[Bolduan:] So Donald Trump does not seem to have woke up happy today. Ted Cruz and John Kasich are now friends, sort of. So how did we get here overnight? The surprise divide-and-conquer agreement between Ted Cruz and John Kasich has the potential of reshaping this entire race. Trump calls it desperate and collusion. Cruz and Kasich might see it more though as survival.
[Berman:] A pretty big shift in the tone between the two candidates who have taken some serious shots at each other over the last several weeks.
[Cruz:] At this point, Kasich's role is essentially as a spoiler. A vote or John Kasich is a vote for Donald Trump.
[Kasich:] A vote for Cruz or Trump, frankly, is a vote for Hillary Clinton.
[Cruz:] As we stand here today, there are two people and only two people that have any plausible path whatsoever to winning the Republican nomination, me and Donald Trump. As I said, plausible path.
[Kasich:] Ted, Senator Ted, the smear artist, you know, they're attacking me.
[Cruz:] John Kasich has no path whatsoever to the nomination.
[Berman:] Well, now the spoiler has a deal with the smear artist. The smear artist has a deal with the spoiler. As Kate said, dogs and cats living together. Let's talk more about it, senior adviser to Donald Trump's presidential campaign, Barry Bennett is with us; and Ted Cruz surrogate and chairman of the conservative advocacy group, ForAmerica, Brent Bozell. Barry, we have not yet heard from the Trump campaign on this deal. Your reaction?
[Barry Bennett, Senior Advisor, Donald Trump Presidential Campaign:] I thought we'd seen it all, but apparently we haven't yet. I'm going with smoilers. That's what I like.
[Bolduan:] Smoilers?
[Bennett:] Yeah.
[Bolduan:] That does not have such a ring to it though, Barry.
[Berman:] Barry, Donald Trump says this deal, it's a horrible act of desperation. Is that how you see it, Barry?
[Bennett:] Yeah, it is a desperate act. Last week they both said, both of them in their own words, said that Donald Trump had no chance of getting to 1,237. And then obviously they believe he does. Because he does. Five states vote tomorrow. Ted Cruz is going to finish last in all five, maybe not one of them, but at least four of the five. And then we go to Indiana where we're up in fact, I think we're up in every state remaining. So, you know, I think this is a desperate attempt. Kasich is running out of money. That's really the root of all this. He can't afford to keep his offices open in Indiana. He's going to go to New Mexico and Oregon, which are proportional states, which makes absolutely no sense. Bad strategy, bad theater, stupid deal.
[Bolduan:] Stupid deal, desperate. Brent, what say you?
[Brent Bozell, Chairman, Foramerica & Ted Cruz Presidential Campaign Surrogate:] Well, let's start here, the idea that Kasich and Cruz, who have criticized each other, now coming together is some kind of novelty. Look, what did Donald Trump do to Ben Carson? He ripped the hide off of him. What did he do to Chris Christie? He insulted him at every opportunity. Christie and Carson are now supporting him. That's called politics. But here is the reality. Yes, they're joining forces in these three states. It's a smart move to make, and what they're also saying to the Republican Party and saying to America is Donald Trump simply cannot win the presidency. He cannot beat Hillary Clinton. With the 65 percent disapproval rating, where he's shown his strength is in northeastern states like New York, and she's going to take all those states, what they're saying you better look at us because, if not, you're going to sit in on the inauguration of Hillary Clinton next January.
[Berman:] Barry Brent, you make a fair point about politics.
[Bolduan:] It is, yeah.
[Berman:] Ben Carson is now supporting Donald Trump and they said nasty things about each other before that. However, you know, couldn't you also say that Ted Cruz is now effectively saying I can't win Indiana without John Kasich getting out? I mean, he's been saying that John Kasich, you know, was the standing between himself and the presidency. Now he says he needs John Kasich's machinations to beat Donald Trump at the convention.
[Bozell:] I think that Ted Cruz has been saying since this whittled down to a three-man race that he hoped John Kasich would get out because he going one-on-one can beat Donald Trump. And in the Indiana situation, that's exactly what he's saying.
[Bolduan:] Barry?
[Bennett:] Oh, my.
[Bolduan:] Barry, does this also mean you already kind of said that you're ahead, you're ahead, you're ahead, but if they really work together, if Kasich voters go to supporters go to Cruz, you have problems in Indiana, man.
[Bennett:] But this is just it. This is something Washington doesn't understand about politics. Nobody's supporters 100 percent go to anybody, and to assume Take California, where we're 27 points ahead, Ted Cruz is not going to get 100 percent of John Kasich's supporters. That's lunacy. It's just not going to happen. It never happens. They just don't this is really pathetic. They both understand they're not going to go to the convention with enough delegates to win and now they're trying everything they can to stop somebody else. It's just crazy.
[Berman:] Brent, is
[Bozell:] But, Barry, can I ask a question? Barry, would you be willing to concede and maybe even crazy enough to apologize for once more Donald Trump lying through his teeth by saying that this is collusion when the definition of collusion is that it's a secret deal and this could not be more public. Would you be willing to concede your guy has lied once again?
[Bennett:] Will he release a transcript of what happened last night? Will you release a transcript Would you? Come on, it's a secret deal. It's not a secret deal. It's public. You guys won't release this transcript, what went on, what were the negotiations, what donors were involved, were there any super PAC donors involved in the deal?
[Berman:] Go ahead, Brent.
[Bozell:] Then so long as the Donald "New York Times" editorial
[Bennett:] We don't have it to release. You know that.
[Bozell:] where he said to them, don't believe anything I'm saying to these conservatives right now. I think both sides would be very, very it would be very interesting if both sides agreed to release those transcripts.
[Berman:] All right, guys, I think we're not getting any transcripts. Let's leave the transcripts discussion there. But, Brent, I want to ask you this. Is Governor Kasich doing this deal the right way now? Because we just heard him on TV a few minutes ago. He was asked would he tell his
[Bolduan:] What would you tell voters in Indiana? He said, I never said they shouldn't vote for me. They ought to vote for me.
[Bozell:] Honestly, I don't know the answer to that. You're going to have to ask him. I honestly can't answer that question.