The New York Post endorsed Republican frontrunner Donald Trump on April 15, four days ahead of the New York primary.
The paper ran a front page article outlining the reasons for the endorsement, conceding that Trump’s made some “rookie mistakes,” but pointing to his popularity.
“Trump has electrified the public, drawing millions of new voters to the polls and inspiring people who‘d given up on ever again having a candidate who’d fight for them,” The Post stated. “But what else to expect from someone who’s never been a professional politician and reflects common-man passions?”
The front page endorsement also critiqued the frontrunner saying that it expected Trump to improve his self-discipline.
“Should he win the nomination, we expect Trump to pivot—not just on the issues, but in his manner. The post-pivot Trump needs to be more presidential: better informed on policy, more self-disciplined and less thin-skinned,” The Post stated.
The endorsement came on the same day Trump had an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal, titled, “Let Me Ask America a Question.”
The op-ed potentially foreshadows a move toward more “presidential-like” behavior for the Republican nominee. Instead of calling into TV and radio shows and making off-the-cuff remarks, Trump is laying out a plan in print and showing more self-discipline.
The op-ed maintains a strong rhetorical stance against the results in the Colorado Republican Convention. Trump lost all 34 delegates in the state to Ted Cruz under a system whereby party insiders choose the winner during a convention—rather than a people-driven voting system such as a primary or caucus.
“On Saturday, April 9, Colorado had an ‘election’ without voters. Delegates were chosen on behalf of a presidential nominee, yet the people of Colorado were not able to cast their ballots to say which nominee they preferred,” Trump wrote.
Trump punctuated his argument with an attack on Ted Cruz, his main rival in the upcoming New York primary and impending Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July.
“Mr. Cruz has toured the country bragging about his voterless victory in Colorado. For a man who styles himself as a warrior against the establishment (you wouldn’t know it from his list of donors and endorsers), you'd think he would be demanding a vote for Coloradans. Instead, Mr. Cruz is celebrating their disenfranchisement.”
Trump suggests Cruz doesn’t have a path to win the nomination, calling him “mathematically eliminated by the voters.”
The article states that this election cycle is the time to get away from the election process designed by party insiders and give the process back to the people.
“The political insiders have had their way for a long time. Let 2016 be remembered as the year the American people finally got theirs,” Trump wrote.
Both the endorsement and op-ed come days before Trump looks to handily win in his home state of New York, where polls are predicting a winning margin of 30 percent over Cruz. John Kasich is polling higher than Cruz. A hefty total of 95 delegates are up for grabs in the New York primary—the second highest behind California’s 172.
A blowout in the state is important for the frontrunner who, in addition to Colorado, had a poor showing in Wisconsin where he picked up only 6 of a total of 42 delegates (Cruz won the rest).
Trump leads the delegate count on 758. Cruz has 533, and Kasich sits on 144. A total of 1,237 delegates is needed for the majority in the Republican race.
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