Ted Cruz Talked as Top Trump Pick for Attorney General

A “person familiar with the matter” confirmed to Bloomberg news that Donald Trump has nearly decided on his pick for U.S. Attorney General, the post currently held by Loretta Lynch – and that it’s none other than his one-time campaign season nemesis, Sen. Ted Cruz.

The news broke shortly after Trump held a closed-door meeting with Cruz at Trump Tower in New York City.

Following the meeting, Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier told the media the pair “discussed how he can best help the new administration advance conservative policies through the Senate,” Independent Journal Review reported.

Frazier also said, in remarks to IJR:

“Sen. Cruz is pleased to have the opportunity to meet with President-elect Trump in New York today. The American people issued a clear mandate to ‘drain the swamp’ in Washington, repeal Obamacare and start over with cost-effective, patient-centered health care reform, appoint constitutionalist judges to the Supreme Court, secure our southern border and enforce immigration laws, and enact policies that will create more good-paying jobs for the American people. On behalf of the 27 million Texans he represents, the senator looks forward to assisting the Trump Administration in achieving these objectives.”

It wasn’t made immediately clear if Trump was considering Cruz for a cabinet position – or for a Supreme Court slot, as widely debated in recent weeks.

But then there was this, in Bloomberg Politics, just hours after the meeting:

“President-elect Donald Trump is considering nominating Texas Senator Ted Cruz to serve as U.S. attorney general, according to a person familiar with the matter. …

“Asked for comment, Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said: ‘Cruz is focused on serving Texans in the Senate. He was there today to offer help in promoting the conservative policies that were campaigned on and that he’s long fought for.’

“In a tweet at 9:55 p.m., Trump said: ‘Very organized process taking place as I decide on Cabinet and many other positions. I am the only one who knows who the finalists are!’

“Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani was initially discussed as a potential attorney general but now is being discussed as a possible secretary of state pick.”

The selection of Cruz to head up the Justice Department, or any Trump administrative spot, for that matter, would finally put to rest the acrimony that marked the pair’s relations during the hotly contested campaign for the presidency. At one point during the campaign, Trump adopted the nickname “Lyin’ Ted” for Cruz. Cruz, for his part, slammed the billionaire for remarks about his wife, Heidi Cruz, and failed to endorse Trump during remarks at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

Cruz, 45, is a tea party-type conservative with a bachelor’s from Princeton University and a law degree from Harvard.