Scott Walker: I'm 'Proud' to Back Ted Cruz

In a move that USA Today calls "not surprising," Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker offered up his "proud" endorsement for Ted Cruz on Tuesday, and he swears it's a real show of support he's throwing behind the Texas senator, not a protest vote against Donald Trump, Politico reports. "Ted Cruz is a principled constitutional conservative who understands that power belongs to the states—and to the people—and not bureaucrats in Washington," Walker said in a statement timed to be released while he talked about the matter on radio host Charlie Sykes' show on WTMJ. "He is the best-positioned candidate to both win the Republican nomination and defeat Hillary Clinton."

Walker added, "I wanted to make sure I was supporting someone, I wasn't against someone. I want to be for something." Cruz, for his part, earlier said he'd be grateful to receive the governor's thumbs-up before the primary is held in Wisconsin on April 5, calling Walker a "terrific governor" and labeling his support as "tremendously important." The AP, however, isn't so sure how vital Walker's endorsement will prove, noting the governor's approval rating hasn't topped 40% in more than a year. But the head of the Marquette Law School Poll says that when only GOP primary voters are considered, that rating swells to 77%. (Cruz probably prefers news like this to news from "sleazy" Donald Trump.)