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Ted Cruz denies there was any formal joining of forces with Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Ted Cruz on Kasich: What alliance?

The Ted Cruz-John Kasich alliance has worn so thin it’s now imperceptible. In fact, if you ask Ted Cruz, it doesn’t even exist.

The pact the two campaigns announced late Sunday to cede states to each other in order to conserve resources and stymie Donald Trump from securing the Republican presidential nomination outright was showing signs of fraying by Monday afternoon, when the Ohio governor suggested he never told supporters in Indiana not to vote for him.

The agreement, however, was for Kasich to cede Indiana to Cruz, who would in turn clear the way for Kasich in New Mexico and Oregon.

To make matters worse, Cruz’s newly announced vice presidential pick, Carly Fiorina, on Wednesday urged Kasich to drop out.

And on Thursday, Cruz denied there was any formal joining of forces.

“I recognize that the media is all eager to talk about an alliance,” Cruz told reporters at a stop in Fort Wayne, Indiana. “There is no alliance. Kasich and I made a determination of where to focus our energies, where to focus our assets, where to focus our resources.”

“John Kasich made the decision in his own political self-interest to withdraw from Indiana and to go compete elsewhere. And that was a perfectly reasonable decision,” Cruz said, before imploring Kasich’s Indiana supporters to back the senator’s campaign if they don’t want Donald Trump to be the GOP nominee or Hillary Clinton to be president.