Ted Cruz uses the harsh words of a former president to slam Donald Trump in a new ad.
The ad uses a video clip of Democratic President Jimmy Carter telling the British Parliament Wednesday that he would rather have Trump win the White House than Cruz.
“Trump has proven already that he’s completely malleable,” Carter says. “I don’t think he has any fixed opinions that he would really go to the White House and fight for.”
The Texas Senator uses Carter’s final assessment of him, probably not meant as a compliment, as a badge of honor in the ad: “Ted Cruz is not malleable,” Carter says. “He has far right-wing policies, in my opinion, that would be pursued aggressively if and when he would become president.”
Cruz and Trump, who came in first and second in the Iowa caucuses respectively, are fighting for many of the same conservative voters in the Republican presidential primary. Cruz is trying to position himself as the most conservative candidate in the field and has recently cast doubt on Trump’s credentials.
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Write to Tessa Berenson at tessa.Rogers@time.com