Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) accused Vice President JD Vance of being “insecure” after Vance said it was “really obvious” Cruz is planning a 2028 presidential run.
“In my experience, people engage in political bomb-throwing when they’re feeling insecure,” Cruz said of Vance during a phone interview with Politico on Saturday. “So he’s welcome to make whatever comments he likes.”
Cruz rejected the claim that he is actively campaigning for the White House at this moment, adding, “I’m going to keep focusing on the midterms and helping us win on Election Day in the next 30 days.”
Vance, also a Republican, initially made the remark about Cruz to NBC News last week.
“It is really obvious to me that, at this very moment, Ted Cruz is running for president,” Vance told the outlet on Oct. 1. “At this moment, I’m not. I’m trying to help elect Republicans. That’s what I’m going to keep on doing.”
Weeks before, Cruz, who ran for president in 2016 and has publicly mused over running again in 2028, told MS NOW in August that the Republican Party hasn’t automatically united around Vance as President Donald Trump’s successor. Vance and Cruz have widely been considered as anticipated rivals for the 2028 Republican presidential primary.
Cruz, who isn’t up for reelection this year, made the assessment after MS NOW’s Ali Vitali asked if the party had settled on Vance, to which Cruz replied, “Oh, no. There’s going to be a full discussion about who we are and what we believe.”
“I’ll certainly be part of the discussion,” he added. “Economically, I think we should be a conservative party, and on foreign policy, we’ve got a debate: Are we an isolationist party that withdraws from the world, or do we believe in American leadership? And I care deeply about both of those issues and who the party is.”
As for Vance’s remark about Cruz, a spokesperson for the Texas senator stressed that Cruz’s current focus is securing votes for Republicans for the November midterms.
“Senator Cruz has been focused on electing Republicans up and down the ballot this November, and he will continue campaigning vigorously over the next several weeks to help make that happen.” the spokesperson said in a statement to NBC News.
Although neither politician has formally announced a campaign, Vance leads early 2028 Republican primary polls and prediction markets against other potential Republican contenders, including Cruz.
According to Kalshi’s 2028 Republican nominee prediction market, Vance has a 45% implied chance of securing the GOP nomination, while Cruz sits at a just above 2% chance.