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Donald Trump is presumptive GOP nominee; Cruz quits after Indiana defeat

By Eric DuVall
Surrounded by his family inside Trump Tower in Manhattan, Donald Trump, center, speaks to supporters after winning the Indiana primary. After the results were made clear, Trump's main Republican rival, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, dropped out, making Trump the party's presumptive nominee. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
1 of 5 | Surrounded by his family inside Trump Tower in Manhattan, Donald Trump, center, speaks to supporters after winning the Indiana primary. After the results were made clear, Trump's main Republican rival, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, dropped out, making Trump the party's presumptive nominee. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

INDIANAPOLIS, May 3 (UPI) -- Voters in Indiana have handed Donald Trump a decisive victory, one that forced his main opponent for the Republican presidential nomination, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, to quit the race.

For all intents and purposes, a stunning political reality many thought impossible arrived Tuesday: Trump, the brash New York City billionaire and reality television star, is now the Grand Old Party's presumptive nominee for president of the United States.

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Trump used what appears to be an overwhelming victory, in Indiana, which was projected immediately after polls closed, to vault himself into the rarefied air surrounding a presidential candidate whose nomination is now easily within reach.

"It's been some unbelievable day, and evening and year," Trump said in a speech to supporters at Trump Tower in Manhattan. "I've never been through anything like this, but it's a beautiful thing to behold. We're going to make America great again."

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Indiana was a must-win state for Cruz, and the question in the immediate aftermath of the stinging defeat was whether he would be able to continue campaigning as Trump's vice-like hold on the race tightened.

Cruz answered those questions quickly.

"From the beginning I've said that I would continue on as long as there was a viable path to victory. Tonight, I'm sorry to say it appears that path has been foreclosed," Cruz, flanked by his extended family and would-be running mate Carly Fiorina, told supporters in Indianapolis. "Together, we left it all on the field in Indiana. We gave it everything we've got, but the voters chose another path. And so, with a heavy heart, but with boundless optimism for the long term future of our nation, we are suspending our campaign."

Eschewing the "Lying Ted" moniker he used to address Cruz throughout the campaign, Trump was magnanimous in victory.

"Just so you understand, I don't know whether he likes me, he doesn't like me, but he is one hell of a competitor. He has got an amazing future. I want to congratulate Ted," Trump said.

Turning to his likely opponent in the general election, Hillary Clinton, Trump castigated the Democratic front-runner, who herself suffered a narrow defeat to Sen. Bernie Sanders in Indiana.

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"We're going after Hillary Clinton," Trump said. "She will not be a great president, she will not be a good president. She will be a poor president. She does not understand trade. Her husband signed the single worst trade deal. ... I've witnessed what it's done really, first-hand. It's carnage."

Clinton did not speak publicly Tuesday, but her campaign chairman John Podesta released a statement on Trump's victory.

"Throughout this campaign Donald Trump has proved too divisive and lacks the temperament to lead our nation and the free world. With so much at stake, Donald Trump is too big of a risk," Podesta said.

The precise outcome of Indiana's primary will not be known until votes are fully counted across the state but with Trump winning a majority in a three-way race it appeared likely he could sweep all 57 delegates, making Cruz's last-gasp effort to deny Trump the nomination via a brokered convention the equivalent of a political pipe dream.

Prior to polls closing, CNN reported that the Cruz campaign attempted to lower expectations and soften the blow after recent polls showed Trump with a 15-point lead in the campaign's final days. CNN said the Cruz campaign believed it only needed to win one-third of the delegates available to stay on track to deny Trump the 1,237 delegates he needs.

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Early in the counting, it was apparent Cruz would not accomplish even that modest goal.

Prior to Cruz's announcement, the anti-Trump movement promised it would not surrender. Katie Packer, chairwoman of the anti-Trump Our Priorities PAC, said in a written statement that they would continue to fight Trump's rise.

"We continue to give voice to the belief of so many Republicans that Trump is not a conservative, does not represent the values of the Republican Party, cannot beat Hillary Clinton, and is simply unfit to be president of the United States," Packer said. "We will continue to educate voters about Trump until he, or another candidate, wins the support of a majority of delegates to the convention."

While the strong words remain a vivid symbol of the apprehension many establishment Republicans have toward Trump, it is unclear how that fight can continue in practical terms with Trump as the nominee. The only other remaining candidate in the race, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, has won only his home state and without Cruz's delegates, would have no way to deny Trump a majority at the GOP convention.

On the Democratic side, though far less dramatic, news media projected Sanders as the winner in indiana. However, analysts and officials have said it is still unlikely the Vermont senator can capture the Democratic nomination due to Clinton's large lead in the delegate count.

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Sanders has faced criticism from some fellow Democrats over the last several weeks for continuing his attacks on Clinton. Speaking to supporters just over the Indiana border in Louisville, Ky., Sanders refrained from going after his opponent. Instead, he reiterated his campaign's core message of ending income inequality.

"In America today, we have millions of people working longer hours for lower wages," Sanders said. "We have families today, mom is working 40 hours, dad is working 40 hours, the kids are working and they are still not earning enough money to support their family. We are going to create an economy that works for all of us, not just the 1 percent."

Sanders narrowly defeated Clinton, winning 52 percent of the vote, to her 46 percent.

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