After an impressive showing from Donald Trump on Super Tuesday, the Republican establishment is reeling and now is getting desperate to keep Mr. Trump from becoming the Republican presidential nominee.
Political action committees are reportedly going to spend in excess of $7 million on attack advertisements in the state of Florida, ahead of that state's March 15 primary, and many familiar Republican faces are denouncing Mr. Trump. See an ad released yesterday by a PAC called Our Values below.
Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, will speak on Thursday and is expected to pull no punches in bashing Mr. Trump.
"Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud," Mr. Romney said in an excerpt of his speech. "His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. He's playing the American public for suckers: He gets a free ride to the White House and all we get is a lousy hat."
Mr. Trump, who endorsed Mr. Romney in 2012, responded with the following tweets.
Mr. Trump cleaned up on Tuesday, winning seven states. His main rivals, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, won three states and one state, respectively.
The brash businessman has been dominating the primary season, but still has a lot to do to sew up the presidential nomination before the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July.
Republican leaders and strategists are hoping these attack ads and denouncements will blunt Mr. Trump's momentum ahead of important upcoming votes in states like Florida, Michigan, Illinois and North Carolina.
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