Twitter users mock Cruz and Fiorina for dubious PR gambit

By {/%BYLINE%} {%AUTHOR%}Beki Winchel{/%AUTHOR%} {%TITLE%}Twitter users mock Cruz, Fiorina for dubious PR gambit{/%TITLE%} {%ALTERNATIVEURL%}{/%ALTERNATIVEURL%} {%IMAGE%}/Uploads/Public/Cruz_Fiorina_Backlash.png{/%IMAGE%} {%ROLE%}87d65c27-6e78-4e5c-b423-78d47d4f2768{/%ROLE%} {%KICKER%}Media Relations{/%KICKER%} {%CATEGORIESID%}9b04de1d-f7bc-4de7-842e-c9c833ff24e9, 055d8a23-ee23-4f9c-a2f4-df030843f312, 5b5f5480-7a63-458a-90a4-0b98007ec3f7{/%CATEGORIESID%} {%CAPTION%}Journalists, social media users unleashed snark, criticism on the struggling GOP presidential candidate after he announced his running mate early.{/%CAPTION%} {%BODYCOPY%}A Republican presidential candidate’s recent attempt to stand out worked—but not in the way he hoped. On Wednesday, Ted Cruz announced former opponent Carly Fiorina as his running mate, should he secure the nomination: Cruz shared the news via Twitter: If I am nominated, I will run on a ticket with @carlyfiorina as my Vice President. Join us: https://t.co/sGy8idmZDEhttps://t.co/4RZxR2zlMz — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) April 27, 2016 Fiorina announced the news on Twitter as well, through a series of tweets: Today, I’m very proud, very humbled to announce that I have accepted Ted Cruz’s offer to be his Vice President. — Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) April 27, 2016 This is a fight for all of us. For our party. For our future. For our children’s future. https://t.co/0RXeKVT8xc — Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) April 27, 2016 Hillary, Trump are two sides of the same coin. They're not going to challenge the system: they are the system. https://t.co/0RXeKVT8xc — Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) April 27, 2016 Tough times reveal character. Ted Cruz is a principled fighter,, a man of character, conviction. https://t.co/0RXeKVT8xc — Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) April 27, 2016 Crony capitalism works if you’re wealthy, powerful, like Trump or Hillary. Ted Cruz will restore power to where it belongs: with citizens — Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) April 27, 2016 Time reported that although Cruz’s announcement was unusual, it came at a pressing point for the desperate presidential candidate: The move comes at a crucial moment for Cruz, who is hoping to regain momentum after a drubbing Tuesday night in five northeastern, mid-Atlantic states. Announcing Fiorina’s selection now is a way for Cruz — who can no longer win the nomination on the convention’s first ballot — to shake up the campaign narrative on the day after Trump declared himself the presumptive Republican nominee. The announcement marks the first time since 1976 — the most recent contested GOP convention — that a candidate has indicated their vice-presidential pick before securing the nomination. That move, by Ronald Reagan, backfired when his selection of Senator Richard Schweiker, a moderate, sparked a revolt within his conservative base. The Economist elaborated: It is unusual to make the announcement of a pick for vice-president so early in the electoral process. Mr Cruz acknowledged this, but explained that he had jumped in because he is confident that neither he nor Mr Trump will win the 1,237 delegates required to get the nomination in the first round of voting at the Republican convention in July. Indiana’s primary election on May 3rd may give the first indication of whether Mr Cruz’s choice of Ms Fiorina has boosted his chances to block Mr Trump’s seemingly unstoppable rise. Cruz’s decision to select a running mate early seems to have already backfired. Twitter users flooded the platform with snark about the announcement: @CarlyFiorina Vice President of what? — Indiana For Trump (@Indianafortrump) April 27, 2016 @CarlyFiorina Vice President of his local Rotary Club? — Chris Kirby (@cskirby28) April 27, 2016 @tedcruz @CarlyFiorina pic.twitter.com/zXUdTdUWdK — COLE. (@ColeHenry2036) April 27, 2016 .