Donald Trump has spent the last 24 hours intimating that Sen. Ted Cruz isn’t eligible to be U.S. president because he was born in Canada. Just one awkward part here: His national spokeswoman, Katrina Pierson, wrote on Facebook nine months ago that Cruz is definitely absolutely 100 percent-qualified to run for the Oval Office.
“Repeating your wishes as facts isn’t going to make them so,” she wrote in March 2015. “Ted Cruz is a natural citizen by BIRTH and is eligible to be President. For those constantly citing otherwise is plain whiney and the most unintelligent way to prop up your choice. So, your candidate is just going to have to bring it in the debates. Good luck!”
She coupled that post with a frowning emoji and the words “Feeling annoyed.”
Pierson did not respond to an email asking if she feels Trump is being “plain whiney.”
The Trump spokesman, however, was long a vocal booster of Cruz on social media:
This stance differs significantly from that of her current boss. Trump told The Washington Post recently that Cruz’s birth certificate could jeopardize his eligibility for the office.
Appearing on CNN on Wednesday, Pierson blamed Cruz for the questions about his birthplace. “There’s a ton of voters who are a little uncomfortable with voting for someone outside of the country,” she said, “and the fact that Sen. Cruz has sort of left this issue off the table for so long has created some of the controversy.”
When host Wolf Blitzer asked Pierson if she believes Cruz is a natural-born citizen, she hedged. “Well, I have no reason to believe he isn’t,” she said. “But again, that’s not for myself or Mr. Trump to convince the voters of that, that’s up to Senator Cruz.”
Nine months ago, Pierson seemed perfectly happy convincing voters that Cruz’s birthplace was a non-issue.
—Betsy Woodruff