Statement Analysis®

Did Ted Cruz Have An Affair?


On March 24, 2016, the National Enquirer reported that Presidential candidate Ted Cruz cheated on his wife with at least five women. The following day, Cruz posted the following denial on his Facebook page.

"I want to be crystal clear: these attacks are garbage. For Donald J. Trump to enlist his friends at the National Enquirer and his political henchmen to do his bidding shows you that there is no low Donald won't go.

These smears are completely false, they're offensive to Heidi and me, they're offensive to our daughters, and they're offensive to everyone Donald continues to personally attack.

Donald Trump's consistently disgraceful behavior is beneath the office we are seeking and we are not going to follow."

Cruz talks about "these attacks." He most likely is referring to the article published by the National Enquirer since he also mentions their name. Since he used the plural word "attacks," it sounds as if he is referencing some other things that have been said about him. Even though he tells us that all "these attacks are garbage," it would have been better if he focused only on the current attack which is the affair allegation.

He tells us these attacks are "garbage." What does he mean by that? Garbage is something we get rid of or discard. He may be saying we should disregard these attacks. Ignore them. That is fine but it does not answer the question, "Did you have an affair?"

Cruz goes on to say, "These smears are completely false." He again used a plural noun. Since he was accused of having five affairs, maybe that is why he used the word "smears." He felt he was being slandered five times. He most likely used the word "smears" because he is also referencing some other things people have said about him.

He tells us that these smears are "completely false." If we assume he is referring to the National Enquirer story, then he is stating that the allegations he had five affairs is false. If Cruz only had one affair or even four affairs, then his statement that the National Enquirer story is false would be true. The problem is Ted Cruz is not very specific in his denial. He started out saying, "I want to be crystal clear" but he is not. A crystal clear denial would have been to say, "I have not had an affair." He can still talk about the National Enquirer and the garbage they sell. He can still talk about Donald Trump's character. However, if he wanted to give a good denial, then somewhere in this post he should have said, "I have not had an affair."



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