@CarlyFiorina Cruz isn't the nominee so this selection is meaningless. Cruz is incredibly unpopular. You're the new Dan Quayle. #totaljoke — Not Backing Down (@Pie_SocialMedia) April 27, 2016 @tedcruz @CarlyFiorina This "major" announcement is just like Ted Cruz's app, unnecessary. — Mark My Words (@MMWapp) April 27, 2016 I feel like I'm watching Comedy Central. For real #TedCruz #CarlyFiorina — Kambree Kawahine Koa (@KamVTV) April 27, 2016 @CarlyFiorina all aboard the Cruz ship...Titanic — Johnny B. Goode (@JohnnyBGoode33) April 27, 2016 I'm waiting for Bobby Jindahl to announce his running mate next, because…why not? #TedCruz #CarlyFiorina — Charles M. Blow (@CharlesMBlow) April 27, 2016 Cruz’s decision to announce a running mate wasn’t the only fodder given to reporters, social media users. In her speech, Fiorina sang a song to Cruz’s daughters—presumably to appear more relatable: RELATED: Speechwriters, join our new LinkedIn group, meet the world's best executive communicators. Get FREE tips, strategies too. People made fun of the tune on Twitter, saying the candidate’s song was more creepy than heartwarming: Lest you thought this couldn’t get any weirder, Fiorina is now singing. — Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) April 27, 2016 #CarlyFiorina singing is like pic.twitter.com/n1kN2tO6xU — Jeri Stoeber (@jlstoeber) April 28, 2016 I'm having nightmares of #CarlyFiorina singing. That was horrific. #Hannity #Trump — SecureOurBorder (@yobynnad1127) April 28, 2016 My ears are bleeding. Make it stop. #CarlyFiorina #singing #maddow @maddow — irene haralabatos (@rini6) April 28, 2016 #CarlyFiorina singing. Why are you giving #SNL material? — Josephine Hush (@JosephineHush) April 28, 2016 Whoever vetted the singing portion of Carly's (hypothetical) VP nom acceptance speech should probably be fired like right now — Allegra Kirkland (@allegrakirkland) April 27, 2016 Carly Fiorina singing to Ted Cruz’s kids is the creepiest thing to happen so far this election. And this election also features Ted Cruz — Freddie Campion (@FreddieCampion) April 27, 2016 Twitter users weren’t the only ones to mock Cruz, Fiorina. Gawker reporter Hudson Hongo penned an article titled, “Carly Fiorina, who was right about Ted Cruz: I was wrong about Ted Cruz.” The New Yorker’s Andy Borowitz wrote a satirical piece, which said, in part: Minutes after the news of Cruz’s selection leaked, political insiders called the choice of the wildly adored Fiorina a game-changer for the Cruz campaign. “It’s no secret that Ted Cruz has some trouble with likeability,” the Republican strategist Harland Dorrinson said. “What better way to fix that than by choosing Carly Fiorina, a person everyone is absolutely crazy about?” … Dorrinson, the Republican strategist, said Cruz’s campaign will see a huge boost from what is widely known in political circles as “the Fiorina magic.” “Picking Fiorina was a masterstroke,” he said. “Now all Ted has to do is sit back, watch Carly do what she does best: make people fall in love her.” Jennifer Lawless, government professor, the director of the Women, Politics Institute at American University, summed up Cruz’s curious gambit in a CNN op-ed: At first I was perplexed. Cruz isn't the nominee. It's looking increasingly unlikely that he will be,, people who aren't nominees don't need running mates. So why the announcement? But then I realized Fiorina is Cruz's Hail Mary pass, his "reset button" on a campaign for a nomination that is falling further, further out of reach. She is a political tactic to try to steal back the spotlight from Donald Trump, who crushed his opponents in a five-state primary sweep Tuesday night. What Cruz doesn't seem to realize, though, is that it won't work. Selecting Fiorina underscores his own lack of judgment, character in at least three ways. What do you think of the announcement from a public relations perspective, PR Daily readers? What would you have advised Cruz to do instead? {/%BODYCOPY%} {%ID%}20624{/%ID%} {%DATAID%}344ab185-b406-4a34-b43b-8f989f42dabd{/%DATAID%} {%CanonicalUrl%}http://www.ragan.com/Main/Articles/51105.aspx{/%CanonicalUrl%} {%PUBLISHDATE%}4/29/2016 1:47:59 PM{/%PUBLISHDATE%} {%LINK%}https://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/20624.aspx{/%LINK%} {%BYLINE%}Russell Working
April 29, 2016