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Cruz: Trump is a 'sniveling coward'

Ted Cruz blasted Donald Trump on Thursday, calling the Republican front-runner a “sniveling coward” for bringing Cruz’s wife to the forefront of his presidential campaign.

“Donald, you’re a sniveling coward,” Cruz told reporters Thursday in Dane, Wisconsin, forcefully pointing his finger. “Leave Heidi the hell alone.”

But then, when asked whether he would support Trump as the nominee, Cruz gave a long pause before insisting he would beat Trump.

“I’m gonna beat him for the nomination. He is not — I am answering the question,” Cruz said, as a reporter tried to interrupt. “Donald Trump will not be the nominee.”

The Texas senator has repeatedly slammed Trump since the New York billionaire threatened earlier this week to “spill the beans” on Heidi Cruz. Trump fired his warning Tuesday in response to an ad unaffiliated with Cruz’s camp.

The Facebook ad, run by anti-Trump super PAC Make America Awesome, highlighted a nude photo of Trump’s wife, Melania Trump, from British GQ in 2000 in a ploy to pit Mormon voters in Utah against Trump last week.

“Meet Melania Trump. Your next first lady,” an inset caption began. “Or, you could support Ted Cruz on Tuesday.”

Cruz’s rhetoric toward Trump got increasingly heated Thursday. Shortly after midnight Wednesday, he appeared to be taking the high road, but by Thursday afternoon he was visibly agitated.

“It’s not easy to tick me off. I don’t get angry often, but you mess with my wife, you mess with my kids, that’ll do it every time,” Cruz said.

A half-hour after midnight, Cruz tweeted that Melania “is lovely, and Heidi is the love of my life.”

Early Thursday afternoon, Cruz was attacking the business magnate on Twitter for past donations to Democrats, including Hillary Clinton.

Hours later, Cruz was branding Trump a scared candidate who has problems with women — especially strong women. “He ran away from the last debate that was scheduled because he was scared of Megyn Kelly and because he was scared to defend his policies,” Cruz said, referring to a debate Fox News canceled after the front-runner pulled out.

Trump had also opted to forgo an earlier Fox News debate — in part, he said, because of his opposition to the Fox News host and debate moderator he has repeatedly clashed with and insulted — and held a competing event to raise money for veterans.

Trump began invoking Cruz’s wife after the Texas senator’s 55-point drubbing over him in the Utah caucuses, where Trump finished last with 14 percent support. “Let me be absolutely clear: Our spouses and our children are off bounds,” Cruz said. “It is not acceptable for a big, loud New York bully to attack my wife.”

Cruz vigorously defended his children in December when they were subjects of a controversial Washington Post cartoon that was subsequently pulled, and he said they would join him on the trail later Thursday.

“I’m not looking forward to telling the girls why Donald Trump is launching insults and attacks at their mommy,” he said. “I’m not looking forward to that conversation, because it is not acceptable. Real men don’t try to bully women.”

Not only are Trump’s frequent attacks on women actions of weakness and fear, Cruz added, they’re actions “of a small and petty man who is intimidated by strong women.”

“Real men don’t do that, and Donald is indicating the fear that keeps him up at night when he lashes out with anger,” Cruz said, before hailing his wife as his best friend and love of his life. “Donald should stick with attacking me, because Heidi is way out of Donald Trump’s league.”

Heidi Cruz, speaking to reporters Wednesday, said most of what the real estate mogul says has “no basis in reality.”