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Cruz to Make Case Against Trump at AIPAC

Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz is expected to use a bipartisan pro-Israel gathering as a platform to advance his campaign for president and attack his Republican rival, Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, after similar confirmations were received by Trump and Hillary Clinton, Cruz confirmed his attendance at the annual Policy Conference in Washington, D.C.., next week. AIPAC extended invitations to all of the active presidential candidates of both parties.

Hours later, Cruz released a statement, saying he would use his speaking opportunity to highlight Trump’s positions “in front of the thousands of AIPAC members in attendance, including Trump’s recent comments that he would be ‘neutral’ in the debate between Israel and the Palestinians.”

The statement came after Trump had announced he planned to skip Monday’s Republican presidential debate in Salt Lake City because he already had plans to deliver a “very major speech” on the same day. “I’m making a very major speech in front of a very important group of people,” Trump said on “Fox & Friends” Wednesday morning. John Kasich said he would not show up without Trump’s participation. As a result, Fox News announced it has cancelled to televised debate.

“Let’s be intellectually honest about what’s going on here – Donald Trump is scared to debate Ted Cruz next week,” Cruz’s spokesman Ron Nehring said in a statement. “Perhaps Mr. Trump is unable to speak for more than one minute about any given topic because of his shallow understanding of basic policies, or perhaps he is scared of voters learning the truth – that he has spent his entire adult life promoting liberal positions completely opposite of the conservative platform that he has campaigned on. Mr. Trump, if you won’t debate in Utah, we’ll bring the debate to you.”

Trump’s invitation has already roiled up AIPAC’s gathering – which its theme is ‘Come Together’ – as pro-Israel activists and Jewish groups announced they will find ways to protest Trump if the invitation is not rescinded.

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