Mike Lupica: ‘Ted Cruz One of the Great Phonies to Ever Run for President’

SCARBOROUGH: “While you see the genius behind Donald Trump that would surprise a lot of people, you are not as big a fan of Ted Cruz. Let’s read an excerpt Mika from  —“
BRZEZINSKI: “Here as part of what you wrote about Ted Cruz earlier this week.”
SCARBOROUGH: “It’s just mean.”
BRZEZINSKI: “Lupica, he is in your wounds. 'Ted Cruz, one of the great phonies to ever run for President, the great pretender of the current political season, says that he is the candidate best suited to unify the country. He can only hope to unify it the way he already has his own party, which hates him more than it hates the President. ... This isn’t about the fight that Cruz picked with New York, city and state. That was a fight stopped on cuts almost as soon as it began. No, this is about someone who carries himself as the one candidate speaking up for American values, who carries himself like some kind of American hero, even though his campaign slogan should be this: Where’s mine? ... Everybody knows how important shaking hands is on the campaign trail. Just know that when you shake hands with this guy, you need to count your fingers afterward.'"
SCARBOROUGH: “Wow. That's tough"
LUPICA: “This was the second —“
SCARBOROUGH: “You’re upset about the New York values issue.”
LUPICA: “It was a preposterous thing to say. And I know what he was doing with it, but I think he walked into a right hand from most of the country who appreciates New York values. Joe, my favorite thing is when people act like we -- Donny, we all think the same way in New York City. There was an old movie 'A touch of class' that talked about typical New Yorkers. George Segal said are you talking about the typical New Yorkers on 125th street, Upper West Side, Upper East Side? To lump everybody in and act like — but when he said ‘New York values,’ he made it sound like it was another insult against Trump’s hair. He made it sound like a bad thing. New York values are a  good thing.”
SCARBOROUGH: “And almost all Americans agree post 9/11. New Yorkers are on the front line of the war on terror. They’ve done an incredible job.”
LUPICA: “Joe, you talked about it right away when he talked about New York values. The great Pete Hemel, one of the great writers who has ever come out of this city -- people always say, oh New Yorkers showed their true colors on September 11th. Pete always said no, on September 12th, and 13th, and 14th, when he used the image of a boxer getting to one knee and then collecting himself and then standing up again. That’s what New York values are.”
SCARBOROUGH: “And we’re big are and we’re better and we’re tougher than ever before.”