Report: Ted Cruz Mailer Claims ‘Check Enclosed,’ Then Asks For Donation

Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a campaign stop Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in Hollis, N.H. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
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Sen. Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) campaign has sent out a mailer that says on the envelope that there is a “check enclosed,” but the document inside asks for a donation with a fake check made out to the Cruz campaign, the Huffington Post reported on Sunday.

The return address on the envelope says it came from “U.S. Senator Ted Cruz” in a font that looks official. Below his name on the envelope in smaller text, the envelope reads, “Personal business” and “Not printed or mailed at taxpayer expense.”

The mailer includes a fake check made out to “Cruz for President,” and a letter says that a “group of generous supporters” will match any contribution made to the campaign.

“Your contribution of $45 to ‘Cruz for President’ — as long as you respond quickly — will be immediately matched for double the impact …” the letter reads. “… resulting in a $90 contribution to support my campaign for President of the United States.”

“A group of generous supporters recently joined up with our campaign, but instead of just donating money, they want to challenge other conservatives like you all over America to join our grassroots team as well,” Cruz’s campaign says in the letter.

The Huffington Post published images of the mailer received by a New Jersey resident. Individuals in numerous other states then told the Huffington Post that they also received the mailer.

The mailer also tells recipients that “Washington Republicans” are using super PACs to try to defeat Cruz’s presidential campaign as the primaries get going.

“So now is the time for conservatives to come together. If we unite behind one candidate, we will outnumber the ‘moderates’ (they are really liberals on the issues) and win,” the letter reads.

Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier told the Huffington Post that the campaign mailer “clearly indicates that the contribution is going to the Cruz for President campaign,” and she added that campaigns often use promises that a donor will match a contribution as a fundraising technique.

These mailers follow ones sent to Iowa voters ahead of the caucuses, which the Iowa secretary of state said “misrepresents Iowa election law.” The mailers warned voters of a “voter violation” and gave Iowa voters poor voting “grades,” urging them to head to the caucuses.

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