I hope that those backing Cruz understand - in their bones - that the Establishment people like Rove absolutely detest and despise Cruz. The entire primary process has been designed to stop the grassroots (i.e. We the People) from nominating someone that they (our lords and masters, in their view) cannot control.
This means people like Reagan (he slipped through, they didn’t count on his communications skills and how he resonated with the average person), Fred Thompson (they stopped him) and Ted Cruz. Oh, and Donald Trump - they REALLY didn’t count on someone like him showing up.
So, I would urge the Cruz supporters (and most especially Senator Cruz, himself) to consider that even if Cruz rolls into Cleveland with 1,237 delegates (and the math of this race says that such is extremely unlikely, no matter how much one likes him or his views), the Rovians will try their damndest to stab him in the back. My expectation is that Trump will have somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,150 delegates and Cruz something like 750 - 800. Neither will win on the first ballot, nor will they likely on the 2nd. At that point, if the 2 of them do not cooperate, the Rovians will insert a candidate and they will BOTH lose.
Time to make a deal boys - NOW, BEFORE THE CONVENTION. Present the Rovians with a fait accompli, don’t even let their heads get above the water line.
Fred Thompson was a blocker for McCain, he didn’t need to be stopped, he was in on the act. His job was to dilute the conservative vote in early states, not allowing them to rally around the real conservative, Duncan Hunter.