Carolina softened his tone on Wednesday, saying it had become increasingly clear that "Ted Cruz is the most viable alternative to Donald Trump."
An aide to former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who dropped out of the race last month, said Bush would meet with Cruz, US Senator Marco Rubio and Ohio Governor John Kasich in Miami before the March 15 contests. It was not clear if he planned to make an endorsement.
In the Democratic contest, Bernie Sanders stunned front-runner Hillary Clinton in a narrow upset in Michigan on Tuesday, giving his upstart campaign new energy. Clinton won in Mississippi, but Sanders' victory in Michigan was seen as likely to prolong the fight to pick a candidate.
Clinton continues to hold a sizable delegate lead, with 760 compared to Sanders' 546. She has been helped by winning Southern states by big margins and keeping most of her losses narrow.
Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said on Wednesday that their strategy to compete in all states will allow them to build and maintain a significant delegate lead while the Sanders campaign is trying to "pick off" favorable states.
Sanders told MSNBC that as the campaign moves west to California, Washington, Arizona, Oregon and Wisconsin, "you're going to see a lot of states where we believe we have an excellent chance to win."
Clinton's campaign has been dogged by questions over her use of a private server while she was secretary of state and - in a sign the issue will not go away - the Republican National Committee filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking records between Clinton and her aides.
CAN TRUMP BE STOPPED? DELEGATE MATH
Trump could open a sizable delegate lead if he is able to win next Tuesday in Florida, Ohio, or Illinois, states that allot all their delegates to the winner.
Even the states where Cruz is expected to do well next week may not be enough to make up considerable ground. North Carolina and Missouri divide their delegates proportionally. So even winning both is unlikely to put him ahead of Trump.
Kasich, 63, and Rubio, 44, could throw a wrench into Trump's delegate stash if they win in their home states next week. Kasich nearly tied Cruz for second place in Michigan on Tuesday, but Rubio lags in delegates and momentum going into the Florida contest.
One of Trump's fiercest critics in the Republican Party, US Senator Lindsey Graham, said if the real estate tycoon's winning streak continued into crucial contests next week, his path to the nomination was all but inevitable.
"I'm worried that if we lose Florida and Ohio he may be unstoppable," said Graham, a former Republican candidate who was among the party's large early field of White House hopefuls.
Trump leads three remaining challengers in the race to represent his party in the Novmber 8 election to succeed Democratic President Barack Obama.
The combative front-runner struck a more conciliatory tone toward the Republican establishment that has fiercely resisted his advance - first by backing favorite candidates who failed to win votes, then by pouring money into campaigns against him.
"If we embrace what is happening and everyone came together, instead of spending all this money on these ads ...," Trump told Fox News. "If everyone came together, no one could beat the Republican Party. We would walk into Washington."
He also praised US House of Representative Speaker Paul Ryan after speaking with him by phone this week, calling the Republican leader a "good man."
The New York billionaire, 69, fended off a week of attacks from the party's establishment and defied predictions his campaign might be losing steam with his primary wins on Tuesday in the big prize of Michigan as well as Mississippi and Hawaii.
His convincing win in Michigan narrowed prospects for the party's anti-Trump forces to stop him before the March 15 contests, which also include Illinois, North Carolina and Missouri.
As he chases the 1,237 delegates needed to win the nomination, Trump now has 446 delegates, with Senator Ted Cruz of Texas second with 347 delegates, according to The New York Times.
ENDORSEMENTS: ANY ONE BUT TRUMP
Cruz, with enough primary victories to present himself as a viable Trump alternative, won the endorsement of former Republican rival Carly Fiorina on Wednesday and appealed to anti-Trump Republicans to back him.
"If you don't want to Donald Trump as the nominee, if you don't want to hand the election on a silver platter to Hillary Clinton and the Democrats, then I ask you to join us," Cruz said.
Trump, a former reality TV star, has peppered his campaign with put-downs of rivals and critics. Many mainstream Republicans have been offended by his statements on Muslims, immigrants and women and alarmed by his threats to international trade deals.
But Cruz, 45, is a hard alternative for some of the mainstream Republican leadership to get behind. A fiscal and social conservative, he is unpopular with fellow senators who were targets of his personal attacks and who blame him for orchestrating a government shutdown in 2013 in a failed attempt to derail Obama's healthcare reforms.
In January, Graham called a choice between Trump or Cruz like "being shot or poisoned." But the senator from South Carolina softened his tone on Wednesday, saying it had become increasingly clear that "Ted Cruz is the most viable alternative to Donald Trump."
An aide to former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who dropped out of the race last month, said Bush would meet with Cruz, US Senator Marco Rubio and Ohio Governor John Kasich in Miami before the March 15 contests. It was not clear if he planned to make an endorsement.
In the Democratic contest, Bernie Sanders stunned front-runner Hillary Clinton in a narrow upset in Michigan on Tuesday, giving his upstart campaign new energy. Clinton won in Mississippi, but Sanders' victory in Michigan was seen as likely to prolong the fight to pick a candidate.
Clinton continues to hold a sizable delegate lead, with 760 compared to Sanders' 546. She has been helped by winning Southern states by big margins and keeping most of her losses narrow.
Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said on Wednesday that their strategy to compete in all states will allow them to build and maintain a significant delegate lead while the Sanders campaign is trying to "pick off" favorable states.
Sanders told MSNBC that as the campaign moves west to California, Washington, Arizona, Oregon and Wisconsin, "you're going to see a lot of states where we believe we have an excellent chance to win."
Clinton's campaign has been dogged by questions over her use of a private server while she was secretary of state and - in a sign the issue will not go away - the Republican National Committee filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking records between Clinton and her aides.
CAN TRUMP BE STOPPED? DELEGATE MATH
Trump could open a sizable delegate lead if he is able to win next Tuesday in Florida, Ohio, or Illinois, states that allot all their delegates to the winner.
Even the states where Cruz is expected to do well next week may not be enough to make up considerable ground. North Carolina and Missouri divide their delegates proportionally. So even winning both is unlikely to put him ahead of Trump.
Kasich, 63, and Rubio, 44, could throw a wrench into Trump's delegate stash if they win in their home states next week. Kasich nearly tied Cruz for second place in Michigan on Tuesday, but Rubio lags in delegates and momentum going into the Florida contest.
© Thomson Reuters 2016
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