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Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname

Senator discussed the 2016 campaign insult on a podcast, calling it an effective political tactic.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published
Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname

What this story says

  • Senator Ted Cruz praised Donald Trump's "instinctual genius" for the "Lyin' Ted" nickname.
  • Cruz discussed the 2016 campaign insult on the "Pod Force One" podcast hosted by Miranda Devine.
  • He described the nickname as a politically effective tactic that targeted his perceived trustworthiness.
  • Cruz has not committed to a 2028 presidential run but has reportedly been recruiting workers.

Who covered it

Left 50%(4)Centre 37%(3)Right 13%(1)

Percentages are shares of the 8 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .

Trust

62/100

Craft

85/100

Hype

30/100

8 sources · methodology

Thin on the right so far

Only 1 of the 8 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.

Senator Ted Cruz has praised President Donald Trump's "instinctual genius" for the "Lyin' Ted" nickname, which Trump used during their 2016 presidential campaign. Cruz discussed the insult on the "Pod Force One" podcast, hosted by Miranda Devine, calling it a politically effective tactic.

Cruz explained that the "Lyin' Ted" moniker was effective because it attacked his perceived greatest strength: voter trust. He stated that Trump's tactic was "jujitsu," turning his strength into a point of attack. Cruz also commented on Trump's perceived respect for strength, saying, "I don’t think he respects girly men."

The senator has not committed to a presidential run in 2028, but reports indicate he has been recruiting staff for a potential campaign. During the 2016 campaign, Trump employed harsh tactics against Cruz, including suggesting Cruz's wife was unattractive and forwarding a conspiracy theory about Cruz's father.

Coverage disagreements

While most reports agree that Ted Cruz praised Trump's "instinctual genius" for the "Lyin' Ted" nickname, the framing of Cruz's overall stance differs. HuffPost and Raw Story suggest Cruz was "bootlicking" Trump and trying to stay in his good graces, noting his past insults towards Trump. Thedailybs.com stated Cruz "officially embraces" the nickname, implying a shift in his public stance. RadarOnline reported Cruz is facing "heavy scrutiny from critics" for his remarks.

What the coverage left out

None of the left, centre, or right-rated reports mention the specific details of the "Pod Force One" podcast episode beyond the discussion of the "Lyin' Ted" nickname and Cruz's comments on Trump's perceived strengths. The full report from HuffPost provided more context on the 2016 campaign, including Trump's attacks on Cruz's wife and father, which were not detailed in the digests of other outlets.

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 21 Sept 2026, 03:45, and will add the sides that appear.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

4 rated outlets

  • Left-rated reports highlighted Senator Ted Cruz's praise for Donald Trump's "instinctual genius" in using the "Lyin' Ted" nickname. HuffPost and Raw Story framed Cruz's comments as "bootlicking" and an attempt to curry favour with Trump, contrasting his current remarks with his past descriptions of Trump as a "pathological liar." Joe.My.God. also noted Cruz's comment about Trump not respecting "girly men." OK! Magazine focused on Cruz admitting the "Lyin' Ted" branding was a "shrewd political tactic."

Centre

3 rated outlets

  • Centre-rated reports focused on Senator Ted Cruz's direct praise for Donald Trump's "instinctual genius" regarding the "Lyin' Ted" nickname. Penn Live and The Hill used the phrase "instinctual genius" in their headlines, with The Hill quoting Cruz calling the nickname "politically very effective." RadarOnline reported that Cruz was facing "heavy scrutiny from critics" for his comments.

Right

1 rated outlet

  • The right-rated report from thedailybs.com stated that Ted Cruz has "officially embrace[d] 'Lyin' Ted' nickname" and acknowledged that Trump's attack was an "extraordinarily effective piece of political marketing."

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname?
Of the 8 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 50% are rated left, 37% are rated centre, 13% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname left or right?
Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 8 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
Is the coverage of Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname biased?
Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname is one event reported by 8 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered Ted Cruz praises Trump's 'instinctual genius' for 'Lyin' Ted' nickname?
8 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What did Ted Cruz say about Donald Trump's "Lyin' Ted" nickname?
Senator Ted Cruz praised Donald Trump's "instinctual genius" for creating the "Lyin' Ted" nickname during the 2016 presidential campaign. Cruz described it as a politically effective tactic that targeted his perceived strength of trustworthiness.
Where did Ted Cruz make these remarks?
Ted Cruz made these remarks on the "Pod Force One" podcast, hosted by Miranda Devine. The episode was released recently, and Cruz discussed his past rivalry with Trump and their current relationship.
Has Ted Cruz announced a 2028 presidential run?
No, Ted Cruz has not committed to a presidential run in 2028. However, reports suggest that he has been actively recruiting staff for a potential future campaign.

Read it at the source

8 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

4

Centre

3

Right

1

Not rated

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

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