Kasich, Rubio suggest they may not support Trump

Associated Press

VANDALIA, Ohio

Republican presidential candidates Marco Rubio and John Kasich suggested Saturday they may not support Donald Trump if he becomes the GOP nominee, as violence at the front-runner’s rallies deepened the party’s chaotic chasm.

Rubio told The Associated Press that Trump is driving apart “both the party and the country so bitterly” that he may not be able to support the billionaire if he’s the Republican nominee.

“It’s an ongoing pattern,” Rubio said. “And it’s clear to me that he knows what he’s doing.”

Kasich, the Ohio governor, delivered his harshest criticism yet of Trump, saying Saturday that he’s “had it” with the “toxic” nature of Trump’s campaign, and it’s making it “extremely difficult” to support him.

“To see Americans slugging themselves at a political rally deeply disturbed me,” Kasich said while campaigning in Cincinnati. “We’re better than that.”

The extraordinary shift by the two came just a few days before Tuesday’s elections in five delegate-rich states, including their home states of Florida and Ohio.

The only candidate to stand by his pledge to support Trump if he becomes the nominee was Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who is closest to the businessman in the delegate count.

“I committed at the outset – I will support the Republican nominee, whoever it is,” Cruz told reporters Saturday.